ZCZC
BCN-31
TURKEY-ECONOMY-POLITICS-ERDOGAN
Erdogan appoints himself as head of Turkey wealth fund
ANKARA, Sept 13, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on
Wednesday appointed himself the chairman of Turkey’s sovereign wealth fund
and named his son-in-law and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak as deputy
chairman.
Zafer Sonmez, who was head of Turkey and Africa for Malaysia’s sovereign
wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd, was named as the fund’s general manager in
presidential decrees published in the official gazette.
One of Erdogan’s advisors mainly known for his outlandish statements,
Yigit Bulut, was removed from the board, while new members included Rifat
Hisarciklioglu, the president of the Union of Chambers and Commodity
Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB).
Erdogan last year said the fund needed a “reorganisation” after the first
chairman Mehmet Bostan was removed from his post in September 2017.
The fund was established in August 2016 and tens of billions of dollars
worth of state assets including — wholly state-owned — Ziraat Bank were
transferred to it in 2017.
The fund’s other assets include the state’s minority 49.12-percent
shareholding in flag carrier Turkish Airlines, as well as state-owned
enterprises such as the PTT Turkish post office.
Turkish Airlines is regarded as one of Turkey’s crown jewel assets and its
size is set to grow further with the move to a giant new Istanbul airport as
its main hub in October.
The fund was set up in the aftermath of the attempted overthrow of Erdogan
in July 2016. Its establishment was seen as a way of tightening state control
over Turkey’s assets.
Such funds can be used for large projects, maintaining pensions and
national welfare programmes, or in times of crisis.
BSS/AFP/HR/1030