The lira was only saved from falling further on Monday morning by the central bank freeing up cash and removing mandatory reserve requirements
TURKISH President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused the US of plotting to destabilise the country and pledged to seek new international trading partners.
His statements on Monday came after a morning that saw the lira dip to its lowest value ever against the US dollar - trading at only just over seven lira to the dollar.
The economic and political strain began at the start of August after the Trump administration imposed sanctions following the detention of an American pastor.
On Friday the administration said it would double tariffs on Turkish steel and aluminium.
The pastor, Andrew Brunson, is being held in Turkey on espionage charges.
The lira was already in a delicate position before Trump slapped harsh sanctions on the Nato-member state - technically a US ally - due to tension over Erdogan’s increasing authoritarianism.
President Erdogan described the currency slide as "a storm in a teacup" and said there was no economic crisis, and the decline was down to "an operation against Turkey".
During a speech to supporters in Trabzon on the Black Sea coast, Erdogan proposed counter-measures, including a movement away from reliance on the dollar and US markets.
There are fears of mass panic in Turkey, with one major bank reportedly blocking customers from opening new foreign exchange accounts, making it harder for people to trade lira for US dollars, pounds and euros.
At noon on Monday Erdogan reportedly referred to America as "The bullies of the global system".
During a gathering of Turkish Ambassadors at the presidential palace in Ankara, Erdogan also alleged “economic terror” was being waged on social media.
Turkish authorities had launched investigations into hundreds of social media accounts for allegedly contributing to the currency’s plunge.
The interior ministry said it had so far identified 346 social media accounts carrying posts about the exchange rate that it said created a negative perception of the economy.
It said it would take legal measures against them but did not say what these would be.
The bitter tensions are also likely to cause a stir in Nato, of which Turkey is a member, and Erdogan has hinted he may seek new allies as a result of the sanctions.
The lira made a modest recovery on Monday after the central bank pledged to provide funds and cut reserve requirements for Turkish banks.
Many emerging economics such as Argeninta and South Africa could suffer from the crisis, given their exposure to Turkish debt.
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