Lira hits record low as Erdoğan sacks two Central Bank deputy governors

Kavcıoğlu and Erdoğan (Photo: AA)

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has once again made changes in the senior management of the Central Bank.

Two deputy governors, Prof. Dr. Semih Tümen and Dr. Uğur Namık Küçük, and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee, Prof. Abdullah Yavaş, have been sacked, according to the decision published in the official Gazette early today (October 14).

Taha Çakmak was appointed as a deputy governor and Prof. Yusuf Tuna was appointed to the committee.

The dismissals came after Erdoğan meeting with Central Bank Governor Şahap Kavcıoğlu in the capital city of Ankara yesterday.

After the dismissals, the US dollar's exchange rate exceeded 9.18 against lira, hitting an all-time record. The lira has lost 19 percent of its value against the dollar this year. The next monetary policy meeting will take place on October 21.

Since 2019, the president has changed the bank's governor four times.

Erdoğan appointed the incumbent governor, Şahap Kavcıoğlu, on March 20, after sacking Naci Ağbal for hiking interest rates in November and December. (HA/VK)