Berat Albayrak

The opposition's "Where are the 128 billion dollars?" campaign directly associated Albayrak with the alleged disappearance of reserves. He brought damages actions against the CHP. In 2026, the Constitutional Court rejected the CHP's application challenging the damages awarded to Albayrak, the courts having found insufficient evidence of a direct factual link implicating him.

State of the evidence

Alleged

Attribution

Directly implicated

Under Albayrak, public banks and the central bank used tens of billions of dollars in reserves to support the lira. The interventions and their transparency became central subjects of controversy, with a sharp decline in net reserves and increased exposure through swaps.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Political responsibility

Asked on television about concerns caused by the dollar's rise, Albayrak replied to the presenter: "Are you paid in dollars? Do you have debt in dollars? Do you have anything to do with the dollar?" The exchange provoked a strong public reaction, with critics highlighting the exchange rate's impact on prices and imports.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Personally implicated

On 8 November 2020, Albayrak announced his resignation from the Finance Ministry on Instagram, one day after the replacement of the central bank governor and another fall in the lira. The announcement, initially given little coverage by major Turkish media, created several hours of uncertainty and was interpreted as a crisis at the top of economic policymaking.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Directly implicated

Berat Albayrak, his brother Serhat and Ahmet Çalık filed a complaint against journalist Pelin Ünker following her articles based on the Paradise Papers concerning offshore companies linked to the period when the Albayrak brothers worked at Çalık. Press organisations denounced the case as an attempt at judicial intimidation.

State of the evidence

Reported by the press

Attribution

Protagonist is the complainant

Person targeted by the proceedings

Pelin Ünker

Role of the person profiled

Protagonist not prosecuted

The appointment of Berat Albayrak, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's son-in-law, as Treasury and Finance Minister under the new presidential system immediately prompted accusations of nepotism and concerns about the concentration of economic policy within the presidential family circle; the lira fell after the announcement.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Directly implicated

During the 2018 lira crisis, Albayrak presented action plans and a new economic programme as the currency reached historic lows. Investors and analysts criticised the economic policy's lack of credibility, central bank independence and risks to banks.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Political responsibility

Emails hacked and published in "Berat's Box" were interpreted as showing Albayrak's involvement in staffing and remuneration matters at Powertrans, a company with privileged access to the transportation of oil from Iraqi Kurdistan, although he had publicly denied links with the company.

State of the evidence

Allegations

Attribution

Directly implicated

Analyses of emails attributed to Albayrak suggested that they revealed close exchanges with media executives and reports concerning editorial decisions, fuelling accusations of interference by the government and presidential circle in the Turkish press.

State of the evidence

Alleged

Attribution

Directly implicated

Freedom House reported that emails addressed to Albayrak described plans for technical groups and "psychological warfare" specialists intended to shape opinion on social media, with proposed campaigns targeting opponents or celebrities.

State of the evidence

Alleged

Emails attributed to Albayrak and his doctoral supervisor Erişah Arıcan were published in 2016. According to several media outlets, they show Arıcan sending presentations and sections of the work and offering to complete parts of the thesis, fuelling allegations that Albayrak did not write his doctorate entirely himself.

State of the evidence

Alleged

Attribution

Directly implicated