By Sandra Kenneth
Turkish authorities have officially moved to freeze the assets of former minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya and her husband, Ilyas Kaya, following explosive insider trading and corruption allegations linked to a collapsing nationwide investment fund crisis.
In a brief statement released late Tuesday, prosecutors confirmed they had dispatched formal directives to all relevant financial and state institutions ordering a total freeze of the couple’s assets.
The legal action comes on the heels of Kaya’s abrupt resignation late Saturday from her position as deputy head of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP). Kaya, who previously served as Turkey’s Minister of Family and Social Policies from 2016 to 2018, stepped down following intense scrutiny over her alleged financial ties to what regulators describe as a massive “Ponzi-like” scheme.
While denying any wrongdoing, Kaya stated that her resignation was intended to take “political responsibility” to ensure ongoing investigations could proceed independently and impartially.
The political storm intensified after opposition party Yeni Parti accused the couple of profiting off insider information. At a news conference earlier in the week, opposition representative Gokhan Gunaydın revealed claims that the couple invested 63 million lira ($1.3 million) into the fund in April, only to cash out in September for an astounding 1.3 billion lira ($26.5 million) shortly before the collapse. Gunaydın called the trade a clear abuse of insider access and signaled that further names linked to the scheme would be exposed in the coming days.
The broader market crisis erupted in mid-September when several high-profile funds declared an inability to honor investor redemption requests, triggering a sharp decline across Istanbul’s main stock exchange. In response, Turkey’s Capital Markets Board (SPK) intervened by liquidating seven asset management firms overseeing 131 investment funds valued at roughly $17 billion. Regulators estimate the collapse has directly impacted more than 455,000 individual retail investors.
The escalating turmoil prompted President Erdogan to hold a three-hour emergency summit with key economic advisors on Tuesday evening. Despite the fallout, Erdogan strongly defended his administration during an address to party cadres, dismissing accusations from opposition critics.
“The AK Party is clean, just as its name suggests… No one can tarnish this party’s purity or stain that cleanliness,” Erdogan declared, sharply rebuking political opponents trying to give lessons in morality.
As judicial authorities expand their investigation into the liquidated funds and secondary trades, additional regulatory enforcement and political fallout are expected throughout the week.
