Dear Investors, Business partners, and Esteemed Employees,
We are currently confronting numerous global and local challenges.
Despite the difficulties we encounter, we remain confident in our resilience, determination, and – above all – our strategic direction.
While geopolitical uncertainties cloud the world’s future, we are also witnessing a period of profound technological transformation globally.
The speed of technological advancement, particularly in artificial intelligence, has accelerated to unprecedented levels.
This progress is expected to continue and even gain pace.
We are fast moving towards a future in which technology will fundamentally reshape competition, and where the control of data and information may become more valuable than traditional natural resources.
In Türkiye, we continue to address high inflation. Actions taken in 2025 and beyond will be critical to achieving sustained success in our efforts to manage inflation. We would like to see the implementation of economic normalization measures across all sectors, especially in strategic areas such as finance and energy, and for these measures to be implemented swiftly.
The disparity between inflation and currency devaluation, especially over the past year, has presented a complex operating environment for Turkish companies pursuing export-led growth. This situation has also placed significant cost pressures on our Group’s exporting entities, as reflected in our 2024 financial statements.
Macroprudential measures implemented under the disinflationary program impacting numerous sectors including banking and energy, in addition to the gap between inflation and the devaluation of the Lira in Türkiye have constrained our financial performance this year. Although banks are exempt from inflation accounting, diversified groups like ours, which consolidate banks, face a challenge to profitability under inflation accounting. This is because banks with strong cash positions are severely punished by inflation accounting in our consolidated financials.
Despite these challenging conditions, our businesses continued to demonstrate a solid operational performance, successfully navigating this environment with support from our B2B portfolio. In 2024, Sabancı Holding delivered 6 percent combined top line growth in real terms. More importantly, our operational profitability is impressive, with consistent quarterly improvements in our non-bank EBITDA margins throughout the year. Our net debt/EBITDA(1) ratio increased slightly due to strategic investments, but remained comfortably below two times. This healthy level supports our Group policy, providing us with additional flexibility to pursue global growth initiatives during our current investment cycle.
In addition to this summary, I would like to share some insights into key developments within select business lines during the year.
• Energy Generation: Enerjisa Üretim recorded significant progress on the 1,000 MW YEKA RES-2 project, one of Europe’s largest onshore wind power initiatives. To support the development of 750 MW of this project, a loan agreement of over USD 1 billion was secured in 2024.
Enerjisa Üretim, with its total installed capacity of 3,872 MW, is poised to strengthen its position as Türkiye’s leading private electricity generator. By the end of 2028, the company anticipates reaching an installed capacity of at least 6,250 MW, which would further bolster its position in Türkiye’s private sector electricity generation.
• United States Expansion: In pursuit of Sabancı Group’s objective to extend its power generation expertise to the United States, our 272 MW Cutlass II solar power plant was completed and commissioned – our first SPP in the region. Construction of the 232 MW Oriana Solar Power Plant is progressing in line with our projections and we have finalized all financing arrangements, including securing USD 137 million from a Tax Equity Investor. These endeavors represent significant strides towards our stated goal of achieving 1,000 MW of installed capacity in the United States in the near term.
• Climate Technologies: As we expand our footprint in renewable energy, we are committed to our vision of being a key player in the field of climate technologies. We are taking proactive steps to innovate in the United States. Sabancı Climate Ventures increased its portfolio of fund and company investments to 14 worldwide. These initiatives are expected to play a crucial role in Sabancı’s future vision, with products scheduled for commercialization in the near and medium term.
• International Acquisition: In 2024, Çimsa acquired 94.7 percent of the shares of Mannok Holdings DAC, an Ireland-based company and a leading player in its sector within Europe and the UK. This acquisition marks the largest overseas expansion in our Group’s recent history.
• Digital Business Growth: We increased our emphasis on our digital business line in 2024. As part of this focused growth strategy, we acquired an additional 65 percent of the shares of Bulutistan (ICT Bulut Bilişim A.Ş.), a cloud tech company providing services in Türkiye and internationally since 2015. This acquisition increases our total effective ownership in Bulutistan to 75.5 percent.
• Banking: In 2024, Akbank expanded its credit support to the Turkish economy to a total of TL 1 trillion 728 billion, with TL 1 trillion 376 billion in cash. The bank continues to support the growth and development of the real sector, maintaining a strong consolidated capital adequacy ratio of 20.2 percent.
