🌍 Foreign Capital in the Turkish Services Economy: Where It Truly Dominates
In our assessment, these figures serve as a valuable indicator of where foreign business in Türkiye has already managed to establish a solid foothold, and where local players maintain their dominance.
Recent 2025 statistics reveal an intriguing breakdown of shares between Turkish and foreign companies in the export of services.
🚚 Transport and Logistics: Turkish Territory
Transport services represent the largest segment of Turkish services exports. Here, the landscape is unambiguous:
- 90.2% of exports — Turkish companies
- 76.2% of imports — Turkish companies
The conclusion is straightforward: the logistics business in Türkiye remains predominantly domestic. For a foreign player to compete here without a local partner or deep integration is exceptionally difficult.
💼 Other Business Services: Near Parity
In the export of other business services:
- 58.1% — Turkish capital
- 41.9% — Foreign capital
This is already an area of active competition. Foreign companies have captured a substantial market share, and this segment remains open for further expansion.
This is precisely where the standard model functions: service functions (consulting, outsourcing, professional services) are easily structured through a Turkish operating company backed by foreign capital.
💻 Telecom, IT, and Information Services: Foreign Players Ahead
The most revealing picture emerges in the high-tech sector:
- 51.4% of exports — Foreign companies
- 32.3% of imports — Foreign companies
In IT services exports, foreign capital already controls the majority.
This is entirely logical: digital services scale effortlessly through cross-border corporate structures, and Türkiye—with its robust IT ecosystem and technology park (Teknokent) tax incentives—serves as an attractive operational and production base.
💡 What This Means for International Business
Three practical takeaways:
- The sector dictates the market entry strategy
In logistics, operating without a local partnership is challenging. In IT and business services, foreign capital already feels right at home. - Technology parks deliver results
The high foreign share in IT is a direct result of the efficiency of the Teknokent regime and its tax exemptions. It is a genuine operational tool, not merely a marketing claim. - Corporate structure matters
Even in sectors where foreign capital predominates, success is governed by corporate and tax architecture. A properly structured Turkish operating company can perform far more efficiently than running identical operations through offshore jurisdictions.
We assist foreign companies in selecting the optimal form of presence in Türkiye, tailored to sector-specific requirements, tax regimes, and commercial objectives—ranging from IT and consulting to logistics and international trade.