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SECTION ONE
Scope and Purpose, Legal Basis, Abbreviations
In cases where there is not clarity in this Regulation and in communiqués to enter
into force regarding accounting standards pursuant to this Regulation, principles adopted on
national and international accounting standards, the norms brought by the European Union
regulations, principles widely used in financial markets in case they are not contradictory to
the legislation are applied respectively.
Legal basis
Article 2- This Regulation has been enacted pursuant to the provisions of Article 3,
paragraph (11) and Article 13 of the Banks Act No: 4389.
Abbreviations
Article 3- In this Regulation;
“Bank” means the definition in Article 2 of the Banks Act No: 4389.
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As amended by the Regulation published in the Official Gazette No. 24915 and dated 23.10.2002
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SECTION TWO
Basic Accounting Principles
Going concern, matching and consistency principles are also accepted as the basic
assumptions of accounting. In case any of these assumptions become invalid, this shall be
presented in the explanations and footnotes of the financial statements.
Going concern
Article 5- Going concern principle means that the activities are to be carried out
without any time limit and there is no tendency or need to finalize the activities or limiting
the scale.
In case the activities are finalized or the tendency or need for the limitation of the
scale engenders or uncertainties that could affect the going concern are determined, these
points must be explained in the footnotes of the financial statements. If the determinations
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made necessitate a change in the accounting policy, the changes made in the accounting
policy are shown in the explanations and footnotes of the financial statement together with
its possible effects.
In the periods when the financial statements are prepared, regarding the going
concern of the activities, it is required to make future-oriented assessments, under objective
criterion and reasonable assumptions through taking into consideration all existing
information as not being less than one year as of the balance sheet date. In case the
existence of activity profitability occurring from previous years and opportunity to access
easily to the financial resources, going concern assumption is adopted without making a
detailed evaluation. In other cases, points such as existing and expected profitability,
liquidity, debt payment plan and power as well as prospective resources of renewal
financing are taken into consideration.
Financial statements other than cash flow statement are prepared according to
accrual basis. According to this base, when the transactions and economic events realized,
they are taken into accounting records together with being a party of the rights and
obligations engendered from these without taking into consideration whether or not
collection or payment is realized and they are reflected to the financial statements of the
related period. Cash flow statement is prepared on a basis of collection or payment of cash
or cash equivalents.
After the annulment of interest and income accrual and rediscounts which are
engendered from loans and other receivables classified as non-performing receivables
within the framework of provisions of the legislation regarding the classification of loans
and other receivables and setting aside provisions for them, but not collected in cash, the
requirement of making transaction on a cash basis regarding the afore-mentioned issues is
the exemption of accrual basis.
Consistency
Article 7- Consistency principle means the requirement to apply the accounting
policies chosen for accounting practices without changing them in order to provide the
comparability of the financial status, activity results and interpretations thereof in the
consecutive periods.
Social responsibility
Article 8- Social responsibility principle means that the executives must carry out
their duties in an honest, fair and impartial manner while carrying out the accounting
practices and preparation and presentation of the financial statements, regarding the benefits
of all the public through informing them and in order for the accounting fulfill its activity.
During the record and presentation process, the responsibility for the related groups
must be considered in a wider meaning than the legal responsibility and the first auditor of
this responsibility must be the accounting unit itself. The chosen accounting principles must
be appropriately applied during the execution of accounting transactions and preparation of
financial statements.
Being able to come to a true judgment and providing to make a rationalistic decision
based on the information engendered due to the information got from the accounting is the
fundamental criterion of social responsibility principle.
Accounting entity
Article 9- Accounting entity principle means that the bank has a separate entity from
its partners, executives, personnel and other related persons and that the accounting
transactions must be carried out only on behalf of this entity.
As a result of the entity principle, assets, debts, rights and liabilities of each
accounting entity should be separately monitored, income and expenses thereof should be
appropriated to themselves. Especially while determining the cost of resource and usage
such as branches current interest and commission to be taken between branches, a pricing
policy that shall ensure to reflect working results of related units correctly should be
applied.
Measurement
Article 10- Measurement principle means the reflection of economic events and
transactions, which are material, to accounting by a common criterion.
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Accounting transactions are recorded according to national currency unit except FX
transactions. Although FX transactions are recorded over related currency unit, they are
measured by taking into account it’s equivalence in national currency unit as of reporting
periods.
