Significant amendments regarding remote identity verification and the establishment of contractual relationships in electronic environment have been introduced to the Communiqué on Remote Identity Verification Methods to Be Used by Brokerage Firms and Portfolio Management Companies and the Establishment of Contractual Relationships in Electronic Environment (III-42.1) (“Communiqué”) through the Communiqué Amending the Communiqué (III-42.1.a) (“Amendment Communiqué”), published in the Official Gazette dated 28 February 2026 and numbered 33182. The Amendment Communiqué entered into force on the date of its publication.
The significant amendments introduced by the Amendment Communiqué can be summarized as follows:
- The title and purpose of the Communiqué have been updated, and crypto asset service providers (“CASP”) have also been included within the scope of the regulations on remote identity verification and the establishment of contractual relationships in electronic environment for brokerage firms and portfolio management companies.
- With the Amendment Communiqué, Article 32 of the Communiqué on the Establishment and Operating Principles of Crypto Asset Service Providers (III-35/B.1) has been added to the scope of the legislation that must be complied with in the acquisition, management, and use of systems to be used in remote identity verification as specified in the Communiqué, and the legislative reference on information systems has been updated as Article 19 of the Communiqué on Procedures and Principles Regarding Information Systems Management (VII-128.10).
- In addition, the procedures and principles specified in the Communiqué regarding the conduct of the remote identity verification process (including the establishment of a workflow procedure, process testing, review of the remote identity verification procedure at least twice a year, and implementation of necessary updates in cases such as security breaches or regulatory changes, etc.) have also become applicable to CASPs.
- Furthermore, the provisions specified in the Communiqué regarding the procedures and principles to be followed before, during, and at the end of the video call in the remote identity verification process have been updated to also cover CASPs.
- Likewise, the provisions under the Communiqué regarding the monitoring, under a different risk profile, of persons whose identities have been verified through remote identity verification, the application of additional security and control methods based on transaction type and amount, and the fact that the burden of proof in the event of an objection lies with the entity have also become applicable to CASPs.
- The provision regarding the authority of the Capital Markets Board of Türkiye (“CMB”) to restrict or suspend the use of remote identity verification where deemed necessary has been updated to also apply to CASPs.
- In addition, the scope of the provision stipulating that contracts established in accordance with the procedures and principles specified in the Communiqué shall be deemed to have been established in written form has been extended to also cover contracts signed within the scope of services and activities offered by CASPs to their clients.
Furthermore, the use of artificial intelligence-based methods has been enabled for the procedures to be carried out by personnel during the remote identity verification process. In this regard, where such methods are used, the principles specified in Article 4(9) of the General Communiqué of the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (Serial No: 19) must, at a minimum, be taken into account. It has also been stipulated that the CMB is authorized to determine the procedures and principles applicable to brokerage firms, portfolio management companies, and CASPs that will use such methods.
The full text of the Amendment Communiqué can be reached via this link. (Only available in Turkish)
