Governors of Turkish participation banks discussed future strategies of the sector as part of the Participation Finance Summit, organized by Anadolu at the Istanbul Financial Center on Thursday.
The summit featured panels on the future strategies of participation banks and Türkiye’s participation economy, participation-based investment products, and the role of digitalization in participation finance’s future.
The event was organized through a collaboration between Anadolu and the Participation Banks Association of Türkiye, with contributions from Turkish participation banks Vakif Katilim, Kuveyt Turk, Ziraat Katilim, Emlak Katilim, Albaraka, Türkiye Finans, Dunya Katilim, Hayat Finans, TOM Bank, and Adil Katilim.
As part of the summit, the panel titled “Future Strategies of Participation Banks and Türkiye’s Participation Economy,” moderated by Oguz Enis Peru, deputy director general for administrative and financial affairs at Anadolu, featured presentations by Mehmet Ali Akben, general manager of Vakif Participation Bank; Ufuk Uyan, general manager of Kuveyt Turk Participation Bank; Metin Ozdemir, general manager of Ziraat Participation Bank; Muge Oner, general manager of Türkiye Finans Participation Bank; and Ikram Goktas, general manager of Dunya Participation Bank.
In his opening remarks at the panel, Peru said Anadolu closely monitors global developments in the economy, finance, technology, and the real sector -- in addition to war and political issues -- and shares its analyses with the public.
Highlighting the critical role of the participation finance sector in the economic order, Peru said: “Especially for our citizens who keep their distance from the traditional system due to interest rate sensitivity, participation finance constitutes an important structure that offers the opportunity to participate in economic life.”
Peru drew attention to the strategic similarities between communication and financial systems, stating: “Anadolu was founded 106 years ago out of a need for trust.
"Today, the participation finance system is also playing a significant role with the goal of establishing a trust-based economic structure.”
Highlighting the importance of establishing a participation finance ecosystem, Mehmet Ali Akben said that public authorities must implement the necessary regulations, while companies must play their part by offering suitable products.
Akben noted that the participation finance ecosystem needs to be supported with certain incentives, stating: “It also needs to be supported with different instruments. The sector’s market share in the banking sector alone is 10%, but if we also consider its share in the stock market, the percentage is even higher.”
Akben emphasized the importance of resolving the structural infrastructure and legal challenges in the Islamic finance sector, stating: “Equalizing the competitive environment with conventional banking is crucial.”
Highlighting the need to facilitate the flow of capital from other Islamic countries to Türkiye, Akben said: “We need to ensure the establishment of regulatory and supervisory bodies that develop certain standards within the Islamic Financial Market (IFM).”
Ufuk Uyan noted that the sector began 40 years ago with three core products and has since evolved to offer alternatives to all products in the conventional sector.
He said three key elements will take center stage in future strategies for participatory finance, particularly targeting the SME segment, and noted: “These are ecosystem banking, data analytics and artificial intelligence, and partnership financing.”
Uyan said ecosystem banking involves the completion of a strategic structure that serves not only the customer but all stakeholders, from suppliers to infrastructure providers.
Data analytics and artificial intelligence also enable the proactive identification of customer needs, the development of “tailor-made” personalized products, and the optimization of costs, he stressed.
“Partnership financing involves the widespread adoption of project-based profit-and-loss sharing models through products such as ‘operational financing’ designed to cover SMEs’ operational and labor costs,” he added.
Uyan noted that the participatory finance sector has now evolved into an ecosystem, explaining that through its 12 subsidiaries, Kuveyt Turk contributes to interest-free-based development across a wide range of areas—from takaful (participation) insurance to portfolio management, and from real estate investment partnerships to international banking operations.
Metin Ozdemir noted that Ziraat Participation Bank was established in 2015 as the first public participation lender following the government’s decision to invest in this sector, and he recalled that the bank was the fourth participation bank in the sector at that time.
Pointing to the current state of participation banking in Türkiye, he said: “We are rapidly moving, and we will continue to move, from being an alternative channel within the banking sector to becoming one of the sector’s defining elements.”
Ozdemir noted that developments worldwide and in the region demonstrate that Türkiye is poised to become a major financial hub.
He highlighted that public banks have also created opportunities for competition within the sector.
“Above all, we have instilled the trust provided by the public sector into the industry. In this sense, we have also ensured the trust of our citizens and people in the participatory banking sector.”
Muge Oner said participation finance is not merely an alternative but a structure that balances the global financial system.
She reminded that the global participatory finance sector’s size is $6 trillion.
“However, when we look back 10 years, we see significant momentum on a global scale, growing by 10-12% annually from a $2 trillion volume.”
She also highlighted Türkiye’s position within the system, saying: “If we list the countries with the largest participation finance systems, Türkiye has managed to enter the top 10 for the first time, securing a share of around 3%, alongside major players such as Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and Indonesia.”
Ikram Goktas said the participation finance sector needs to develop products, saying: “We need to develop gold-backed products, bring attractive products to the market for citizens, and encourage them to bring their gold to the banks in some way.”
Citing a report by the World Gold Council, he noted that gold is the only asset that has managed to retain its value against major currencies since 2000, and added that, from the perspective of participation banking, there is a significant amount of gold savings.
He pointed out that the gold collected in the sector needs to be converted into investment by participation banks.
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