Cost essence
Article 11- Cost essence principle means the requirement to record an asset except
cash and receivables, over its cost value engendered in the phase of its acquirement in
exchange of a cost. This principle aims at not making correction records continuously due to
changing market prices and grounding the movements regarding the assets on reliable
documents.
Prudence
Article 13- Principle of prudence means that being in a deliberate and prudent
manner under uncertainty for foreseeing in decision making and practicing. Accounting
policies should be grounded on a basis which takes into consideration the risks and
uncertainties to be encountered and ensures recognition thereof in a prudent manner
according to their structures and scopes. According to these, while necessary provisions are
set aside for possible expenditures, losses and debts any accounting record isn’t required for
possible revenues and profits.
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Substance over form
Article 14- Principle of substance over form means the fact that not only the legal
framework but also the actual content in terms of economical value should be taken as basis
in recognition of transactions along with the economical activities and evaluations to be
made regarding them. Generally forms of the transactions are in compliance with their
substances but in case a difference occurs between them substance over form is accepted.
In recognition of the transactions, financial status thereof and their significance for
banks shall be taken into consideration before their legal characteristics. In case to represent
faithfully the transaction differs from tax legislation, recognition shall be carried out in
accordance with actual characteristic of the transaction and the difference shall be removed
from financial statements to be prepared with the aim of tax calculation.
SECTION THREE
Main Principles for Financial Statements
General provisions
Article 15- Main principles for financial statements means the principles to be
applied along with the accounting principles in preparation of financial statements.
Financial statements shall include assets, liabilities and own funds of the bank along
with the changes thereof in term and information on the term-performance of the bank.
An appropriate equilibrium should be set among the principles for the financial
statements with a view to ensuring the preparation and reporting of the financial statements
in compliance with the purpose thereof. Relative significances of the principles under
different circumstances are assessed in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation
and within the framework of banking principles and practices as well.
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The information presented in the financial statements shall be comprehensible,
convenient to needs, reliable and comparable. Besides, accounting policies used in
preparation of these statements shall be determined and used in compliance with the
Regulation. In case footnotes and explanations are inadequate in the assessment of the
effects of a specific activity over financial status of the bank and transactions thereof,
additional explanations shall be defined.
Financial statements which are prepared regardless of main principles for financial
statements, accounting principles and measurement rules or financial statements which are
found to be not reflecting the facts due to the mistakes made in recording and measurement
methods along with the reports prepared based on these statements and related accounts
shall be re-prepared and reported soon in a manner that proves the truth. Those, which are
disclosed to the public, shall be re-published thereby making correction records on them.
Understandability
Article 16- Information presented in the financial statements should be explicit,
comprehensible and complete. Besides, information necessary shall be presented in
footnotes and annexes. In preparation of financial statements, it is assumed that those
persons concerned have a specific level of banking and economy knowledge and have the
ability to analyze the information presented. However, explanation of the specific
information and its reflection to financial statements cannot be avoided grounding on the
difficulty in understanding thereof due to its complexity.
Relevance, materiality
Article 17- The information presented in the financial statements shall have the
qualities necessary that may be used by the readers of the financial statements in making
decisions and it shall be in compliance with its purpose. Compliance of the information with
needs refers to assessment of events in the past, present and future and shall affect
economical decisions of users thereby ensuring confirmation or correction of past
assessments..
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Immaterial amounts can be disclosed together with other immaterial amounts having same
qualities or functions. It is not obligatory to disclose these amounts separately.
Reliability
Article 18- Information presented in financial statements shall be reliable. The
provable information which is presented in a neutral manner and disclosed completely and
which accurately discloses transactions and events is deemed reliable.
Accuracy refers to the fact that transactions and events are disclosed accurately in
the financial statements. Information disclosed in the financial statements shall accurately
disclose assets and liabilities of the bank along with its own funds as well as the transactions
and events that change them. Compliance with the principle of substance over form shall be
ensured in recognizing of the transactions and events.
Provability refers to the fact that mainly same results can be obtained from the
information presented in financial statements by different persons who made use of same
measurement methods. Provable information ensures that transactions and events are
reflected to the financial statements accurately and in a neutral manner.
Neutrality requires that accounting data should be disclosed in a manner that enables
economic activities be reflected as accurately as possible and regardless of a purpose aims at
affecting decision-making mechanism. Neutrality requires complying with prudence
principle providing that making decisions and practice thereof under uncertainty.
