Turkey: Mergers, acquisitions reach $4.5B in first half

By Sumeyye Dalkilinc

ANKARA (AA) - The value of mergers and acquisitions transactions in Turkey reached $4.5 billion during the first half of the year, a 3-fold increase in value compared with the same period in 2016, according to a consulting firm on Friday.

EY said nearly 69 percent (29) of the transactions worth about $3.1 billion were made by foreign investors.

Energy ranked first among the transactions with $2.04 billion followed by financial services with $921 million and transportation with $396 million.

The top three transactions in terms of volume were listed as the sales of OMV Petrol Ofisi, Garanti Bank and Osmangazi Electricity.

The shares of fuel oil distributor OMV Petrol Ofisi were bought by Dutch Vitol Investment for $1.44 billion, becoming the biggest transaction of the year so far.

The value of mergers and acquisitions transactions in Turkey was $1.53 billion in the first half of 2016, and $4.6 billion at the end of the year.