Board of Directors

Mr. Seyhan Pencablıgil, who holds a M.A. in General Management from Bosphorus University, Turkey (1998); a M.Sc. in Finance from Lancaster University, UK (1996); and a B.A. in Business Administration from Bosphorus University, Turkey (1991), is a senior banker, with many years of managerial experience. He has done doctoral studies in philosophy at Sofia University in Bulgaria. Mr. Pencablıgil has worked in different positions in Kentbank, such as Vice President for Deposits – Treasury and Senior Vice President – International Banking. Since October 2000, he has been the Chief Executive Officer and Board Member of BKT. Mr. Pencablıgil is the Honorary Chairman of the National Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce; Chairman of the Albania Leasing Sh.a.; and Chairman of the Albanian and Turkish Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He is also an alternate Member of the Board of Directors of the World Savings Banks’ Institute (WSBI). He has held other positions like Chairman of the Albanian Association of Banks and Board Member of the Albanian Investment Development Agency. Mr. Pencablıgil was selected the CEO of the Year in Europe in 2012 by the EMEA Magazine. Recently, he has been awarded with the title of “Doctor Honoris Causa” by Aleksandër Moisiu University.

Mr. Galip Tözge graduated from Marmara University’s Department of Economics (English) and received an MBA from the University of Missouri (USA). He commenced his banking career in 1993 at Citibank, and joined Akbank T.A.Ş. in 2002. He worked at Akbank and associated companies for 12 years serving in various senior management posts, including Assistant General Manager at Akbank, and Board Member at Ak Portföy Yönetimi A.Ş. and Ak Yatırım Menkul Değerler A.Ş. In 2015, he was appointed CEO at Aktif Bank and currently serves as President of the Banking Group at Çalık Holding. Mr. Tözge has joined the Board of Directors of BKT in February 2017.

Mr. Abdurrahman Balkiz graduated in Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences at Çukurova University in Turkey. He has a long experience in Banking sector. His career began in 1992 as Assistant Auditor in Türk Ticaret Bankası A.Ş. From 1995 to 1996 , he was appointed as Assistant Auditor at the Arab-Turkish Bank-Turkey. After that, he joined Kentbank A.S in Turkey as Auditor, then as Senior Auditor from 1996-2000. Since 2000 , Mr. Balkiz joined BKT Albania as Internal Audit Group Head , until the end of 2006. Then he was appointed as Operations Group Head in BKT Albania ,until the end of 2013. From the beginning of 2014 to 2018 , Mr. Balkiz was appointed as Country Manager of BKT Kosova Sh.A .  In 2018 , he was appointed as Member of the Board of Directors in BKT Kosova Sh.A.

Mr. Mert Turgut Çalık graduated from University of Westminster in the Department of Marketing Management in London, United Kingdom, in July 2019. In June 2015, Mr. Çalık completed a Foundation Business Course at Bellerbys College, in London, United Kingdom. He commenced his professional career since 2011, working in different roles for Gap Construction (Gap İnşaat) in the “Metropol Instanbul” Project, Çalık Holding in the departments of Finance and Control and GROUPM in the Marketing Department. Mr. Çalık serves as financial expert in Gap Southeast Textiles (Çalık Denim Tekstil) since 2012, whereas he is the Vice Chairman of MTH Technologies. In 2019, he was appointed as a Board Member in Secom Turkey and E-Kent, while in June 2020 he joined the Board of Directors of BKT Kosova.

Mr. Bakkal graduated from Bogazici University in Turkey. Mr. Bakkal has a long experience in the banking sector. His experience began in 2008, as Corporate Marketing Manager at Aktif Bank. From 2013 to 2014, he was appointed to the position of Corporate Banking Manager, and from 2014 to 2015 he was appointed to the position of Manager of the Main Branch of Aktif Bank. From 2015 to 2018, Mr. Bakkal was appointed to the position of Corporate Marketing Director. From 2017 until 2018, he was appointed member of the Board of Inovaban – Financial and Innovation Consulting A.S. In 2018, he was appointed to the position of Chief Executive Officer and Board Member at BKT Kosovo JSC. Currently, Mr. Bakkal is the Chairman of the Board of Directors in Aktif Asset Management in Turkey.

Born in 1950, Mehmet Usta graduated from the Department of Economics and Finance at the Eskişehir Academy of Economic and Commercial Sciences. He has more than 40 years of banking experience. Following his service in Anadolu Bank between 1979 and 1987 as inspector and executive, he held various high-level executive positions in Emlak Bank both in Turkey and abroad between 1987 and 1994. Then, between 1994 until March 2007, he served at the Banque du Bosphore in Paris as CEO and Board Member. In April 2008, he joined Aktif Bank as the Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors. Since July 2009 – onwards Mr. Usta acts as the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Banka Kombetare Tregtare, a subsidiary of Çalık Holding operating in Albania. He has been the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Banka Kombetare Tregtare Kosovo between May 2018 – April 2022. He has been as Board  Member at the Brussels-based  WSBI – World Savings and Retail Banking Institute since May 2012 until December 2023. Since March 2015 – onwards, Mr. Usta acts as  The Chairman of the Board of Directors  at Aktifbank subsidiaries UPT Ödeme Hizmetleri A.Ş., Sigortayeri Sigorta ve Reasürans Brokerlik A.Ş.