May 6, 2012 - Breakfast Program Notes with Ms. Susan Kurland, The U.S. Assistant Secretary of Transportation

On May 6, 2012, ABFT organized a breakfast program on “Women in Business” honoring Ms. Susan Kurland , the U.S. Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs, of the Department of Transportation, at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Ortaköy Istanbul.

Over 30 executives representing U.S. and KAGİDER member companies attended the event. Cushman & Wakefield, BGN, Chocoist, Dupont, GE Transportation, Generali Insurance, Johnson & Johnson, Manasset, Nicholson International, Novida Management, Paramex International, Pekin & Pekin Law Firm, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, Ring Advertisement, Rotal Digital, Smart Offices, Stefanel, Tekil Law Firm, The Mathworks and Wells Fargo Bank were among the companies represented. Ms. Julie Abraham, Director of Special International Policy Initiatives attended as a member of the Assistant Secretary's team. Mr. Manoj Desai, Principal Trade Commercial Officer at the U.S. Consulate as well as other representatives from the U.S. Consulate Public Relations and Political Economic departments attended the program.

April 11, 2012 - ABFT & KPMG the New Turkish Commercial Code Meeting Notes

On April 11, 2012 ABFT & KPMG held an informational seminar on The New Turkish Commercial Code at KPMG's office in Kavacik. 40 participants from ABFT member companies attended the meeting which covered topics such as the New Commercial Code's legal effects on institutions and the requirements of the New Commercial Code regarding independent audit and corporate management.
 The New Turkish Commercial Code was passed by Turkish Parliament on January 13, 2011 and it will come into effect on July 1, 2012. The new Commercial Code includes broad reforms that will affect future business practices and brings radical changes to Turkey's commerce and investment law framework.

The new code brings changes to the following areas;

• Company Establishment
• Primary Contracts
• Board of Directors and Sufficient Number of Decisions
• General Assembly and Sufficient Number of Decisions
• Capital Structure and Minimum Capital Sufficiency
• Recapitalization
• Stocks and Stock Transactions
• Responsibilities of the Board of Directors
• Minority Rights
• Restrictions regarding the Ruling Partners

We would like to again thank KPMG for holding this informational seminar at such a crucial time just before the law comes into force.

April 10, 2012 - ABFT Dinner with Mr. Peter Rashish, Vice President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce for Europe and Eurasia

On Tuesday April 10, 2012 ABFT hosted a special dinner honoring Mr. Peter Rashish, Vice President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce for Europe and Asia. U.S. Consulate General Mr. Scott Kilner and many U.S. company representatives gathered together in the meeting sponsored by Baker & McKenzie at Hôtel Les Ottomans, İstanbul.
Over 40 executives attended the special dinner;  Air Products, Akıncı Law Firm, Baker & McKenzie, BMS –Herman Miller, Borusan, CapitAlinka Investments, Citibank, Cushman & Wakefield, Dupont, Figes, Hewlett Packard, IFF, Liberty, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, PwC, Qualcomm, Radisson Blu, SAS Turkey, Sikorksy, TRW Automotive and Wells Fargo were among the companies represented.

ABFT Chairwoman Ms. Rahsan Cebe welcomed Mr. Rashish and guests. Afterwards Mr. Birtürk Aydın of Baker& McKenzie welcomed participants as the sponsor and delivered a short presentation about the company's affiliation with the leading Turkish firm Esin Attorney Partnership. Afterwards Mr. Rashish thanked ABFT member representatives for their presence and for providing a crucial link between Turkish and American businesses and Chambers of Commerce.  He emphasized how important organizations like ABFT/AmCham are to Turkish American business relations

April 9, 2012 - Seminar on Building Turkey's Export Competitiveness

On April 9, 2012 the American Chamber of Commerce Turkey (ABFT—AmCham) held a seminar at Ankara TOBB entitled as "Building Turkey's Export Competitiveness: 'Opportunity Gain – Opportunity Loss". This was the same seminar held on March 5th in İzmir in partnership with the İzmir Chamber of Commerce.

The seminar focused on developing Turkey's export competitivenes and the new law regarding the intellectual property rights aiming to make more profit in terms of  the opportunities in the U.S. market.

The program was opened by the Ministry of Economy Export Directorate General Department Head Mr. Savaş Malkoç, TOBB Turkey Patent and Brand Commission Chairman Mr. Kaan Dericioğlu, and ABFT Chairwoman Ms. Rahsan Cebe. Approximately 70 representatives of Ankara based companies attended the half day seminar.

On February 24, 2012 ABFT held its General Assembly meeting at its headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey. U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Mr. Francis J. Ricciardone opened the meeting as the Honorary Chairman of the ABFT. He thanked Chairwoman Rahsan Cebe and the ABFT members for all their efforts during the past year. A moment of silence was held for board member Mr. Nuri Otay, General Manager of Ford, who passed away on February 5, 2012. The Ambassador reaffirmed how important the Turkish American trade relationship is to both countries. It was a great honor to have the Ambassador attend the meeting.

Chairwoman Rahsan Cebe gave an overview of the events and programs of 2011 and reviewed the budget for 2012. She also talked about upcoming events for 2012. Chairman of the Audit Committee, Mr. Ferruh Tunç, reviewed the audit report and financial information. ABFT also welcomed its new Executive Director Ms. Elif Demircan.

The divan was chaired by Ms. Esra İren. Ms. Halide Aydınlık and Mr. Mesut Urgancilar were also at the Divan. Twenty-five ABFT members attended the General Assembly and many great ideas were talked about for the upcoming year.

Special guests included Mr. Win Dayton, U.S. Vice Consul General and Mr. Manoj Desai, U.S. Commercial Services, Istanbul.

ABFT is off to a great start for 2012.

American Business Forum in Turkey

March 5, 2012, Seminar on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and Export Business to Accelerate Economic Growth

On March 5, ABFT in partnership with its members Microsoft and HP, US Commercial Service and İzmir Chamber of Commerce held a seminar on the new U.S. Intellectual Property Rights laws and how they affect Turkish companies who export to the U.S. in İzmir.

The program was opened by Mr. Ekrem Demirtaş, İzmir Chamber of Commerce President and Ms. Rahşan Cebe, ABFT/AmCham Chairwoman. Speakers included representatives from Microsoft, HP, İstanbul Bilgi University, BTS Law Partnership and BSA. Approximately 50 representatives from local İzmir companies attended the half day seminar.