Pepe coin on BtcTurk: huge lira liquidity, two hacks to weigh

Quick verdict

Searching for Pepe coin on BtcTurk is natural if you live in Turkey: BtcTurk has been trading crypto against the lira since 2013, and its PEPE/TRY market is one of the deepest PEPE fiat markets in the world. On 13 October 2026, CoinGecko-tracked data put BtcTurk’s PEPE/TRY at about $1.6 million in 24-hour volume, second in Turkey only to Binance’s lira pair.

The app is a strength too. “BtcTurk | Kripto” held a 4.8 rating from 286,200 reviews on the Turkish App Store, the largest rating base of the four local exchanges we reviewed. You also get stop-market and stop-limit orders on PEPE.

Then there is security. BtcTurk lost about $55 million from hot wallets in June 2024 and about $48 million in August 2025. Add an official fee page we could not verify and a 250,000 PEPE minimum withdrawal, and the score is 6.1 out of 10, the lowest of our four local reviews and below the 6.8 in our Paribu review. For the wider picture, see our guide to buying PEPE in Turkey.

BtcTurk PEPE markets and the Pepe coin price in TRY

BtcTurk’s public exchange-info API listed two PEPE markets on 13 October 2026: PEPE_TRY and PEPE_USDT, both with status TRADING. The minimum order value is 99.91 TRY on the lira pair and 9.91 USDT on the Tether pair, so roughly 100 lira gets you started. Supported order types are market, limit, stop-market and stop-limit.

Volume is the headline. BtcTurk’s own data showed roughly 394 billion PEPE traded on the lira pair in 24 hours on the day we checked. Depth like that keeps the spread tight and stops modest market orders from slipping much. The Pepe coin price on BtcTurk tracks the global price closely; the live lira quote in the card above comes from a market feed and can differ from BtcTurk’s book by a hair. The original listing date could not be confirmed.

The PEPE BtcTurk sells is the Ethereum ERC-20 token. Its deposit records expect a 40–42 character address, the Ethereum format. If anyone offers you a cheaper “PEPE” on another chain or under another contract, check our PEPE copycat guide first.

BtcTurk review: how we scored it

We give each exchange six equally weighted sub-scores and round the average. Only facts we could check earn points, and the lens is buying and holding PEPE. BtcTurk’s profile is unusually lopsided: excellent where traders look first, weak where long-term holders should look.

PEPE market (8.5): two live pairs, deep lira volume and stop orders. App and UX (8.5): the biggest and one of the best-rated app followings in Turkish crypto. Funding rails (6.5): lira bank transfers work well, with instant transfers advertised by at least one major bank, but we could not confirm deposit or withdrawal fees or any other method.

Regulation (5.5): on SPK’s provisional list like every Turkish platform, with no final permit. Fee clarity (5.0): the official commission page sits behind a bot check, so the only figures we have come from third-party comparison data. That may be fine in the app, but we can’t confirm it. Security record (2.5): two hot-wallet hacks totalling about $100 million in 14 months. BtcTurk said customer assets were unaffected both times, which keeps this off the floor, but repeated breaches of the same layer raise fair questions about hot-wallet controls.

BtcTurk fees and PEPE limits

Here we have to be upfront: BtcTurk’s commission page at btcturk.com/komisyonlar blocked our automated check, and its help centre did too. A third-party comparison site lists entry-level spot fees of about 0.12% maker and 0.20% taker. If that is right, BtcTurk is cheaper than Paribu’s 0.28% entry taker, but please confirm on the official page before you rely on it.

The 250,000 PEPE minimum withdrawal is the number that trips people up. It is not a fee, but it means very small balances can’t leave the exchange at all until you top them up. If you plan to self-custody, buy in amounts that clear that line. To work out how many PEPE a lira amount buys, use our PEPE calculator.

Looking beyond lira pairs?International exchanges list PEPE against USD and USDT. Check availability in Turkey and the regulatory notes before you sign up.

Hop in

How to buy PEPE on BtcTurk

Once verified, buying PEPE on BtcTurk takes a couple of minutes. For the general method, including the DEX route with MetaMask, see our step-by-step PEPE buying guide.

1. Install BtcTurk Kripto and verify

   Sign up in the app and complete identity verification, which Turkish rules require.

2. Deposit lira by bank transfer

   Send TL by havale or EFT from a bank account in your name. Yapı Kredi, for example, advertises instant 24/7 transfers to BtcTurk from its mobile app.

