“Türkiye has the potential to be a regional technology center for the US companies,” the Turkish industry and technology minister stated, inviting US business people to invest in Türkiye’s technology start-ups. Mustafa Varank stated during the Türkiye Investment Conference in New York, convened by the Turkish Foreign Economic Relations Board’s (DEIK) Türkiye-US Business Council, that the globe is in a tough moment owing to the pandemic, conflicts, inflation, energy problems, unpredictable supply, and value chains. He went on to say that it is critical to maintaining public and commercial diplomacy in order to tackle global economic difficulties.
Turkish minister invites US companies to invest in Turkey-based start-ups
Varank emphasized that, unlike many other manufacturers, Turkish manufacturers successfully met their domestic and international responsibilities throughout the epidemic, demonstrating that Turkey has a resilient, strong, agile, and adaptable economy. “Some global companies have already moved some of their operations to Türkiye, while others have increased their capacities,” the minister said, emphasizing that many multinational companies prefer Türkiye as a research, design, production, export, and logistics center at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa.
“The number of international companies doing business in Türkiye has reached 76,000, of which 2,000 are from the US.”
He stated that around 500 foreign investors’ research and development (R&D) and innovation facilities are established in Türkiye. Recalling that the United States was Türkiye’s second largest export market and fourth largest import partner last year, Varank stated that direct investment inflows from the United States to Türkiye increased by 45% last year to $14 billion, making the United States Türkiye’s second largest investor.
Figures grew, but still fell well short of potential, he said, adding that despite their differences, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and US President Joe Biden both expressed support for strengthening the business environment. “We believe that the new US policy to build resilient supply chains, stimulate American manufacturing and foster broad-based growth can create opportunities for both Turkish and American companies,” he said.
The minister stated that Turkey draws a high number of investments from global players due to its entrepreneurial business culture, youthful and tech-savvy population, brilliant engineers, and competitive environment and services. He stated that the country’s “unicorn” population, which was zero in 2019, has now climbed to six, two of which are “decacorn.” Unicorns are start-ups worth more than $1 billion, whereas decacorns are worth more than $10 billion. He emphasized that Turkey has the potential to be a regional technological hub for US firms.
According to him, Turkey’s start-up ecosystem attracted $1.6 billion in investment last year and $1.4 billion in the first half of this year. According to Varank, Istanbul was the fourth most invested city in the same period, after London, Paris, and Berlin, and ranked first in Europe in game-related investments. Varank urged US companies to invest directly or through venture capital funds in Turkish technological start-ups, saying, “You should invest in Türkiye and see the benefits of doing business in our region by opening up to the whole world from there.”
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