Türkiye's securities regulator on Monday said it had raised the financial asset threshold for "qualified investors" fivefold, with existing status holders having to prove again that they meet the new requirements.
The overhaul marks the latest change since a crisis in September prompted authorities to order the liquidation of more than 130 investment funds that authorities suspect were manipulated and inflated in price.
Capital Markets Board (SPK) said the amount of financial assets required for people who ask to be treated as professional clients, which was TL 10 million ($200,000), is now TL 50 million.
The trading volume requirement has risen to TL 25 million from TL 5 million. Amounts that legal entities must meet to be treated as professional clients have also been reset.
The board said the qualified investor conditions in its various communiques, which refer back to the professional investor rules, have been updated to match.
Current holders of qualified investor status must re-document that they meet the new conditions.
The board also removed an exception introduced by a principal decision dated Dec. 18, 2025. It had applied to qualified investors buying units in real estate investment funds and venture capital investment funds.
These investors will now be subject to the same amounts that apply to qualified investors generally.
The board extended to Jan. 31, 2027, the final deadline for investment funds to fully comply with portfolio and investment limits.
The earlier schedule set staged deadlines for Oct. 31 and Nov. 30, 2026, and full compliance by Dec. 31, 2026. Under the update, the final deadline applies without the staged steps.
The board also removed a provision on exceptions for public institutions' and affiliates' money and capital market instruments, without affecting similar provisions in its communique on investment funds.
Nearly half a million investors held stakes in the funds that regulators ordered liquidated in mid-September.
Authorities say the liquidation process has been completed for 84 of the 131 initially frozen funds and payments have been made to their investors.
Parliament last week passed a law that establishes a framework for repayments, with payments adjusted for inflation and interim payouts of up to TL 1 million.
In late August, the SPK issued a Fund Guide requiring hedge funds to disclose their portfolios weekly, among other measures. Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has said further regulation is being studied.
