President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan paid an official visit to London on May 13-16 to attend the Turkish-British Tatlıdil Forum and to meet with Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, and UK Prime Minister Theresa May. The official visit also saw President Erdoğan meet with businesspeople and investors during a business lunch at Bloomberg headquarters.
Accompanying Erdoğan were Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Şimşek, Minister of Economy Nihat Zeybekci, and ISPAT President Arda Ermut. The delegation met with senior managers of leading global banks and funds such as Credit Suisse, AXA, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Blackrock, Fidelity, ING, HSBC, Standard Chartered, EBRD, Deutsche Bank, and Citigroup. President Erdoğan informed the attendees about the economic developments in Turkey and then addressed their questions.
ISPAT President Arda Ermut said the meeting offered British investors the opportunity to hear first-hand about Turkey’s economic policies. “The UK is an important FDI source for Turkey. We have more than 3,000 companies operating in Turkey with UK capital and we have attracted USD 10 billion in FDI from the UK since 2002. We have a trade volume of more than USD 16 billion. So, this meeting was of vital importance. We showcased Turkey’s support for UK investors at the highest level,” Ermut added. President Erdoğan gave an interview to Bloomberg TV following the meeting.
Prior to President Erdoğan’s official visit, ISPAT was also present at the “Invest in Turkey Forum 2018” in London, with ISPAT Vice President Ahmet İhsan Erdem being a keynote speaker. Erdem presented on development plans and the policies of investing in Turkey for potential investors, infrastructure developers, and financiers. His presentation mainly focused on how Turkey’s macroeconomic indicators, growth prospects, and unparalleled economic reforms all contributed to lucrative opportunities across a wide variety of sectors.