Abstract
This study aims to examine the impact of increases in tourism-related foreign exchange inflows on individuals' financial behaviour in Türkiye. While numerous studies have examined the Dutch Disease in the real sector, limited studies have examined its effects on household investment behaviour specifically in the service sector. This phenomenon, referred to as the “Financial Dutch Disease”, is analysed in this study to show the impact of tourism intensity on individuals' demand for foreign exchange deposit accounts (FX deposit accounts) for a sample of 81 provinces in Türkiye for the period 2015-2023. The findings indicate a strong positive relationship between tourism growth and the share of FX deposit accounts. According to the main model, a one-unit increase in the number of foreign tourists per capita increases the FX deposit account share of total deposits in a province by an average of 4.35 percent. Conducted heterogeneity analyses indicate that this effect is more pronounced in financially less developed regions. Dynamic analyses indicate that the effect carries over to the following year but diminishes over time. These results clearly demonstrate that tourism-related foreign exchange abundance has led locals to resort to currency substitution, creating a form of "Financial Dutch Disease." The study expands the Dutch Disease literature to include the financial consequences of tourism as a service sector and offers important implications for policymakers by highlighting the potential impact of tourism on regional financial stability.
Keywords
Financial Dutch Disease; Tourism Economics; Household Finance; Currency Substitution; Regional Economics
Topics
Regional economics / Bölgesel iktisat Tourism / Turizm Household finance / Hane halkı finansı Exchange rates / Döviz kurları JEL F3 · International Finance / Uluslararası Finans JEL R1 · General Regional Economics / Genel Bölgesel İktisat Financial Dutch Disease Tourism Economics Currency Substitution
JEL classification / JEL sınıflaması
- F31 Foreign Exchange
Döviz - G51 Household Saving, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
Hane Halkı Tasarrufu, Borçlanması, Borcu ve Serveti - R11 Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
Bölgesel İktisadi Faaliyet: Büyüme, Kalkınma, Çevre Sorunları ve Değişimler
JEL codes: American Economic Association classification. Turkish descriptions are an unofficial translation. Türkçe açıklamalar gayriresmî çeviridir.
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- APA 7
Medetoğlu, B., Kavas, Y. B., Saldanlı, A., & Günay, F. (2026). Tourism's “Financial Dutch Disease”: Regional Evidence on Foreign Exchange Abundance and Local Household Saving Preferences. Journal of Multidisciplinary Academic Tourism, 11(2), 323–337. https://doi.org/10.31822/jomat.2026-11-2-323
- MLA 9
Medetoğlu, B., et al. "Tourism's “Financial Dutch Disease”: Regional Evidence on Foreign Exchange Abundance and Local Household Saving Preferences." Journal of Multidisciplinary Academic Tourism, vol. 11, no. 2, 2026, pp. 323–337. https://doi.org/10.31822/jomat.2026-11-2-323.
- Chicago 17 (author-date)
Medetoğlu, B., Y. B. Kavas, A. Saldanlı, and F. Günay. 2026. "Tourism's “Financial Dutch Disease”: Regional Evidence on Foreign Exchange Abundance and Local Household Saving Preferences." Journal of Multidisciplinary Academic Tourism 11 (2): 323–337. https://doi.org/10.31822/jomat.2026-11-2-323.
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BibTeX
@article{medetoglu2026tourisms,
title = {Tourism's “Financial Dutch Disease”: Regional Evidence on Foreign Exchange Abundance and Local Household Saving Preferences},
author = {Medetoğlu B. and Kavas Y. B. and Saldanlı A. and Günay F.},
year = {2026},
journal = {Journal of Multidisciplinary Academic Tourism},
volume = {11},
number = {2},
pages = {323-337},
doi = {10.31822/jomat.2026-11-2-323}
}