Turkcell appoints board chairman

ISTANBUL – Hürriyet Daily News

Ahmet Akça, head of Bezm-i Alem University’s board of trustees, had been appointed as management board chairman of Turkcell. Company photo

Ahmet Akça, head of Bezm-i Alem University’s board of trustees, had been appointed as management board chairman of Turkcell, Turkey’s biggest mobile operator, the company announced late Aug. 19 by a written statement to the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP).

The company also said its second-quarter results would be announced on Aug. 22.

Turkcell is at the center of a legal battle for control between its partners, Turkey’s Çukurova Holding, Nordic telecommunications group TeliaSonera, and Russia’s Altimo. The dispute has left Turkcell unable to agree on the composition of its board and unable to distribute its dividends.

In this vein, Turkey’s Capital Markets Board (SPK) appointed three independent board members in March; one of them is Ahmet Akça, the remaining two are ex-ministers of the Turkish government: Hilmi Güler and Atilla Koç.

The SPK recently appointed two other independent board members to Turkcell by Aug. 15. The members appointed at the SPK’s meeting were Bekir Pakdemirli, the ruling Justice and Development Party’s (AKP) İzmir deputy provincial head and Mehmet Bostan, chairman of state-run Vakıfbank’s pension arm.