Accounting information cannot be prepared and presented for the needs of only
some of those, who benefit from the financial statements.. Regarding the way of selection
and presentation or regarding the content, reporting information in financial statements in a
way that adversely affects those persons concerned to make a decision is the violation of the
principle of neutrality.
Comparability
Article 19- With a view to ensuring assessment of the financial status and
operations, financial statements of a bank for different periods and financial statements of
different banks shall be comparable. So as to observe changes in financial status and
operations within time, financial statements shall include the information regarding previous
terms and selected accounting policies shall apply in following periods without any change,
in compliance with consistency concept.
Values on the financial statements and their explanations and footnotes shall be
given in coherence with the previous year’s values concerning the same period in a way to
allow annual comparison. Issues taking place in previous periods’ financial statements,
effects of which continue on the current financial statements shall be included in
disclosures after being determined in a comparative manner.
SECTION FOUR
Financial Statements and Reports
Financial statements
Article 20- Financial statements consist of the balance sheet (with the regulatory
accounts), the income statement (profit-loss statement), the statement of changes on equity,
the cash flow statement and dividend distribution statement. The explanations and footnotes
on financial statements and the explanatory report and statements are a sine qua non part of
the financial statements. The balance sheet and the income statement form the basis of
financial statements together with the footnotes, explanations and annexes.
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Balance sheet
Article 21- The balance sheet is the statement that reflects the economic and
financial status of a bank at a given date, that shows the assets, liabilities and own funds
under the form of asset and liability items in a truthful and correct manner. The asset part of
the balance sheet is arranged according to liquidity, and the liabilities part according to
solvability.
The balance sheet is prepared according to the principle of net value. Thus, the
accounts arranging the asset/liability structure are shown as a sub-item under related items.
Accounts reflecting the asset/liability structure of the balance sheet cannot be off-setted
with each other. Accounts having a debt balance shall be stated at the asset side of the
balance sheet, and accounts having a credit remainder, to the liability side.
Assets are shown at the balance sheet if the utilization rights of the future economic
benefits attached belong to the bank and have a value or cost measurable by reliable
methods. For assets, values of which cannot be determined precisely, no accrual
transactions are done. These kinds of assets are shown at the footnotes and explanations
concerning asset items.
Liabilities are shown at the balance sheet if there is an obligation leading its
resources including the economic benefits to get out of the bank’s property and the value to
realize this obligation is measurable by reliable methods.
All known and appropriately valuable foreign resources of the bank, including
those, values of which can not be definitely determined or subject to conflict, shall be
shown in the balance sheet upon being determined and registered.
Regulatory accounts are off-balance sheet accounts utilized with the aim of
monitoring non-cash credits extended to customers that do not concern the bank’s assets
and liabilities at first degree and rights and obligations which will generate a liability or
receivable in the future, and values under possession and information wished to be traced
within the scope of the accounting discipline.
All incomes and expenses are taken into account according with their date of
accrual and shown at the income statement of the period within which they accrued.
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All incomes and expenses are classified according to their resource, each income
group is compared with the related expense group and shown by their gross values. An
income item cannot be excluded from the scope of the income statement by totally or partly
netting with an expense item.
Unrealized incomes and profits cannot be shown as realized or realized incomes and
profits cannot be shown more or less than the value realized. In order to show the realistic
operation results concerning a determined period/s a correction and agreement shall be
made on the closing of accounts at the beginning or end of related periods.
In case making a correction registry concerning income, expense, profit and loss
registries arises and if these registries’ importance and characteristics don’t necessitate the
correction of the previous year’s financial statements, the corrections made shall be shown
in the income statement of the period.
The principles and procedures related to the preparation of cash flow statement,
which coherent with balance sheet and income statement and the format and contents of the
statement are determined by a communiqué that will be published by the Board.
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income statement and the format and contents of the statement are determined by the
Board.
In explanations and footnotes, giving place to the accounting policies taken as basis
for the preparation and presentation of the financial statements, which means principles,
procedures, practices, rules and applications, is obligatory.
If the financial statements of the branches abroad have not been prepared in
compliance with the procedures stated in this Regulation hereof, the necessary corrections
are made during the preparation of consolidated financial statements and the compliance
with this Regulation hereof is ensured.
