Bank Asya sold subsidiaries worth TL 568M within past year

While all of Bank Asya's partnership negotiations with foreign and local banks have failed within the past year, it has sold four of its subsidiaries and decided to increase its paid capital by 25 percent. Bank Asya, which is known for its close links to the Gülen Movement, first sold its 21.8 percent stake in Yeni Mağazacılık A.Ş. (A101) worth TL 350 million ($152.2 million) on April 25, 2014, and then it sold its shares of Tuna GYO (Asya Termal) and Nil Yönetim Hizmetleri A.Ş. in July. Six months after these sales, Bank Asya is now selling its shares of another holding. According to Bank Asya's announcement to the Public Disclosure Platform, the bank has signed an agreement to sell its 40 percent share of Tamweel Africa Holding S.A. to the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD). Therefore, the combined revenue earned is now TL 568 million when the last sale is included.

Along with selling off last of its holdings, Bank Asya's negotiations to partner with other banks have caused fluctuations in its share prices. While the Borsa Istanbul (BIST-100) index increased by 26 percent in 2014, Bank Asya's shares suffered a loss of 55.17 percent. The bank's shares had also decreased by 34.39 percent in 2013. On Sept. 16, 2014, Bank Asya's management approved the decision to increase its paid capital by TL 225 million from TL 900 million to TL 1.125 billion. The bank's balance sheet also suffered as a result, and while the bank earned a profit of TL 180.6 million in 2013, it declared a loss of TL 249.6 million in the third quarter of 2014. Furthermore, the bank also declared to the Public Disclosure Platform that due to the change in its financial size, it had closed down 80 of its branches and laid off 1,708 of its staff since the end of 2013.