• Insurance Innovation: Sabancı Ageas Sağlık Sigorta A.Ş., established in August 2022 within our Financial Services Group and now operating as Medisa, completed its branding process. Medisa activated all its systems in 2024 and launched Türkiye’s first cloud-based insurance platform, radically changing the customer experience in the healthcare ecosystem.
Esteemed Stakeholders,
We are proud that Sabancı is positioned among the pioneering diversified investment holding companies globally, distinguished by a business culture that measures success beyond mere financial metrics. We prioritize the value created within the value chain, the benefits provided to society, and the sense of purpose fostered among our employees.
I would like to emphasize a particular achievement. We understand that many investors are keen to see us recognized on global rankings such as the Fortune 500, which is based on turnover. However, this year, we believe we have achieved a more significant distinction. Our Holding has been recognized among the top 500 companies in Time Magazine’s “World’s Best Companies – 2024,” a prestigious list compiled in collaboration with Statista. The scores for these organizations, designated by Time Magazine as “Companies that change the world,” are determined by employee satisfaction surveys, revenue growth, and ESG data. These three factors are pivotal to success in the today’s economy.
Furthermore, eight of our 11 Sabancı Group companies reporting to the CDP Climate Change Program achieved an ‘A’ score, elevating them to the Global Leadership level. This represents an increase from five of our companies recognized in this key area the previous year, achieving our highest representation rate to date. Of the remaining three companies, one is listed on the Türkiye Leaders list, and two are represented at the Management level.
Additionally, in 2024, we received the EFQM Global Award, a prestigious recognition from the European Foundation for Quality Management. At the event, where achievements are symbolized with diamonds, we were awarded a total of six diamonds. We were recognized globally for our sustainability strategy and approach, and honored with the “Outstanding Achievement for Sustainability” title.
Esteemed Stakeholders,
The initiatives undertaken by our Group companies are integral to a strategic plan shared with our investors in London in October 2024. At the conference, attended by over 100 representatives from leading global financial institutions, we unveiled our five-year roadmap for 2024-2029.
The conference’s theme, “Sustainable, Digital and Scalable” forms the foundation of our growth strategy for the upcoming period. We will develop a more balanced portfolio over the next five years, investing in energy and climate technologies, material technologies, mobility solutions, and digital technologies, alongside our banking and financial services businesses. Our Group companies will adopt global best practices in new growth areas while maintaining and expanding their core operations.
In line with this strategic plan, our primary objective is to double our Holding’s net asset value(2) from approximately USD 10 billion at the end of 2024 to around USD 20 billion by 2029. We will also enhance the return on our portfolio, aiming to increase our weighted average cost of capital (WACC) adjusted return by at least 100 basis points, achieving a range of +120-150 basis points within the next five years. Furthermore, we target expanding the foreign currency share of our revenues(3) from approximately 20 percent in 2024 to over 30 percent. Concurrently, we will continue our investments in Türkiye and abroad with steadfast determination. We aim to boost our capital expenditures (CAPEX) to revenues ratio(2) from 13.5 percent in 2024 to 15-20 percent over the next five years. This increase signifies our unwavering commitment to accelerate our investment pace.
In this pivotal endeavor to double the net asset value of our Group, our talent pool will be a critical asset. In today’s landscape, the competition for talent is increasingly intense. In response, and as part of Sabancı’s broader responsibilities, we launched a significant initiative for our country and our Group: the Sabancı Youth Mobilization.
The Sabancı Youth Mobilization provides young individuals, entrepreneurs and academics with access to our technological expertise through our Technology and Impact Centers nationwide. It also equips them with future leadership skills through comprehensive training and support programs. As is fitting for our legacy, we are connecting Türkiye, which Atatürk unified with railway networks nearly 100 years ago, with digital networks. Within three years, we aspire to reach thirty thousand young people in our mission to transform brain drain into brain power.
Esteemed Stakeholders,
We are experiencing a year of historical significance for Sabancı Group.
As we commemorate the 100th anniversary of our Group’s founding, we acknowledge the growing weight of responsibility upon our shoulders.
In this momentous year, we will reaffirm the values that Sabancı represents, values without which our existence would be incomplete. By doing so, we will align Sabancı’s values with the future. We will be an organization that not only participates in the game but also shapes and advances the game in the fields of materials, mobility, digital technology, energy, and climate technologies, contributing to a better world. As “Sabancı of the World,” we will once again demonstrate our leadership and exemplary role in Türkiye and globally.
I extend my sincere gratitude for your trust and continued partnership on this journey.
Yours sincerely,
Cenk Alper
Board Member and CEO
(1) Non-bank combined.
(2) Excluding cash.
(3) Non-bank combined.
