Investor favourite Mehmet Şimşek set to return as Turkish finance minister

Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is set to appoint Mehmet Şimşek as finance and treasury minister, according to a person familiar with the negotiations, a move that would bring back to the government an economist who is widely respected by foreign investors.

Şimşek, a former senior Merrill Lynch economist, would be re-entering Turkey’s government at a time when the country’s $900bn economy is under intense strain and foreign investors have fled after years of unconventional policies pursued by Erdoğan’s government.

If he is appointed, it would be a signal that Erdoğan may be willing to reverse his unorthodox policies, which many blame for triggering an acute cost of living crisis as the lira has tumbled to record lows against the dollar.

Şimşek was Turkey’s deputy prime minister for economic affairs. He had served as finance minister from 2009 to 2015, when he assumed the deputy prime minister role. He stepped down in 2018 when Erdoğan appointed his son-in-law as finance minister, but has now found common ground with the president on key policy matters, according to the person familiar with the talks.

Erdoğan, who was re-elected to a new five-year term as president on Sunday, is expected to unveil his new cabinet on Saturday. Turkey’s government did not immediately comment on the matter. The news that Şimşek was set to be appointed was first reported by Bloomberg.