Prosecutors Seek Probe of Ex-SPK Chair Over Fund Manipulation

Istanbul prosecutors have asked the Treasury and Finance Ministry for permission to investigate former Capital Markets Board (SPK) Chairman Ibrahim Omer Gonul for alleged abuse of office. The request, sent on September 30, cites "clear and sufficient evidence" that Gonul neglected supervisory duties while investment funds allegedly engineered manipulative price moves on Borsa Istanbul between 2024 and September 2026.

Four separate investigations are underway examining coordinated, simultaneous transactions between listed shares and TEFAS-registered open and closed funds. Prosecutors classify the conduct as qualified fraud, forming a criminal organization, money laundering, and market manipulation.

“Clear and sufficient evidence found that duties and responsibilities in the supervision of investment funds were not fulfilled.”

The prosecutor's letter emphasizes the SPK's statutory duty to monitor funds through financial and digital oversight mechanisms. It notes that SPK reports covering the 2024–September 2026 period were forwarded to the prosecution, and that many investors suffered serious losses in what the public calls the "fund crisis."

Gonul, who chaired the SPK from April 2022 until April 2026, gave a statement as a suspect on September 30 and was released. Under Article 133 of the Capital Markets Law, the minister's permission is required to prosecute board members for duty-related offenses, and such permission requires evidence of intent to secure personal gain or cause harm to the Board.

Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Simsek has assigned an Inspection Board to conduct a preliminary review of the prosecution's request. The funds named in the investigations include Tera Portföy Birinci Serbest Fon, Pusula Portföy Hisse Senedi Fonu, Pusula Portföy Birinci Değişken Fon, Tera Portföy Algoritmik Stratejiler Serbest Fon, Atlas Portföy Serbest Fon, and Hedef Portföy.