Turkish police detained 14 more people on Tuesday over alleged manipulation of shares that investment funds had bought in large amounts before some of the funds failed to meet withdrawal requests, as about 353,000 investors awaited payouts from the liquidation of 131 funds managing TL 891 billion ($18.3 billion) in assets.
Police carried out raids in İstanbul and the western province of Aydın after obtaining warrants for 15 people, but found that one was abroad.
The investigation now covers 60 people, with four jailed pending trial, 44 in police custody and 12 still sought, Justice Minister Akın Gürlek said.
The operation followed findings by Turkey’s Capital Markets Board (SPK) of suspected manipulation in shares tied to Katılımevim, Destek and Hedef.
Katılımevim runs interest-free payment plans for home and vehicle purchases, while Destek and Hedef operate finance and investment businesses.
Market manipulation refers to trades or public statements meant to mislead investors about a stock’s price or demand for it.
Police detained Selim Dağbaşı and Hamza Kablan late Monday in the financial part of the case.
Investigators allege that Dağbaşı sent $14.5 million to jailed Pusula Portföy Chairman Muhammed Yarız’s Swiss account in May and that Kablan sent him 970.36 million lira ($19.9 million) in two transfers on September 4.
Police detained another 11 people on Tuesday in a separate case over alleged efforts to manipulate shares in electronics distributor Aztek Teknoloji through posts on X, while three others were sought.
That case concerns posts made between May 2023 and July 2024 and is not part of the 44-person custody total in the fund investigation.
Turkey’s stock exchange, Borsa İstanbul, will remove Katılımevim and Destek Finans Faktoring from the benchmark BIST 100 index on October 1.
They are among 27 companies leaving the index in its largest reshuffle in six years, although the exchange gave no reason for removing individual companies.
Destek will also leave the BIST 30 and BIST 50, while Katılımevim will leave the BIST 50, and both will move from the exchange’s top trading tier to its lower Main Market.
Borsa İstanbul also imposed a rule that allows investors betting on a fall in BIST 50 shares to sell only above the latest traded price, or at that price if it has just risen.
The SPK last week ordered the funds managed by seven firms to be shut down under bank supervision after some failed to meet withdrawal requests.
Private lender İşbank is overseeing the sale of assets from six funds, while state-owned Ziraat Bank is handling the other 125 and will distribute the proceeds after debts and costs are paid.
Funds being liquidated hold about 70 billion lira ($1.4 billion) in Destek shares, equal to about 66 percent of the stock available for public trading, QNB Invest calculated.
The SPK on Monday extended the maximum period for liquidating the funds from three months to six months, saying additional time could allow their assets to be sold under more favorable market conditions.
The regulator said the process could still be completed earlier.
