What is Rekabet Kurulu?
The Turkish Competition Authority (Rekabet Kurumu) is Türkiye’s competition law enforcement authority, established by Law No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition of 7 December 1994 and operational since 1997. The Rekabet Kurulu (the decision-making board of the authority) reviews merger and acquisition transactions, investigates anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominance, and increasingly addresses digital markets and emerging industries.
Merger Control
The Rekabet Kurulu reviews merger and acquisition transactions exceeding specified thresholds under Communiqué 2010/4: when the combined Turkish turnover of the parties exceeds TL 3 billion AND at least two of the parties have Turkish turnover exceeding TL 1 billion each or when the target’s Turkish turnover exceeds TL 1 billion and another party’s worldwide turnover exceeds TL 9 billion (TL 250 million for Turkish technology undertakings; thresholds as amended by Communiqué 2026/2 in February 2026). Notification is mandatory and pre-closing:closing without approval is a violation. Review periods: Phase I (30 days from complete notification; the clock restarts if information is incomplete), Phase II (6 months, extendable once by up to 6 months). Penalties for “gun-jumping” (closing without approval) are administrative fines based on turnover. Recent enforcement has been active, including blocked deals, conditional approvals with divestitures, and significant fines for unnotified transactions.
Anti-Competitive Practice Enforcement
Article 4 of the Competition Law prohibits anti-competitive agreements (analogous to EU TFEU Article 101), Article 6 prohibits abuse of dominance (analogous to TFEU 102), Article 7 governs merger control. Recent enforcement priorities include digital platforms (significant decisions concerning Trendyol, Hepsiburada and Yemeksepeti), pharma and healthcare, telecommunications, and aviation. Fines for anticompetitive conduct can reach 10% of annual gross revenue. The authority has a leniency program providing immunity or reduced fines for first applicants reporting cartels.
Digital Markets and Modern Issues
The Rekabet Kurulu has been particularly active in digital markets enforcement. Major cases address: marketplace anti-competitive practices (favorable treatment of own products, restrictions on sellers), advertising and ad-tech competition, vertical restraints in e-commerce, data-driven mergers and acquisitions, and platform dominance. The authority published its E-Marketplace Platforms Sector Inquiry final report in April 2022, examining e-commerce platforms in depth. Türkiye is considering Digital Markets Act-style ex-ante regulation similar to EU. For investment law practitioners, Rekabet Kurulu clearance is a routine but important workstream in M&A transactions, requiring careful coordination with international filings.
Sources. Law No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition.