30.10.2026 13:41
DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan stated in his remarks in Izmir that the loss of value caused by allegations of fund fraud in the capital markets has exceeded 150 billion dollars and that the erosion continues. Describing what happened as "the largest market fraud in the history of the Republic of Turkey," Babacan called for the dismissal of the managers of the relevant institutions, the establishment of a fully authorized task force, and the formation of an investigative committee in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey.
DEVA Party Chairman Ali Babacan, in a statement he made in İzmir, said that the cost of the fund fraud exceeded 150 billion dollars and that the erosion continues, and called on the government to take urgent measures.
“THE BIGGEST MARKET FRAUD IN HISTORY”
“We are talking about an earthquake, but our country is unfortunately currently facing an earthquake in the capital markets and the aftershocks of this earthquake,” said Babacan. “Moreover, this is not a natural event; it is a completely man-made event. We have faced the biggest market fraud in the history of the Republic of Turkey. The expression ‘market fraud’ is a legal term included in Article 107 of the Capital Markets Law. What has happened is entirely a fraud case. The fact that fraud of such a large amount could continue for such a long time is possible only with support given from within the political power and from the bureaucracy. Otherwise, Borsa Istanbul, which we have equipped with one of the world’s most advanced information processing systems, and the modern legal infrastructure we have created are capable of ensuring that such incidents are detected at much earlier stages. With the Capital Markets Law and the Capital Markets Board, such an infrastructure has been created that, let alone a 16 billion dollar case, that is, an 800 billion TL case, even a 16 thousand TL case can be caught instantly and necessary action taken. However, in whatever institution and on whatever issue, the human factor is extremely important. People who are both competent and honest, who do not steal and do not let others steal, must be brought to the heads of institutions. If the cadres have suffered moral erosion and are busy giving away the state’s and public’s resources to someone, even the strongest legal and operational infrastructure will not work. This is exactly the situation our country is facing today,” he stated.
“VALUE LOSS EXCEEDING 150 BILLION DOLLARS”
Babacan said, “Even though the part of the fraud experienced in financial markets today related to 131 funds is around 800 billion TL, that is, on the order of 16 billion dollars, the distrust and all-out pessimism created by this incident have caused a much greater loss of value in our capital markets. The loss of value experienced since September has exceeded 150 billion dollars and continues to increase. At the beginning of September, the number of individual investors in the capital markets was approximately 7 million people. These investors had investments in the capital markets, to a greater or lesser extent. This number may now have declined toward maybe 6.5 million. There may have been investors who exited the market or closed their accounts out of fear of what happened. When we consider that there are approximately 27 million households in Turkey, we are facing an incident that directly affects 7 million households. Moreover, this erosion is not limited only to the funds where the fraud occurred or to our citizens who invest in the stock market. It also affects Turkey’s industrial sector and the value of our companies. As you know, the free float rate in Turkey is around 30 percent. While some of the companies’ shares are traded on the stock exchange, the remaining portion belongs to the controlling shareholders and capital holders who founded those factories and devoted years to industry, business life, and investment. Therefore, with this loss of value, their assets and the labor of years have also eroded. Moreover, this erosion continues,” he said.
“THEY MUST BE IMMEDIATELY REMOVED FROM OFFICE”
“This fraud has now reached a point where it can no longer be hidden or covered up,” said Babacan. “The sewer has overflowed; it did not fit in the pipes below and came out through the grates. There is no longer any way to close or cover up this business. It has blown up, and the sewers have spilled out. From the first day, I have said what needs to be done. First of all, I stated that the people at the head of all these institutions must be immediately removed from office. At that stage, you are not in a position to distinguish between guilty and innocent. Because these markets cannot tolerate waiting. Forget months, weeks, days—even when you are minutes late, irreparable losses may occur in the market. Those who think they are managing these affairs right now are irrelevant to the matter. There is a gain at stake, and they are busy with this gain. They are not people who know these matters. Despite the biggest market fraud in the history of the Republic taking place, most of the people at the head of these institutions are still in office. At least 25-30 people must be immediately removed from office. New cadres must be brought in to replace the people who bear responsibility for this affair,” he said.
“TIME IS PASSING, THE PROBLEM IS NOT BEING SOLVED”
Ali Babacan continued, “The second important thing that needs to be done is to immediately establish a task force. A fully authorized task force of between five and seven people, made up entirely of new human resources, who know the capital markets and banking, coming from within the market and from the state’s relevant institutions, should be established. But they still have not done this either. The structure they call a board is a cumbersome board consisting of 15-20 people. Moreover, most of those on this board do not understand these matters. You cannot solve this crisis with such a structure. Five or six weeks have passed. Time is passing, but the problem is not being solved; the erosion in the markets continues. A team that knows how the markets operate, can make rapid decisions, and can act with full authority must start work as soon as possible,” he continued.
“THE FRAUD LIST MUST BE PUBLISHED”
Babacan, saying that this problem cannot be solved by hiding or concealing it, said, “We said publish the list as soon as possible. We also stated that a parliamentary inquiry commission should be established in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. Because we think that today the judiciary and relevant institutions cannot work independently under pressure. Under these conditions, it is not possible to reveal the incident in all its aspects. There are 600 deputies in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. There are many deputies who understand these matters. A 15-20-person inquiry commission can be established immediately. This commission can examine the work of the relevant institutions and what happened in a transparent way and can make an important contribution to revealing those responsible. But they insistently avoid this as well,” he said.