Şenol Kazancı
Turkcell’s New Board of Directors Announced. Following the Ordinary General Assembly, the new board of directors has been determined at Turkcell. While Şenol Kazancı continues in his role as the Chairman of Turkcell’s Board of Directors, Arda Ermut, Prof. Dr. Mehmet Naci İnci, and Prof. Dr. İdris Sarısoy have been appointed to the board.
After the Ordinary General Assembly held on May 2, 2024, the new board of directors was determined at Turkcell. According to the disclosure made to the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), Sir Julian Horn-Smith, a member of Turkcell’s Board of Directors, and Independent Board Members Afif Demirkıran and Hüseyin Arslan stepped down from their positions. Arda Ermut joined the Turkcell Board of Directors, while Prof. Dr. Mehmet Naci İnci and Prof. Dr. İdris Sarısoy were appointed as Independent Board Members.
Arda Ermut, the former President of the Presidency Investment Office, graduated from the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Boğaziçi University. He started his career as an Advisor for Press and Public Relations at the Prime Ministry in 2005. After serving in various managerial positions at the Investment Support and Promotion Agency of Turkey, where he joined as an Expert in 2005, Ermut was appointed as the President of the Agency in 2015. In these roles, Ermut played a role in attracting various international direct investments to Turkey. He served as a Member of the Board of Vienna Economic Forum and SunExpress between 2015-2019, Vice President of the Turkish Basketball Federation between 2019-2021, and as the President of the World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies (WAIPA) for four years. Ermut served as a Member of the Board of Directors of Turkish Airlines between 2019-2021 and as one of the three members of the Executive Board of Turkish Airlines. Ermut served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the Turkey Wealth Fund (TVF) between 2018-2020 and was appointed as the General Manager and Member of the Board of Directors of the Turkey Wealth Fund as of March 2021. Following the acquisition of the majority shares by the Turkey Wealth Fund, Ermut served as a Member of the Board of Directors of Türk Telekom between 2022-2024.
The new Independent Board Member Prof. Dr. Mehmet Naci İnci completed his undergraduate education at Marmara University Physics Department in 1987 and his doctoral education in the field of fiber optic sensors at Heriot-Watt University in the UK in 1992. Conducting postdoctoral studies in optical communications at Stanford University Electrical Engineering Department between 1993-1994, İnci became an Assistant Professor at the Physics Department of Boğaziçi University in 1994 and an Associate Professor in 1996. Working as a faculty member at Sabancı University Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences between 1999-2005, İnci held various positions in the establishment of other undergraduate and graduate programs of the university. İnci became a Professor at the Physics Department of Boğaziçi University in 2005 and served as the Head of the Department between 2013-2020. Prof. Dr. Mehmet Naci İnci has been serving as the Rector of Boğaziçi University since 2021. His research areas include applied optics for industry, quantum optics, nonlinear optics, quantum computing, optoelectronics, fiber optic sensors, fiber optic telecommunications, solid state physics, optical profilometry, photonics, and nanostructures.
The new Independent Board Member İdris Sarısoy graduated from the Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences, Department of Finance, at Erciyes University in 1998. Completing his master’s degree at Istanbul University, Institute of Social Sciences, Department of Finance, in the same year with his thesis titled “Tax Incentives Provided to Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Their Application in Turkey,” Sarısoy completed his Ph.D. in 2006 with his dissertation titled “Tax Incentives Provided to Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Their Application in Turkey.” Starting his academic career at Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences in 2002, Sarısoy continued his academic career at Marmara University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences in 2003. Working as an Associate Professor at Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences between 2007-2014, Sarısoy has been working as a Professor at Marmara University Faculty of Political Sciences Department of Political Science and Public Administration since 2014. Sarısoy, who is also a Member of the Tax Council of the Ministry of Treasury and Finance, conducts academic research mainly in tax matters, as well as poverty, foreign capital investments, election manifestos, and health economics.