The signing ceremony for the program was held at the Conference Hall of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development and Support Administration (KOSGEB) with the participation of Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır and Minister of Labor and Social Security Vedat Işıkhan.
In his speech here, Alpaslan Çakar, President of the Turkish Banking Association (TBB), said that the manufacturing industry is the locomotive of exports, the agent of technological change and the basis of sustainable development, and that SMEs account for 99 percent of all enterprises and three quarters of employment. Pointing out that this structure is the basis of not only the economic but also the social structure of the country, Çakar said:
“Global fluctuations, problems in access to finance, in particular rising costs, uncertainties in demand conditions are putting pressure on companies that produce and provide jobs. At this point, our most important responsibility is to protect production, investment and employment and to take effective and timely measures in this regard. This package is a concrete example of this. The package will cover the working capital needs of our companies operating in the manufacturing sector and ensure their access to finance. By providing access to finance to SMEs, their cash flows relieved and costs reduced. The pressure on them will ease. “It helps to maintain existing jobs and prevents the loss of workers.”
Çakar explained that thanks to the Credit Guarantee Fund (KGF) guarantee mechanism, they have created a strong support chain for companies that have collateral problems in accessing credit. Emphasizing that they will provide strong financial support to the real sector, Çakar said: “We are strategic partners of our companies and the real sector, standing by the real sector in difficult times, keeping the pulse of our economy and supporting investments, especially in growth phases. We are facing a period when global competition will increase even more and productivity and technological activities will be particularly crucial. As of today, as a banking sector, we will have extended 33 percent of our commercial loans to the manufacturing industry. The manufacturing industry is the mainstay of a country, especially its main force and main force in competing in foreign markets “As a banking sector, we will continue to finance the real sector.” he said.
“Our investment banks are business partners who provide solutions”
Mehmet Ali Akben, Chairman of the Board of Participation Banks Association of Türkiye (TKBB), also stated that the total asset size of the Participation Banks sector reached 2 trillion 222 billion lira by the end of 2025. Akben stated that its share of total bank assets had reached 9.2 percent and made the following assessments:
“We continue our stable development and increasing depth in the financial ecosystem. For us, this evolution of our asset size as well as the real sector orientation of growth symbolizes the success of our model. Our partner banks are not only institutions that provide financing, but also business partners that develop solutions. When carrying out these processes, we act in complete harmony with the stakeholders of our ecosystem.”
Akben stated that they have implemented participation-based products and services with Türk Eximbank to strengthen the presence of exporters in the global market. Akben pointed out that as the most recent and strategic step of this cooperation, they made export financing from the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) available to the real sector, saying:
“Similarly, we produce solutions through Katılım Finans Sector Kefalet AŞ (KFK), which was established with our sector's equity resources to open the guarantee barrier to our SMEs and manufacturers' access to finance. KFK is the lifeblood of our real sector and has achieved a total guarantee volume of 14 billion lira since its inception with its equity and treasury-backed guarantees. Our goal is to achieve a guarantee volume of 55 billion achieve.” Lira until the end of 2026. KFK provides guarantees based on the holdings it provides. “This eliminates blockages in the financing processes and supports our processors’ hunger for production.” We see this protocol, which we signed today with KOSGEB, as a strategic link in our holistic and results-oriented approach. Our participating banks will continue to support Turkey's manufacturing economy by providing their resources for investments in production, employment, export capacity and efficiency.”
Following the speeches, representatives of banks and relevant institutions signed the “Program for financing and securing employment in the manufacturing industry”.
Bir yanıt yazın