 |
 | |
| Company type | Participation Bank |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services |
| Founded | October 24th, 1996 |
| Defunct | July 22, 2016 |
| Headquarters | Istanbul, Turkey |
Key people | İsmail GÜLER - Chairman of the Board of Directors; Abdullah GÜZELDÜLGER- Board Member President & CEO[1] |
Number of employees | over 2,448 |
| Website | www.bankasya.com.tr |
Bank Asya was established on October 24, 1996, with its head office in Istanbul, as the sixth private finance house of Turkey. Bank Asya opened its first branch in Altunizade, Istanbul on 24 October 1996. The opening ceremony was held with an official ceremony and was attended by then Deputy Prime Minister Tansu Çiller, State Minister Abdullah Gül, Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, and İhsan Kalkavan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Asya Finans.[1] The company's name, which had been previously "Asya Finans Kurumu Anonim Şirketi" (Asya Finance Incorporated Company), was changed into "Asya Katilim Bankasi Anonim Şirketi" (Asya Participation Bank Inc.) on December 20, 2005.
Bank Asya, with an initial capital of TRY2 million and paid up capital of TRY900 million, had a multi-partnered structure based on domestic capital. At the end of 2009, Bank Asya’s total assets reached TRY14 billion. Bank Asya rose by 47 places in the “Top 1000 World Bank Ranking” of “The Banker” Magazine in 2010, rising to 473 from 520. At the same time, Bank Asya ranked 403rd on “The Banker’s Top 500 Banking Brands”. Bank Asya has also become the largest participation bank in Turkey.[citation needed]
Bank Asya carried out its activities with 182 branches, 2 national and 1300 foreign correspondent banks besides the head office units as of May 2011.
The bank has been strongly tied to the controversial Gülen movement, led by the Islamic cleric and preacher Fethullah Gülen,[2] and is widely considered to be founded and operated by his followers.[3]
On 18 September 2014, President Erdoğan spoke at the Turkish Industry and Business Association, TÜSİAD meeting. Bank Asya was on Erdoğan's agenda without explicitly mentioning its name: "Yesterday, the main opposition leader accused us of working to bankrupt a bank. That bank is already bankrupt."[2] [3]
On 22 July 2016, the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) cancelled Bank Asya's banking permissions as part of the 2016 purges.[4]
With Decision No. 6318 of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency published on 29 May 2015, Bank Asya was transferred to the SDIF. The decision was published in the Official Gazette dated 30.05.2015 and numbered 29371. The decision read:
"As a result of the audits conducted in relation to Bank Asya (the Bank) within the scope of the Banking Law No. 5411 (the Law), it has been decided to transfer the Bank's shareholding rights, excluding dividends, and the management and supervision of the Bank to the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund in accordance with the provision of subparagraph (b) of the first paragraph of Article 71 of the Law for the purpose of partial or complete transfer, sale or merger, provided that the loss is deducted from the capital of the existing shareholders (it is revealed that the continuation of its activities poses a danger to the rights of deposit and participation fund holders and the confidence and stability of the financial system)."
At this stage, the SDIF did not yet revoke Bank Asya's banking licence and stated that it did not pose any risk to depositors.
- Muhiddin Gülal, President of the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (SDIF), announced on 26 February 2016 that they plan to sell Bank Asya by 29 May, and that they will liquidate the bank if it cannot be sold.
According to The Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BRSA= BDDK in Turkish) board decision published on the website of the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency and in the Official Gazette on 23 July 2016, Bank Asya's operating licence was cancelled.
- On 16 November 2017, with the decision of Istanbul 1st Commercial Court of First Instance dated 16.11.2017 and numbered 2017/41 E., Bank Asya was declared bankrupt.
After Erdoğan’s party Justice and Development Party Government's restrictions in Turkey on Gulen movement and Bank Asya since 2013 and after coup attempt on July 15, 2016, Bank Asya customers were exposed to a number of violations of rights. After the coup attempt on July 15, 2016, Gulen movement was accused of coup plotting and declared as a terrorist organization by Erdoğan regime, and then the criterion of being a partner, employee, and customer of Bank Asya was accepted as an important factor for the membership of the organization by politicians of the government and members of the judiciary. People, not blamed of any offenses, were accused of being members of a terrorist organization because they only worked in the bank, had an account or used bank's credit card and other banking services and were subjected to criminal investigation. However, in the decision of the UN Human Rights Committee dated 01/06/2019, it was decided that depositing money into Bank Asya would not be a crime.
- ^ "Bank Asya - Asya Katılım Bankası A.Ş." Archived from the original on 2012-01-15. Retrieved 2011-06-15.
- ^ Benjamin Harvey (23 December 2013). "Erdogan Retaliation Seen Hurting Gulen Companies: Istanbul Mover". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
- ^ Helen Rose Fuchs Ebaugh (1 December 2009). The Gülen Movement: A Sociological Analysis of a Civic Movement Rooted in Moderate Islam. Springer. p. 109. ISBN 978-1-4020-9894-9.
- ^ "Bank Asya'nın faaliyet izni kaldırıldı" (in Turkish). CNN Türk. Retrieved 24 July 2016.