Şahenk in talks with Qatar sovereign wealth fund for Galataport sale

Ferit Şahenk is in talks with the Qatari sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority, for the sale of Galataport.

Şahenk plans to use the proceeds from a potential sale of Galataport, for which he utilized a 1.02 billion euro (1.1 billion dollar) loan for its construction, to pay off the debt.

Sources stating that the negotiations are in the early stages also indicated that the discussions might not result in an agreement.

Galataport, a 1.7 billion dollar cruise port project built by Doğuş Holding and Bilgili Holding, opened in 2021 after a series of delays. The port was targeted to host an average of 25 million visitors and 1.5 million passengers annually.

Doğuş, Bilgili, and the Qatar Investment Authority did not provide comments to Bloomberg regarding the matter.

Following the sale of his stake in Garanti Bank to the Spanish bank BBVA for approximately 5 billion dollars, Şahenk had focused on investments in hotels, marinas, and restaurants.

Doğuş Holding, which reached a restructuring agreement with banks, has been looking to increase its cash position in recent years. In 2020, Doğuş sold its 30 percent stake in İstinye Park to the Qatari sovereign wealth fund.

News Source: 12punto