| Headline: Top-performing Akbank mulls joint venture Source: Euromoney Date: November 2001
As Turkey’s banking crisis continues unabated, Akbank, the crown jewel of the ultra-rich Sabanci family, emerges on top. Now it has embarked on a bold plan to professionalize its management. First-half results showed that Akbank’s net profit was the highest among the companies listed on the Istanbul Stock Exchange and higher than the combined profits of the four closest rival banks. Most of the credit belongs to chairman Erol Sabanci, who at 62 completes his 40th year with Akbank this year. He has been on the board since 1963 and chairman or managing director since 1970. The Sabanci family has interests in more than 40 companies, many of which are market leaders in their sectors. The family wealth was established by Haci Omer, who in the 1920s walked 250km to the rich agricultural plains in the south and there made a fortune in cotton. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||