Turkey moves billions in state assets to wealth fund for megaprojects | Middle East Eye - 0 views
-
The Turkish government has ordered the transfer of billions of dollars in state assets to a sovereign wealth fund, in a huge shake-up of holdings aimed at financing ambitious infrastructure projects championed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.The assets being transferred to the sovereign wealth fund range from wholly state-owned Ziraat Bank, the government's minority shareholding in flag carrier Turkish Airlines, as well as smaller firms like the state tea-making company.Ozgur Altug, economist at BGC Capital in Istanbul, said in a note to clients he estimated the value of the transferred assets to be $33 billion and the wealth fund would enjoy the dividends rather than the budget.
-
When the fund was founded in August, the state-run Anadolu news agency said it would be used to finance "mega projects" such as the planned Istanbul shipping canal and a new three-level tunnel under the Bosphorus.
-
But the plan did not meet universal approval, with the spokeswoman of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) Selin Sayek Boke calling it a "palace mortgage fund" in reference to Erdogan's presidential complex.CHP MP Faik Oztrak meanwhile compared it to the excesses of 19th century Ottoman bureaucracy.
- ...1 more annotation...