Changes In BIST Equity Market Structure And Listing Requirements

In today's globalized trade environment, many companies engage in commercial relations with other firms and conduct international trade.

Turkish competition enforcement has entered a phase in which the Authority's most consequential interventions increasingly arrive before, rather than after, a finding of infringement. This Summer 2026 edition covers eight developments spanning digital markets policy, merger remedies, physical access to retail infrastructure, labour market information exchange, AI distribution channels, procedural cooperation obligations and the transition between fining regimes.

Oracle Corporation, the American technology giant, agreed to pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") $22.9 million as the result of the investigation to resolve charges...

This article examines the establishment and continuing management of a foreign business presence in Türkiye. It compares subsidiaries, branches and liaison offices, and considers capital, corporate documentation, governance, representative authority, investment reporting, work authorisation and data protection. Judicial decisions concerning corporate organisation and management duties are considered in their relevant context. The analysis argues that the choice of vehicle should follow the proposed activity, ownership arrangements and expected life of the investment. Effective legal preparation connects incorporation with the company's subsequent compliance, financing, decision-making and exit arrangements rather than treating registration as the final objective.

The Capital Markets Board of Türkiye (“CMB” or the “Board”), through its principle decision No. i-SPK.15.2 (dated 03.09.2026 and numbered 54/1614) (“Resolution”), has lowered to 3% the minimum shareholding disclosure threshold under the Material Events Disclosure Commu-niqué No. II-15.1 (“Communiqué”). The Reso-lution will apply as from the end of the day on 11.09.2026.

Turkey's e-commerce sector achieved a historic milestone in 2025, with transaction volume reaching 4.57 trillion TL—a 52.2% year-over-year increase. The Ministry of Trade's comprehensive report reveals how artificial intelligence integration, quick commerce models, and sustainability initiatives are reshaping consumer behavior and business operations.

One of the economic purposes of joint stock companies is to generate profits through their business activities and to distribute such profits among their shareholders in accordance with the rules stipulated by law and the articles of association.

According to the first paragraph of Article 5 of the Communiqué on Share Buybacks No. II-22.1 (the "Communiqué"), a share buyback program can only be approved by a general assembly resolution.

In any high-stakes investment, Merger & Acquisition (M&A), or private equity deal in Turkey and real estate engagements, the financial statements of the target company are the primary focus. While accountants and financial analysts review these numbers for performance and profitability, an experienced corporate lawyer reads them differently.

New regulations have been introduced in relation to joint-stock companies with bearer shares according to the Law on Prevention of Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction numbered 7262.

In April 2024, we wrote about Turkey's newly introduced regulatory framework for electric vehicle ("EV") imports and questioned whether a regime requiring certain importers to establish their own (not through any third parties) service networks, operate a forty-person call centre and comply with additional certification and representation requirements could be reconciled with Turkey's international trade obligations1.

Turkey's Competition Authority has launched a sector inquiry into artificial intelligence. The absence of local representatives for providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic in Türkiye is being assessed in light of the findings of the Grand National Assembly's AI Commission report

The Act on Amendments to the Social Services Act and Certain Other Acts (Law No. 7578) (the "Act") was published in the Official Gazette on 1 May 2026, establishing a framework addressing both social media platforms and digital games in Turkey. On the social media front, the Act prohibits social network providers from offering services to children under the age of fifteen and mandates the implementation of age verification measures to enforce this prohibition.

Türkiye has introduced a new tax incentive for individuals relocating to the country. With the Law No. 7582 enacted on 4 June 2026, a new Article repeated 20/D has been inserted into the Income Tax Code, creating a long-term exemption from Turkish income tax on foreign-sourced income. The implementing rules were published in Income Tax General Communique No.333. This article sets out the key features of the regime and highlights the practical considerations.

Generative artificial intelligence (“AI”) tools have become part of day-to-day legal practice in many jurisdictions. From summarising contracts and lengthy decisions to preparing first drafts of correspondence and supporting legal research, these tools now assist lawyers at many stages of their work. As their use becomes more widespread, the focus is increasingly shifting from whether AI should have a place in legal practice to the conditions under which it can be used consistently with lawyers’ professional obligations.

Following a sector inquiry launched in December 2021 to detect structural competition concerns in the pharmaceutical sector and offer competitive solutions, the Turkish Competition Authority (“TCA”) published its Pharmaceutical Sector Inquiry Preliminary Report on 10 August 2026, opening it for public consultation. The report examines the overall outlook of the sector together with quantitative and statistical data, summarises the TCA's enforcement activities in the sector over the past ten years, and assesses the competitive structure across the full supply chain: production, market entry, and distribution.

We have explained the problems in the Turkish satellite platform market, stemming from the special communications taxes in our Mondaq article titled "Special Communication Taxes in Turkish Pay TV Markets: An Illustration of Legal Uncertainty".

Turkish Competition Authority, artificial intelligence sector inquiry, digital markets regulation, merger control guidelines, Meta Threads, Uber Getir, Coca-Cola commitments, tyre sector fines, casting sector, streaming platforms, no-poach agreements, resale price maintenance, interim measures, WhatsApp AI integration, health insurance investigation, Google online advertising, seed market, freezer cabinet practices, Mastercard Visa, settlement procedure, commitment decisions

TCA’s conditional clearance of Uber/Getir with a USD 500 million investment commitment signals a potential shift towards weighing industrial policy alongside traditional competition concerns in Turkish merger control.

On 4 December, the Council approved new rules to help protect the EU against unfair trade practices.