AA - Türkiye's commercial capital has been promoted in the "Mega Cities & Financial Capitals" panel of senior economists.
Türkiye’s finance minister has said the country aims to be among the top-three performing economies in Europe within a decade.
Mehmet Simsek was speaking alongside leading figures from Türkiye's economy on Friday on a panel covering Istanbul's potential to become a finance hub.
Simsek, chairman of Central Bank Erdem Basci, and chairman of Istanbul Stock Exchange, Ibrahim Turan, were attending the Future Cities Forum: 'Mega Cities & Financial Capitals.'
Minister Simsek set the bar for Türkiye's economy to rise into the top three in Europe and top ten in the world in the next few decades.
Türkiye’s growth was 4.3% in the first quarter of this year, above expectations, and signaled optimism despite struggling for months before the March 30 elections.
Türkiye's finance head praised the country’s solid banking system, which came through 2009's financial crisis in Europe without taking any bailouts from the state.
Simsek stressed the importance of the strength in the banking system and said their profitability should not be perceived negatively, responding to criticism over the banking sector's high profit rates.
Simsek said Istanbul was ranked as the 47th biggest financial center globally as of March this year after climbing up from the bottom of the list when the incumbent government took power.