Şekib Avdagiç has been elected as the new chairman of the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce (İTO), which is one of the five largest chambers in the world in terms of the number of members. A total of 261 İTO assembly members from 81 professions met at the chamber's Eminönü-based headquarters to elect the new board of directors on Saturday.

According to the election results, Avdagiç has been elected the 24th chairman of İTO, which has a long history of 136 years.İTO represents an average of one in every four companies in Turkey. İTO members create 28 percent of the national income, 43 percent of total tax revenue and more than 50 percent of total foreign trade volume.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also sent a congratulatory telegram to Avdagiç.

Addressing the İTO assembly members after the announcement of election results, Avdagiç said, "We have a completely new path ahead. Our projects, which will make our 400,000 members more powerful, will be a strong guarantee for a bright future for Turkey under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's leadership. Our pinpoint projects that will play a key role in growth are ready. We do not even have an hour to waste."

Avdagiç emphasized that İTO is a strong backer of Turkey's vision as a leading country at a time when borders are being recreated and the rules of economy and trade are changing. He added, "We are here to actualize the projects that will boost Istanbul's brand value and consolidate bridges spanning from Turkey to the world."