 Risk Center has released data indicating a substantial rise in the number of people facing legal action due to unpaid personal loans and credit card debt in the first half of 2024, currently totaling 891,000.){kind=link}
The Turkish Banks Association (TBB) Risk Center has released data indicating a substantial rise in the number of people facing legal action due to unpaid personal loans and credit card debt in the first half of 2024, currently totaling 891,000.
In the first half of 2024, 645,000 people faced legal action for unpaid personal credit card debt. During the same period 536,000 individuals were under legal follow-up for unpaid personal loans. When the number of individuals who are in both categories is taken into consideration, the combined total of 891,000 people unable to meet their debt obligations represents a 43 percent increase from the previous year.
As of June 2024 the amount of personal loan and credit card debt to be paid off had reached 77 billion Turkish lira, a 103 percent increase over the previous year, according to Risk Center data.
Many Turks are struggling to make ends meet as the country is suffering the worst bout of inflation of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s two-decade rule. The official annual inflation rate peaked at 85 percent in October 2022.
After winning re-election in May 2023, Erdoğan appointed a new team of market-friendly economists that was given the freedom to sharply hike the policy rate.
According to data announced by the Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) on Monday, Turkey’s annual rate of inflation slowed sharply in July to 61.78 percent from above 71 percent in June.
However, ENAG, an independent group of economists, said annual inflation was much higher than was announced by TurkStat, standing at 100.88 percent in July.