Bank deposit rates announced: The deposit race

The postponement of Central Bank interest rate cut forecasts to 2025 has accelerated the public's search for high-interest deposits.

Banks, in turn, have increased their interest rates through 'welcome' interest campaigns to gain new customers.

In recent days, the TL deposit interest rates offered by banks for existing customers range between 37 percent and 49 percent.

However, with campaigns aimed at acquiring new customers, these rates can go up to 56 percent. Interest rates, which vary among banks depending on both maturity and balance, promise higher returns to investors.

According to data released by the Central Bank, the share of foreign currency deposits in total deposits has declined due to the horizontal trend in the exchange rate and the high returns on TL deposits.

According to information obtained from bankers, while interest in TL deposits is increasing, growth is particularly observed in new customer accounts. However, despite the attractive interest rates of the announced campaigns, investors may find themselves below their expectations due to other required conditions.

While the interest rates offered by public banks for new deposit customers are at most around 50.5 percent, this rate varies between 49 percent and 53 percent in private banks.

Some private banks offering digital banking services have raised their TL deposit interest rates to 56 percent, allowing a customer who deposits 100 thousand liras to earn a net profit of around 4 thousand 500 liras after 32 days.

Some banks may impose other conditions on their customers after offering attractive interest rates.

For example, a bank offering 52 percent interest may apply this rate only to 10 percent of the deposit. In this case, investors may not be able to receive the expected interest rate on all their investments.

Additionally, while some banks offer extra cash promotions, they require a certain portion of salaries to be deposited into their own accounts. This can affect the efficiency of the campaigns.