Aktif Bank Turkey targets cross-border payments
Aktif Bank Turkey will use Earthport services to automate cross-border transactions
Turkey’s largest investment bank, Aktif, has begun using international payment services from specialist Earthport to help its corporate and retail customers get a better deal on their cross-border payments.
Founded in 1999, Aktif Bank is worth £3.16 billion and had £850 million in assets under management at the end of 2012. The bank covers retail, investment and regional banking. The bank has been looking to expand its business beyond Turkey. It first partnered with Earthport in 2012, when the company first opened a low value payment service into the country. Under the latest deal, Earthport will focus on assisting the bank with cross-border payments in local currencies.
Using the Earthport service, fees and foreign exchange rates will be presented to customers upfront and payment time-scales set out. Earthport already provides white label services to Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC, Western Union and Japanese remittances provider Kyodai Remittance. The company covers 60 countries directly through local clearing and 140 others through “traditional methods”.
“Earthport’s ability to provide international payment clearing services locally to many markets around the globe, together with sophisticated validation services, predictable settlement dates and transaction reporting was an attractive proposition,” said Önder Halisdemir, chief executive of Aktif Bank. “It gives us scope to build services we believe our customers will find compelling.”
