Bank regulator puts German unit of Turkey’s Ziraat under supervision

BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany’s financial watchdog BaFin said on Tuesday it had appointed a representative to ensure the German unit of Turkey’s Ziraat Bank fulfills obligations including obeying laws against money laundering.

BaFin said it appointed the representative after the Frankfurt-based Ziraat Bank International AG did not obey its order to ensure its business complied with the German Money Laundering Act.

In July 2021, the regulator had said it was in talks with Ziraat Bank’s German unit – which is active in financing trade between Turkey and Germany – over concerns about some loan transactions and the bank’s balance sheet.

Ziraat Bank declined to comment.

(Reporting by Zuzanna Szymanska in Berlin and Ebru Tuncay in Istanbul,; Editing by Thomas Escritt)