Approximately one month after the fund fraud scandal came to light, CMB Chairman Mahmut Sütçü has resigned from his post. Sütçü submitted his resignation citing 'health issues.' In addition to Sütçü, Deputy Minister of Treasury and Finance Osman Çelik has left his position by retiring. İskender Balcı, the son-in-law of Osman Çelik and son of BRSA Board Member Mustafa Balcı, had been arrested as part of the investigation into the fund fraud.
DEPUTY MINISTER'S SON-IN-LAW HAD BEEN ARRESTED
As part of the investigation into the fund fraud, İskender Balcı, the son-in-law of Osman Çelik and son of BRSA Board Member Mustafa Balcı, was arrested on October 2.
Balcı was on the board of directors of Özata Denizcilik, a company mentioned in the scandal. Özata Denizcilik is known as the company from which Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, a former Minister of Family and Social Services and an AKP Deputy Chairperson during the period of the fund fraud, generated earnings exceeding one billion from shares.
It was revealed that between the process that began in April of this year and ended in September, Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya invested 163 million 359 thousand liras in Özata Denizcilik shares, withdrew 1 billion 344 million liras within 5 months, and disposed of the shares a few days before the fund scandal broke and operations began.
WHY IS THE CMB BEING CRITICIZED?
The CMB, which is tasked with regulating and supervising the fund market, closed the funds of seven portfolio management companies traded on TEFAS to buying and selling on September 17, 2026, and decided to liquidate 131 funds. The CMB had announced that it detected the risks in the fund market in the last quarter of 2025. The CMB had been criticized for delayed interventions and insufficient supervision during the investment fund crisis, which has been ongoing for about a year. The CMB is also the main element of the supervisory mechanism, as it checks whether fund portfolios comply with the limits in the legislation.
According to the CMB Law No. 6362, the institution has the authority to take various measures such as requesting the correction of transactions contrary to the legislation, temporarily suspending activities, limiting authorizations, and imposing trading bans.
News Source: 12punto
