Turkey’s Bitci is reportedly aiming to launch a cryptocurrency exchange in Brazil in February followed by another one in Spain in March.

Company CEO Onur Altan outlined the plans to Reuters on January 31.

Mercado Bitcoin is presently the largest crypto exchange in Brazil, a country of 200mn people, with 3mn users.

Bodrum-based Bitci, launched in 2018, operates a cryptocurrency exchange, a crypto mining facility and a blockchain network linked to its exchange and payment platform.

Its expansion plans envisage branches in Central Asian countries, India and Russia by the end of 2022.

Bitci also produces fan tokens and cryptocurrencies for fans of sports clubs. It has already produced 25 fan tokens for sports clubs, including the Spanish and Brazilian national football teams along with UK Premier League football club Wolverhampton Wanderers, Scottish football power Glasgow Rangers, Real Betis FC in Spain, the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) and the McLaren Formula 1 racing team.

The company has also made agreements with a further six football clubs in Brazil and aims to reach a total of 50 fan tokens by the end of 2022.

In August, Istanbul’s Fenerbahce (FENER) sports club raised Turkish lira (TRY) 269mn ($19.8mn) by launching a fan token with Paribu, a cryptocurrency exchange launched in 2017.

Paribu has more than 5mn users. It is among the largest crypto exchanges in Turkey, while Bitci is among the smallest.

Galatasaray (GSRAY), Trabzonspor (TSPOR), Goztepe, Karsiyaka, Eskisehirspor, Malatyaspor, Adana Demirspor, Antalyaspor, Kayserispor, Sivasspor, Alanyaspor and Basaksehir are also among Turkish sports clubs that have sold fan tokens.

According to Hootsuite’s latest Digital Global Overview Report 2022, 19% of internet users (16-64 age group) in Turkey own some cryptocurrency. Turkey is in fifth place in the world rankings, while Thailand is the world leader at 20%.

In the same age group, 82% of Turks use the internet (world average 63%; leader is Denmark at 99%).

The average mobile internet speed in Turkey stands at 31 megabits per second (Mbps) (world average 29; leader is UAE at 136), while, in terms of fixed line internet speeds, Turkey, reliant on Turk Telekom (TTKOM), is among the worst in the world at 26 Mbps (world average 58; leader is Singapore at 185).

A total of 81% of Turks have a social media account.