Turkey, perhaps better than anywhere else, illustrates the broad role gold can play in modern society. Gold is embedded in Turkish life: merchants pioneered the use of gold coins in ancient Lydia, and today gold plays an important and innovative role in Turkey’s economy.
Turkey’s relationship with gold is underpinned by a deep cultural heritage and it plays an important role in weddings and other aspects of religious life. In the jewellery industry it is both a medium of exchange and a unit of account: in the Grand Bazaar – the heart of Turkey’s gold market – rents are often priced in gold. There is a strong economic incentive to own gold too. Generations of Turkish savers have turned to gold as an effective hedge against the ravages of inflation and currency weakness.
Read World Gold Council report: Turkey: gold in action