3. Open PEPE/TRY

   Search for PEPE and pick PEPE/TRY, or PEPE/USDT if you already hold Tether. The minimum order is about 100 TRY.

4. Choose your order type

   BtcTurk supports market, limit, stop-market and stop-limit orders on PEPE. A resting limit order usually pays the lower maker rate.

5. Withdraw in bigger chunks

   The minimum PEPE withdrawal is 250,000 PEPE. Check the network and fee on the withdraw screen, send a test, then move long-term holdings to your own wallet.

Gas on Ethereum is the hidden cost of any PEPE withdrawal. Our PEPE wallet guide explains how to add the official contract to MetaMask or Trust Wallet and verify it on Etherscan before you send anything.

Is BtcTurk safe? The 2024 and 2025 hacks

In June 2024 attackers drained about $55 million from ten BtcTurk hot wallets, according to Halborn’s analysis. Cold wallets were unaffected, and Binance froze about $5.3 million of the stolen funds. The CEO, Özgür Güneri, stepped down the following month, according to press reports, and founder Kerem Tibuk took over.

Fourteen months later it happened again. On 14 August 2025 BtcTurk reported a second breach, this time about $48–49 million from hot wallets across seven blockchains. Crypto deposits and withdrawals were paused while the team investigated, and BtcTurk said user assets were not affected. We found no public proof of reserves or insurance policy to back that up independently.

1. 2013

   BtcTurk starts trading

   Founded by Kerem Tibuk, it was already operating in 2013, making it Turkey’s oldest lira crypto exchange.

2. June 2024

   First hack: about $55 million

   Attackers drained 10 hot wallets. Cold wallets were unaffected and Binance froze about $5.3 million.

3. July 2024

   Leadership change

   CEO Özgür Güneri stepped down and Kerem Tibuk became acting CEO, according to press reports.

4. 14 Aug 2025

   Second hack: about $48 million

   Hot wallets on seven chains were hit. Crypto deposits and withdrawals were paused; BtcTurk said user assets were unaffected.

5. 1 Oct 2026

   Still on SPK’s provisional list

   BtcTurk’s trading and custody companies appear on the list, which SPK says is not an authorisation.

So, is BtcTurk safe? For trading, the platform has twice absorbed large losses and kept operating, and it said user assets were unaffected both times. For storage, two hits on the hot-wallet layer are a clear reason not to leave PEPE there long term. Our page on whether PEPE is safe covers exchange risk alongside token and market risk.

SPK status: on the list, not yet licensed

Law No. 7518 of July 2024 put crypto platforms under the Capital Markets Board, SPK. Until it decides on applications, SPK publishes a provisional list of firms allowed to keep operating. In the version dated 1 October 2026, which has 52 entries, Btcturk Kripto Varlık Alım Satım Platformu AŞ (formerly Eliptik Yazılım Ticaret AŞ) is entry 10 and its custody company is entry 9, marked as a custody application.

SPK states plainly that being on the list does not mean a firm is authorised, and no Turkish exchange is yet shown as fully licensed. Using crypto to pay for goods has been banned by the Central Bank since 30 April 2021, but holding and trading PEPE is legal, and no crypto-specific tax was in force in October 2026.

BtcTurk pros and cons

BtcTurk is a trader’s exchange with a holder’s warning label. The balance as of 13 October 2026:

Alternatives, and how CEX.IO compares

Paribu is the closest local alternative: PEPE_TL and PEPE_USDT, a published fee ladder and no reported hack, at the cost of a 0.28% entry taker fee. Our full Paribu review has the details. Binance TR and OKX TR also offer PEPE against the lira. For international venues and a side-by-side comparison, see our guide to PEPE exchanges.

CEX.IO has operated since 2013 and holds a US NMLS registration (#1804170) and UK FCA anti-money-laundering registration (firm 1007192). Turkey is not on its unsupported list, so Turkish residents can generally open an account with CEX OVRS LLC in Nevis. It has no SPK licence and is not on the SPK list, and there is no lira pair: PEPE trades against USD, USDT and USDC, and those books were very thin on 13 October 2026.

CEX.IO’s main edge over BtcTurk is a cleaner security record; we found no major hack, though that isn’t proof none occurred. Against that, it has no Turkish oversight, card funding costs 0.49% to 4.99% plus a service charge, and SPK blocked access to unlicensed sites in August 2026. If you want lira pairs, a local exchange is the more practical choice.