Banks are rising, producers are shrinking

Banks are rising, producers are shrinking Mustafa Bildircin Turkey’s economic policy, largely shaped at the Presidential Palace, has left producers unable to produce. The financial structure of many companies of all sizes has been thrown into turmoil by the deep economic crisis. The opposition’s core criticism of Turkey’s economy has been: “Producers are shrinking and money is being made from money.” The validity of the criticisms directed at Turkey’s economy, which has pushed tens of millions of citizens as well as companies to the brink of bankruptcy, was shown by Companies Market Cap (CMC) data shared by CHP MP Ahmet Baran Yazgan. Yazgan underlined that the combined value of Turkey’s 20 most valuable companies can only just make it into the list of the world’s 100 most valuable companies. MIDDLE-INCOME TRAP According to the CMC data dated 4 January 2026 shared by CHP’s Yazgan, the three most valuable companies operating in Turkey were listed as “QNB Finansbank, ASELSAN and Garanti BBVA”. Pointing out that two of the three most valuable companies are of foreign origin and operate in the banking sector, Yazgan said: “This list sums up why Turkey is stuck in the ‘middle-income trap’. We have become a country where those who make money from money grow and producers shrink.” Yazgan also stated that the total of Turkey’s 20 most valuable companies can only just squeeze into the world’s top 100 companies list, adding the following about the list: “Even if the country’s top 20 assets come together, they cannot create ‘market confidence’ on the scale of a global technology platform. For the most valuable Turkish companies to enter the list of global giants, they need to increase their current value by around five times. This list is, in fact, a mirror of where Turkey’s economic model is getting stuck and its pains in producing added value. The prominence of the banking sector at the top of the list shows that capital is circulating in interest-focused financial instruments rather than industrial investment.” A FINANCIAL BUBBLE “Even if banks’ return on equity is high, if that profit does not return to industry as cheap credit, the economy grows like nothing more than a financial bubble. We have become a country where those who make money from money grow and producers shrink. The absence of industrial companies at the top of the list and the weakness of those that do exist not only creates a risk of deindustrialisation for the future but also shows that the economy is built on the service and finance sectors. Another standout point on the list is Aselsan’s loneliness. The only major company that produces high technology and has a high market value is the state-backed Aselsan.” Note: This article is translated from the original article titled Bankalar yükseliyor, üreten eriyor, published in BirGün newspaper on January 13, 2026.