If the financial statements of the branches abroad have been prepared by taking
different accounting policies as basis, the differences generated by the accounting policies
shall be corrected when preparing consolidated financial statements by applying common
accounting policies along the lines determined within this Regulation hereof. If the
differences generated by accounting policies are uncorrectable, the correction shall be made
according to a determined assumption and estimations, which shall be disclosed in the
footnotes part.
The financial statements of branches abroad are consolidated by taking the date of
preparation of the bank headquarter as basis.
The asset and liability items of branches abroad are included in the consolidated
balance sheet by using the “complete consolidation” method. It is ensured that a hundred
percent of the assets, resources, income, expense and regulatory accounts of the branches
abroad are consolidated with the assets, resources, income, expense and regulatory accounts
of the headquarter. The assets and liabilities of the bank’s domestic units and branches
abroad are summed up. The receivables and debts between headquarter and branches
abroad to each other are mutually decreased.
Incomes and expenses of the branches abroad are completely included in the
consolidated income statement. The incomes and expenses that generate from the
transactions between the consolidated domestic units and units abroad are mutually
removed.
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The important practices between the headquarter and units abroad are stated in the
consolidated financial statement footnotes and the important effects of these practices to the
assets, resources, financial status, profit/loss are explained. The cities and countries in
which branches abroad operate, asset and deposit sizes and evaluation methods utilized in
different items of the consolidated financial statements and methods utilized in value
corrections shall be stated in the footnotes of the balance sheet and profit/loss statement.
Activity report
Article 28- Banks may prepare annual activity report including information related
their status, management and organization structures and human resources, independent
audit report, the qualifications of main points composing the bank’s financial status and
financial performance, assessments and future expectations of the management together
with the financial statements prepared according to the provisions of this Regulation related
with their activities.
Sending to the related authorities and publishing the consolidated and non –
consolidated financial statements
Article 30- Banks are required to deliver to the Agency and Banks Association of
Turkey and publish in the Official Gazette, within five months following the accounting
period, a copy each of the year end balance sheet, annual income statement, cash flow
statement, statement of changes in shareholders’ equity and profit distribution statement to
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be drawn up in the format of a table as set out in this Regulation and related Communiqués
including the footnotes of these statements, together with auditor’s reports and reports of
the board of directors. Banks Association of Turkey shall publish the financial statements
delivered to it in accordance with the procedure to be determined by the Banks Association
of Turkey’s Board of Directors. A copy each of these financial statements is published in a
newspaper published nationwide, together with auditor’s reports and reports of the board of
directors, without footnotes.
Banks operating by opening a branch in Turkey shall publish and deliver to the
Agency pursuant to the provisions of first paragraph of this article the year end balance
sheets and income statements relating to their operations in Turkey, drawn up by the
management centers in Turkey together with the balance sheets and income statements of
their head office.
Banks are required to include in the year end balance sheets and income statements
to be published according to first and second paragraphs herein, the explanations and
approval of an independent auditor about whether these comply with regulation related with
registration and account order, in a manner conforming to the procedures set out in the
Regulation put into effect as per Article 13, paragraph (2) of the Act.
Banks are required to deliver, within 30 days following the respective period, to the
Agency a copy each of the balance sheets, income statements to be issued as of the end of
each month and other additional information and explanations that demanded by the
Agency.
Banks are required to deliver a copy of interim period balance sheets and income
statements they will draw up as of end March, June and September as well as cash flow and
change in own fund statements drawn up as of end June, together with their footnotes the
Banks Association of Turkey’s. Banks Association of Turkey’s will publish the financial
statements submitted within sixty days following the related period, in accordance with the
procedure to be determined by the Banks Association of Turkey’s Board of Directors.
Competent authority
Article 32- The Agency is authorized to make explanations about the principles and
procedures for the enforcement of this Regulation and the Board is authorized to issue
additional regulations.
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Regulations which became null and void
Article 33- In accordance with the repealed Banks Act No.3182 which is still in
force pursuant to Provisional Article No:2 of the Act, “Accounting Standards to be applied
by Banks, Uniform Chart of Account and Explanation thereof” which is prepared by the
Banks Association of Turkey and enters into force by the approval of the Undersecretariat
of the Treasury, shall be null and void as of the effective date of this Regulation.
Provisional article 1- Enforcement of the provisions, which became null and void
in accordance with this Regulation, applies until the communiqués to be issued pursuant to
this Regulation enters into force.
Effective date
Article 34- This Regulation shall be in effect on 01/07/2002.
Execution
Article 35- Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency shall execute the
provisions of this Regulation.
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