Interest in Istanbul Finance Center From Foreign Banks
As the realization of Istanbul Finance Center is becoming true, the interest from various international lenders to secure a place has also been increasing. Turkey's Ministry of Environment and Urbanization is dealing with renewed interest from foreign banking institutions seeking to secure a place in the Istanbul Finance Center (IFC), after Turkey's Central Bank, along with the head offices of the country's governing bodies of financial markets and state-owned banks, became involved in the project. The construction works for the complex located in Istanbul's Atasehir district are already underway as lenders from the UK, the Middle East and the Far East are applying to the Ministry for office space to take part in the region's rising financial services hub. At its core, the IFC complex will span over 2,500,000 square meters of land, comprising office space, residences, a conference hall, a shopping mall and a hotel. Foreign banks from the Middle Eastern and the Far Eastern countries are inquiring about available plots and pricing in the IFC project. Among them is the Islamic Development Bank. State-owned banks Ziraat Bank, Halk Bank, Vakifbank, alongside governing bodies of the finance sec-tor such as the Central Bank of Turkey, Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) and the Capital Markets Board (SPK) will be partially or completely relocated to the IFC when the first stage of the construction is completed in 2016.
Commercial Bank of Qatar to Acquire Stakes in Turkish Bank
According to a statement made to the Disclosure Platform of ISE, Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) and Turkey's Anadolu Endustri Holding have reached a deal for the takeover of 70.84 percent of stakes of Alternatif Bank (Abank) by the Qatari lender. 96 percent of shares of Abank are held by Anadolu Endustri Holding while the remaining 4 percent is traded publicly on the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE).
Saber-Owned Denizbank to Buy Citibank's Turkish Consumer Unit
Denizbank, Turkish unit of Russia's state-controlled Sberbank has acquired Citibank's consumer banking business in Turkey. Subject to regulatory approvals, the take-over will be complete by the third quarter. Under the terms of the agreement, Citibank's 600,000 + customers, assets worth TRY 1.2 billion (Approx. USD 650) million, and TRY 1.5 billion (approx. USD 800 million) of deposits will be taken over by Denizbank. Russia's largest lender entered the Turkish banking market late last year, with the acquisition of Denizbank from its then owner Dexia, becoming Turkey's one of the top 10 lenders by assets.
Originally published March 2013
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