CIBS Official Opening

On June 12, 1987, about one year after I had arrived in Istanbul, the sun was shining for the Official Opening of the Center for International Banking Studies.

We had already been teaching at our Dragos-Kartal location since January, even while renovations were underway. And prior to that, in September 1986, we began teaching courses at an employee camp owned by Yapı Kredit Bank, thanks to the support of CEO Hüsnü Özyeğin.

Zafer, my driver, picked me up before dawn that morning. When we got close to CIBS we discovered that during the night a carpet of asphalt had been laid on the previously dusty, potholed-filled road leading to the institute. Representatives from the Turkish government, executives from the banking industry, and the media would arrive for the opening ceremonies on a smooth, if still soft and steamy road.

Perhaps this last-minute miracle, for which I had lobbied for many months, was because Deputy Prime Minister Kaya Erdem, accompanied by his wife, would be cutting the ribbon to open CIBS.

Other government officials celebrating the occasion where Yavuz Canevi, Undersecretary of the Treasury and former Governor of the Central Bank of Türkiye; Zekeriya Yildirim, Acting Governor of the Central Bank of Türkiye; and Bulent Gultekin, Consultant to the World Bank and Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister of Türkiye.

Following a well-attended press conference, the ribbon cutting ceremony took place on the balcony with guests watching from below. My faculty and admin team were then stationed throughout the building and other areas to guide visitors as they toured the facilities and enjoyed refreshments provided by our hotel and restaurant management partners.

It was a wonderful celebration of the hard work and financial support by many including: Banks Association of Türkiye, Central Bank of Türkiye, CIBS Supervisory Board, Sisa-Tekeli architects, Koray construction, the World Bank, the dedicated CIBS team, and my wife Harriet, a creative designer by profession, who on a pro bono basis designed the institute’s interiors reflecting our vision of creating a world-class, international learning and living environment.

You can read the full story on April 23rd when “A Lost Chapter in the Transformation of the Turkish Banking Industry” will be published.