By Dilara Sarı
Vice President for Banking at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Matteo Patrone is set to visit Türkiye from 22 to 26 July, with scheduled meetings in Istanbul and Ankara.
The visit will feature meetings with clients, business associations and government officials and will be Mr Patrone’s first official visit to the country in his new role as EBRD Vice President.
During his visit, Mr Patrone will meet Türkiye’s Treasury and Finance Minister, Mehmet Şimşek, and high officials of the Ministry of Industry and Technology.
Patrone will also hold discussions with members of the Turkish Industry and Business Association (TÜSİAD) and key industry representatives, as well as with existing clients of the Bank in the energy, banking and retail sectors.
Ahead of the visit, Mr Patrone said: “Our commitment to Türkiye is unwavering and consistently delivers positive results that contribute to the country’s sustainable economic development, including during difficult times.
The EBRD’s strong partnership with the private sector, in particular, will continue to bolster the economy’s resilience and competitiveness, build up green initiatives and digitalisation, and foster inclusive growth.
I look forward to engaging with the country’s public and private sector representatives to explore further avenues for deepening our cooperation.”
Patrone will be accompanied on the visit by the EBRD’s new Managing Director for Türkiye and the Caucasus, Ms Elisabetta Falcetti. Ms Falcetti will officially take up that position in August, taking over from Arvid Tuerkner, who was appointed the EBRD’s Managing Director for Ukraine and Moldova.
Last year, EBRD invested a record €2.5 billion in Türkiye, driven by green investments and the need to respond to the February 2023 earthquakes. So far, in 2024, the Bank invested almost €1 billion in the country.
The EBRD is one of Türkiye’s key investors, with more than €20 billion invested cumulatively since 2009 across 450 projects and trade finance facilities, and with 93 per cent of investments channelled to the private sector.
