ISTANBUL - Turkey's ruling ​AK Party proposed ⁠on Monday adopting a tax on cryptocurrency ‌income and a transaction levy on crypto asset service providers, in ​a draft law submitted to parliament.

"Platforms must apply a 10% withholding ​tax on ​income and gains from crypto-asset transactions on a quarterly basis," the text of the draft said. Profits from ⁠crypto asset transactions conducted outside authorized platforms would be taxed through declaration in annual statements.

Under the proposal, crypto asset service providers would pay a 0.03% transaction tax on ​sale ‌and transfer transactions ⁠they conduct or ⁠mediate.

Turkish authorities have steadily tightened oversight of platforms as cryptocurrency use ​in Turkey surged in recent years, ‌driven largely by high inflation ⁠and the lira's depreciation. Turkey ranks among the world's leaders in crypto adoption and annual transaction volumes, reaching nearly $200 billion in 2025, far surpassing other markets in the region, U.S.-based blockchain research company Chainalysis said in a report.

"Such plans for taxes risk doing more harm than good at this stage," said Bora Erdamar, director of ‌the BlockchainIST Center.

"These tax plans could push users ⁠away from local platforms and slow ​the growth of the market. These measures may be appropriate once the sector is mature, but for now ​I think ‌it is too early," Erdamar said.

(Reporting by ⁠Ezgi Erkoyun and Nevzat ​Devranoglu; Editing by Ece Toksabay and Jonathan Spicer)