Former Halkbank executive resigns as head of Istanbul stock exchange
Borsa Istanbul CEO Mehmet Hakan Atilla stepped down Monday in a move possibly linked with the impending US trial of Turkey’s Halkbank, where he was convicted of helping Iran skirt US sanctions.
ISTANBUL — Mehmet Hakan Atilla, a Turkish banker convicted of helping Iran evade US sanctions, resigned as head of Turkey’s Borsa Istanbul Stock Exchange, according to a statement released by the exchange Monday.
Atilla resigned “of his own accord,” according to the statement, and the decision was accepted by the board of directors Monday. Last week, Bloomberg reported Atilla was preparing to step down later this month, citing unnamed sources, though no motives have yet to be confirmed.