#news : TURKEY BLOCKS ACCESS TO @PANCAKESWAP, 45 CRYPTO WEBSITES IN REGULATORY CRACKDOWN

🇹🇷 Turkey Blocks PancakeSwap, Targets 46 Crypto Websites in Regulatory Crackdown

Turkey’s financial regulator, the Capital Markets Board (SPK), has officially blocked access to 46 websites—among them the major decentralized exchange PancakeSwap—in its latest crackdown on what it calls “unauthorized crypto asset services.”

The decision, published in SPK’s July 3 bulletin, cites articles 99 and 99/A of the Capital Markets Law as the legal foundation for restricting access to these platforms. While crypto trading remains legal in Turkey, service providers must now comply with increasingly tight regulations or risk being blacklisted.

PancakeSwap, a prominent DEX boasting over $325 billion in June trading volume, was included in the ban without clear evidence of specific violations. Also blocked was Cryptoradar, a crypto comparison site. The regulator did not specify how these platforms violated the law, but their lack of licensing within Turkey may be the key issue.

Turkey’s regulatory regime for crypto firms was formalized in March, granting SPK full oversight of the sector. As part of this framework, crypto transactions over 15,000 lira (about $425) require identity verification, and platforms must adhere to new operational standards.

The crackdown mirrors moves by governments in Russia, Venezuela, and the Philippines, where DEXs and offshore trading sites have often been accused of facilitating tax evasion or unregulated financial activity.

Despite the bans, Turkish citizens are still legally allowed to buy, hold, and trade crypto—just not through these blocked platforms. A legal challenge to Turkey’s earlier ban on crypto payments was scheduled for hearing in May, suggesting pushback to the country’s increasingly assertive stance on digital assets is building.