New step in fund investigation: Chief Public Prosecutor's Office orders asset freeze for 30 people

The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has requested precautionary measures for 30 individuals over allegations of market manipulation involving certain stocks through funds.

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New step in fund investigation: Chief Public Prosecutor's Office orders asset freeze for 30 people

The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has taken a new step in its investigation into allegations of artificial price increases and manipulative transactions conducted through funds in certain stocks traded on Borsa İstanbul.

A notification was sent to numerous institutions by the Bureau of Investigation for Financing of Terrorism and Money Laundering Crimes with a letter dated September 30, 2026. The letter stated that the investigation is being conducted within the scope of the crimes of "laundering assets derived from crime" and opposition to the Capital Markets Law.

The Chief Public Prosecutor's Office's letter stated that some stocks traded on the Borsa İstanbul Equity Market experienced price increases of up to approximately 100 times, and these movements were evaluated as "abnormal." The investigation includes assessments that a significant portion of these stocks were collected through funds, that purchases were made from the market, and that this created an increase in both the share prices and the value of the relevant funds.

The letter also reported that some companies were examined along with their market values, capital, equity, and periodic profits; and that it was assessed that there were high discrepancies between the book value and price-to-book (PD/DD) ratios and the trading prices of some stocks.

The Chief Public Prosecutor's Office noted that there are findings indicating that fund owners individually purchased the relevant stocks, that these transactions created demand and drove up prices, and that the shares were subsequently sold to the funds. The assessment that the rises in the stocks were not linked to the companies' actual operations and positions was also included in the letter.

The investigation letter stated that the allegation of providing artificial price increases and obtaining significant amounts of benefit through this method is being evaluated within the scope of market fraud regulated in Article 107 of the Capital Markets Law No. 6362.

The Chief Public Prosecutor's Office also reported that, following the findings made within the scope of the investigation, 131 funds were closed to trading for both purchase and sale on TEFAS by the decision of the Capital Markets Board's Decision-Making Body dated September 17, 2026.

The letter stated that warrants were sent to relevant institutions to conduct research on the identified individuals and the companies they represent. In this context, it was requested that transactions by these individuals, as well as their family members including spouses and children, that could reduce their assets be monitored.

Within the scope of the instruction, it was requested that the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office's opinion be obtained before performing transactions such as transfers, assignments, sales, donations, establishing mortgages and pledges, account closures, high-amount cash withdrawals, and high-amount EFT and wire transfers.

Furthermore, it was requested that suspicious transactions that appear outside of ordinary operations, are notable in terms of amount or frequency, or are assessed as potentially asset-reducing or collusive be reported to the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office without delay. Freezing the capital market instruments in the accounts of the individuals mentioned in the investigation and reporting the relevant transactions to MASAK were also among the requested measures.

The Chief Public Prosecutor's Office's letter was sent to numerous institutions including the Banks Association of Turkey, the Participation Banks Association of Turkey, the Union of Notaries of Turkey, the General Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre, MASAK, the Central Securities Depository, the CMB, Takasbank, Borsa İstanbul, and the Capital Markets Association of Turkey. It was also requested that land registry, ship, and aircraft records be examined.

NAMES SUBJECT TO PRECAUTIONARY MEASURES

In the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office's letter dated September 30, 2026, precautionary measures regarding assets and capital market instruments were requested for 30 people. The list included the following names: