SPK suspends Tera and Pusula asset managers

Türkiye’s SPK temporarily suspended the two asset managers. İş Bankası and Ziraat Bankası will liquidate their remaining funds.

Türkiye’s Capital Markets Board (SPK) has temporarily suspended the capital-market activities of Tera Portföy Yönetimi AŞ and Pusula Portföy Yönetimi AŞ. In its October 26, 2026 decision, the regulator also ordered the liquidation of the firms’ investment funds that were not already being wound down. Türkiye İş Bankası will liquidate Tera’s funds, while T.C. Ziraat Bankası will handle Pusula’s.

The order includes real estate investment funds and venture capital investment funds. Funds already covered by the September 17 liquidation decision remain subject to that earlier order; the October 26 measure covers the rest. SPK announced neither a date for the companies to resume business nor a payment schedule for the newly included funds.

Which bank will liquidate each group of funds?

SPK suspended the firms under the first paragraph of Article 97 of the Capital Markets Law. The suspension applies to the two asset managers named above. The banks will wind down the funds those firms established. The regulator did not announce a bankruptcy judgment against the companies or say the suspension was permanent.

The September 17 list contained six Tera funds and 12 Pusula funds. SPK has not named the additional funds or disclosed their total number, portfolio value or investor count. The 18 funds on the earlier list are not the number added on October 26.

How banks distribute fund assets

SPK instructed the banks to follow the liquidation rules it set on September 17. İş Bankası and Ziraat Bankası will carry out the fund founder’s tasks needed for liquidation and continue their responsibilities as custodians. Each bank works with Türkiye’s Central Securities Depository (MKK) to reconcile total fund units, investor accounts, pledges and other restrictions on units, and outstanding orders.

The banks also check fund assets, debts and receivables with the previous custodian and Takasbank. Fund service units compare expense records. In September, SPK gave the banks two business days to check unit and account records and ten business days to check assets, debts and receivables. Completing those checks does not mean the banks will pay every investor in full within the same periods.

The banks sell portfolio assets while considering investors’ interests, market depth and the ability to sell the holdings. They choose the frequency of sales and can sell directly or through a broker. Cash from maturing investments and asset sales can be reinvested until payments are made. The banks periodically transfer accumulated cash to investors’ custody accounts, after reconciling their records, in proportion to their fund units.

Investment fund units represent an investor’s share of a pooled portfolio; its assets, liabilities and expenses affect the amount available for distribution. Under the September rules, the bank starts earning the management fee when it takes over custody. Other expenses specified in the fund’s prospectus continue. SPK has not guaranteed a particular return or full repayment of the amount invested.

Conditions attached to interim payments

On October 1, SPK announced an interim-payment method for funds placed into liquidation on September 17, including those of Tera and Pusula. The banks will use the net amount invested shown in MKK’s records once they have reconciled an investor’s records. They will deduct the advance from the total amount owed to that investor when liquidation ends.

The banks can pay each investor up to TRY 1 million in each fund. Investors with a net investment below that amount are to receive their net investment; those at or above it can receive up to TRY 1 million. SPK gave priority to money market funds. Investors keep their units when they receive an advance and return them when liquidation ends and the final payment is made.

Has a payment date been set for the added funds?

On September 20, SPK extended the maximum liquidation period in the September 17 rules from three months to six. In its September 21 explanation, it said the six months need not elapse before liquidation can finish. SPK requires liquidation to finish on the first business day after the six months following the liquidation announcement, and can extend the period if necessary. A fund’s announcement is needed before calculating a deadline; October 26 alone does not establish its completion or payment date.

On September 28, SPK said redemption orders dated September 17 had been cancelled and the investors concerned would be paid from liquidation proceeds in proportion to their units. In its October 22 statement, it explained that an order or PBLK status alone does not establish completed settlement: cash must reach the account and fund units must leave it. SPK was addressing funds placed into liquidation in September; it did not give payment dates for those added on October 26.

The KAP disclosure was published on October 26 at 21:24 Türkiye time, or 18:24 UTC. SPK announced the temporary suspensions on its official X account at 21:41 Türkiye time. The regulator has not detailed why it halted the firms’ activities or what conditions they must meet to resume business.