IslamicFinance.de

The Borsa Istanbul issued a statement providing the reason for suspending the trading of shares of Bank Asya under the name ASYAB between August 7 and 12. The statement noted that the reason for the suspension was the contradictory news announced by various media institutions about the partnership structure of the bank and news which has caused fluctuation in the prices of share certificates. Therefore, it was noted that ASYAB share certificates are being temporarily suspended from trade. It further explained that the temporary suspension of trade continued since the statement Bank Asya gave to the Public Disclosure Platform on Aug. 8, 2014 did not completely remove the current uncertainty. In this respect, in order to not damage trust, clarity and the stability of the market, the temporary suspension of trading ASYAB stocks continued until Aug. 12, 2014, the BIST remarked.

Bank Asya, known for its close ties to the controversial Gülen Movement announced last month that it would sign a merger agreement with Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB). After announcing the prospective merger, Bank Asya's share in BIST, Turkey's stock market, rallied and increased by nearly 60 percent in one week. However, officials at the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency (BDDK) said they have not received any formal merger application from Bank Asya executives. Authorities said that Bank Asya is looking for assurances from the BDDK that the agency will approve the merger, otherwise the Qatari bank may not be willing to sit down at the negotiating table again. Whether or not the merger happens, the speculative news has negatively affected small investors.