JPMorgan to close Turkish securities unit

JPMorgan plans to end its Turkish brokerage operations, subject to regulatory approval, without giving a reason for the proposed withdrawal.

JPMorgan Menkul Degerler AS has applied to the Capital Markets Board to discontinue its capital markets business and relinquish its intermediary designation, the company said in an exchange disclosure. The announcement concerns the securities subsidiary, rather than establishing that JPMorgan Chase & Co. is withdrawing every business from Turkey.

The distinction between an application and an approved closure is central to the announcement. The company described a proposed withdrawal requiring regulatory consent, not a completed shutdown, and the supplied material gives no date for a decision.

A small subsidiary seeks withdrawal

The Turkish brokerage reported assets of 67 million Turkish liras, equivalent to $1.4 million, at the close of 2025, according to a regulatory disclosure. It also recorded an operating loss of approximately 7 million liras; the supplied material provides no earlier results for comparison.

Those figures establish the reported size and financial position of the entity seeking to stop operating. They do not establish the value of JPMorgan’s other activities connected to Turkey, or quantify any financial effect that the proposed closure would have on the wider group.

The operating loss is relevant financial context, but the company did not identify it as the reason for leaving the brokerage business. Nor does the announcement establish a connection between the decision and recent movements in Turkish equities.

Turkish equities provide a weaker backdrop

The Borsa Istanbul 100 Index has declined more than 15% from its mid-September level, placing the application against a period of falling share prices. That market performance is distinct from the brokerage’s reported financial results and does not, on its own, explain the company’s decision.

The local competitive picture also includes an entrant: a Barclays subsidiary received permission in February to run a brokerage. The two regulatory developments concern different firms taking different steps; they do not establish a common direction for international banks operating in Turkey.

JPMorgan’s application therefore has a narrower confirmed scope than a judgment on the country’s entire securities industry. The disclosed action concerns one intermediary, while the Barclays approval concerns another company’s authorization to conduct brokerage business.

Regulatory consent determines the next step

If the Capital Markets Board approves the application, the withdrawal described by the company would end the subsidiary’s capital markets operations and intermediary designation. Until that decision, the proposed change remains conditional rather than an accomplished exit.

The announcement leaves practical questions unanswered, including the timetable for ending operations and any arrangements affecting clients or employees. It also provides no estimate of closure costs or details of how outstanding business would be handled.

For JPMorgan, the next concrete development is the regulator’s response to the application. For the Turkish brokerage sector, any assessment of the withdrawal’s competitive effect requires information about the subsidiary’s clients and activity that the supplied disclosures do not provide.