Chairman's Message

Financing for Industrial Transformation

The traditional manufacturing we know is now a thing of the past. We all know that we are living in an era where a new, high-tech-focused production style is gaining momentum. 

In a global environment with accelerating developments in artificial intelligence, changing and adapting ourselves to them should be our primary motivation, as the changes in the world are significant and profound. Therefore, the time has come for concrete steps to be taken very quickly in our country and we cannot wait any longer. It is inevitable that our industry must take urgent steps towards transformation focused on the green economy, high technology, and artificial intelligence, while developing and protecting our traditional sectors.

The stories of developed countries also show that it is impossible for the private sector to do this alone. It can only be accomplished through public-private sector cooperation. This is because financing is the greatest need in this transformation.

Given that we must focus on this vital issue with all our institutions and organizations, as well as our private sector, during such an important period, we held our Assembly meeting last month with the agenda “The Importance of the Türkiye Wealth Fund for Our Production Life in Terms of Value Creation, Strategic Investments, and Sustainable Development.” 

A recently published report clearly shows how much power sovereign wealth funds hold in developed economies. The value of assets managed by sovereign wealth funds worldwide is expected to reach $15.5 trillion by December 2025. It was only $7.6 trillion in 2018. And expected to be around $22 trillion by 2030. 

Beyond these figures, the key point to note is this: Today, the function of sovereign wealth funds has gone far beyond being mere savings instruments converted into investments to make money in global markets. In many countries, sovereign wealth funds are positioned as strategic development tools that accelerate industrial transformation and support technology and knowledge-intensive sectors. 

Looking at our country in this context... Although the Türkiye Wealth Fund, established in 2016, is new compared to its counterparts in many other countries, it has quickly become a significant economic actor. With consolidated assets reaching $360 billion in 2024, our Wealth Fund has secured its place among the world's top 10 wealth funds. The scale it has achieved and the progress it has made in a short time place the Türkiye Wealth Fund in an extremely valuable and strategic position for our country's goal of a new generation industrial transformation.

We discussed this important topic at our Assembly with our guest, Mr. Arda Ermut, General Manager and Board Member of the Türkiye Wealth Fund, and our industrialists. We had very useful consultations, the details of which you can read in the following pages. 

In an interview I gave to Ekonomi (Economy) Newspaper last month, I shared my views on the economic agenda of both our country and the world, as well as the solution-oriented approaches of industrialists. You can also read a comprehensive summary of this interview in the following pages. 

It must be acknowledged that an “ICI vision” has now been established in Türkiye regarding vocational education. While expanding our ICI MEIP project with the Ministry of National Education to many different cities, we also took the first step in a new project in this field last month. We have initiated an important collaboration with the Istanbul Chamber of Industry (ICI), the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of National Education, and Yıldız Technical University (YTÜ) for the İSOV Dinçkök Vocational and Technical Anatolian High School. We will share developments on this topic through our magazine. 

I would like to wish you a happy and peaceful Ramadan, which started last month, a most meaningful month in which our hearts unite, friendships are strengthened, and our spiritual world is enriched. Wishing prosperity and well-being for our country and the entire Islamic world, I would also like to congratulate you in advance on the upcoming Ramadan Holiday.


Erdal Bahçıvan
Istanbul Chamber of Industry
Chairman of the Board of Directors