Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

Hisarcıklıoğlu made the assessment in a special session within the scope of the “Turkey Technology Meetings” event held under the auspices of the Ministry of Commerce and TOBB.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that they have organized 78 events in 26 provinces under the name of “Technology Meetings” and reached hundreds of thousands of SMEs and entrepreneurs, and that they have kept up with the digital environment and the rapid transformation.

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that digitalization and e-commerce are now among the most prominent issues all over the world, and that they have become even more important with the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hisarcıklıoğlu informed that the volume of e-commerce in Turkey increased by 66% to 226 billion liras last year compared to 2019. Similarly, e-commerce around the world grew 18% annually. In 2020, global e-commerce volume reached $4.3 trillion. On the other hand, our entrepreneurs have started to turn to e-exports. Last year, our e-export volume was $1.5 billion, but we still have a long way to go. Because the share of e-exports worldwide in total exports is about 4.4%. We're at 1.3%. So we have the potential to triple that. The whole world is going there, and we can't afford to miss it.”

- “e-Commerce will become a habit for the consumer”

Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that all the fast-growing companies in the world have chosen the e-commerce route, and that this is the result of making the best use of technology.

Emphasizing that oil and natural gas enrich states and elites, and that the way to enrich the people is through trade, Hisarcıklıoğlu explained that Turkey is similar to Western countries in internet connection prevalence, quality and smartphone usage rates, that 90% of the population has mobile connections, and that 50 million people are regularly connected to the internet every day.

Noting that as TOBB, they want to mobilize this potential, Hisarcıklıoğlu noted that the trend towards this area will continue unabated after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Hisarcıklıoğlu pointed out that e-commerce will become a habit for consumers, gave the following assessment:

“Our businesses have to digitize their products and services. As TOBB, we aimed for the digitalization of the private sector and the development of the next generation of entrepreneurship, and we are working towards this. We prepare our companies and entrepreneurs for the digital world. In this regard, we have implemented great collaborations and projects with Vodafone, one of the largest global technology companies in the world, and we are working on new ones.”

- “Be sure to look for the Trust Seal on the site when shopping”

Hisarcıklıoğlu reminded that as TOBB, they started to issue “Trust Seals” to e-commerce sites in order to establish a sense of trust in consumers with the authorization of the Ministry of Commerce. “Our consumers are able to shop with peace of mind on these sites. When you are shopping, be sure to look for the ‘Trust Seal’.”

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that digital literacy and SMEs also produce projects to improve their digital infrastructure, and said that they want to improve not only company-to-consumer, but also company-to-company e-commerce.

Emphasizing that the sector council will continue to be actively involved in all sector-oriented efforts, Hisarcıklıoğlu noted that the FinTek Sector Council will soon be operational for the financial technology sector.