Savings invested in Turkey

Avonbarksdale

We have the money made from the sale of a property invested in a Turkish bank account. The money is earning over 8% interest but at the same time the Lira is slipping against the pound day by day. Do we leave our money there and hope the Lira recovers , or just bring it back to the UK asap? anyone else in this position?

bigadaj

It's up to you, it's a risk either way. Bringing it back crystallises the sum though you'd be getting a lower rate of interest, if it were me then I'd be tempted to bring it back, I think the Turkish economy will do well but there is risk and volatility as it's not a developed market, also I don't know what level of protection on deposits exist, if any, and whether these can be relied upon particularly by someone who ain't Turkish.

innovate

What are your plans for the money? Do you want to spend it in the UK? In Turkey? Elsewhere?

Emperor2014

Could you repatriate part of the funds you have invested there? How much has the Lira fallen? Is it likely to fall any further? Why has the Lire fallen so much and is this a temporary fall? Is the Lira likely to recover? Are you in it for the long term or the short/medium term? What fees will you incur to repatriate the funds? What's your risk appetite? How financially/emotionally/relationally resilient are you to a negative outcome if you did take the risk of keeping the funds in Turkey?

Those are some of the questions I would consider in making a decision.

Avonbarksdale

Thanks to all for your suggestions. The lira has gone from about 3.1 to 3.8 against the pound in just a few weeks and is getting worse by the day. Yesterday the central bank of Turkey intervened to try and shore up the currency. We are trying to take our money out of the bank there but it's proving very difficult. A lesson for us there in believing the assurances about efficient internet banking. I think they are trying to prevent currency being taken out of the country. All very worrying.

princeofpounds

They are not trying to prevent currency being taken out of the country. The lira is an easily convertible currency. In fact the bank you have it in can almost certainly convert it into a dollar deposit - most turks have a dollar and a lira account and switch between the two frequently as sentiment shifts on the currency (the current sell-off in the lira is largely being driven by household deposits).

Frankly, most of the loss has likely already been taken. Currencies can fall and rise and no-one knows for sure where they will stop. What everyone is waiting for is for the Turkish central bank to raise interest rates to make lira more attractive and stem the outflows into dollars. But they are not wanting to do this because the PM has said he doesn't want to, (for various religious and pseudoeconomic reasons) and there is an important election soon.

When things do stabilise, Turkish assets are likely to be very cheap again, including the currency, so it might make sense to buy another property!

atush

I agree, what will the money be used for? If it will be spent, saved, invested in GBP move it now. If it wil be invested in other property or assets in turkey, leave it there.

paddyrg

Are your savings protected there if your bank goes belly-up? May be a factor to consider.