(MENAFN) A sweeping currency swap agreement between Türkiye’s Central Bank (TCMB) and the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) is poised to bolster Türkiye’s digital banking infrastructure and attract new waves of investment from the Gulf, economists said Thursday.

Signed in Ankara, the deal involves a bilateral Turkish lira–UAE dirham swap valued at 198 billion lira ($4.7 billion) and 18 billion dirhams ($4.9 billion). Alongside the currency swap, two additional agreements aim to promote the use of national currencies in international trade and align the countries’ payment and messaging systems for seamless financial transactions.

İsmet Demirkol, an economist at Istanbul’s Bahçeşehir University and founder of consultancy Pariterium, told media that the deal could play a transformative role in Türkiye’s digital economy.

“The deal will accelerate digital banking adoption in Türkiye and help integrate the country’s financial sector into the ‘new world order,’” he said. Demirkol added that this financial alignment would also draw investment into digital technologies and banking innovation, with future deals potentially driving capital into green energy projects — including wind, solar, and hydrogen sectors.

He emphasized that such agreements could reduce Türkiye’s reliance on foreign financing and contribute toward achieving a current account surplus.

Echoing these views, Filiz Eryılmaz, associate professor of economics at Bursa Uludağ University, noted the deal's potential to boost Türkiye’s financial stability.

“Türkiye and the UAE already have strong trade relations — this deal is a positive step to attract more capital from Gulf countries,” she said. “It is a win for both trade and capital inflows.”

The move marks a significant step in Türkiye’s broader push to strengthen regional financial ties while reinforcing its central bank’s foreign exchange reserves amid ongoing global monetary tightening.

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