Business & Finance

MSCI freezes Turkish index changes amid alleged stock manipulation scandal

CNBC reports that MSCI has frozen certain index changes for Turkish equities and warned of possible reclassification by June 2027.

Updated Oct 16, 2026 · 14:12 UTC1 reports

The short version

CNBC reports MSCI applied an immediate freeze on certain index changes for Turkish equities until further notice.[CNBC]
Turkey's regulator SPK said certain stock investments could not be explained by company fundamentals, and price-inflation allegations date to late 2025.[CNBC]
Fund defaults and a 16.7% September drop in the BIST 100 preceded SPK's order to liquidate 131 investment funds.[CNBC]
MSCI could reclassify its Turkey Indexes if sufficient progress is not shown by June 2027, while the Indonesia downgrade is only proposed.[CNBC]

Turkey's Capital Markets Board (SPK) said certain stock investments could not be explained by economic realities or company financial fundamentals.[CNBC]
Allegations that investment firms were inflating prices of small, illiquid, low free float listed companies began in the fourth quarter of 2025.[CNBC]
Pusula Portföy was the first asset manager to report a fund default in September, and rival Tera Portföy said two of its funds also defaulted.[CNBC]
Turkey's BIST 100 index fell 16.7% in September.[CNBC]
SPK ordered the liquidation of 131 investment funds with collective assets of about 1 trillion Turkish lira ($20.2 billion).[CNBC]
Borsa Istanbul announced on Sept. 21 that dozens of scandal-linked stocks would be removed from the BIST 100 at the start of October.[CNBC]
MSCI said on Thursday it applied an immediate freeze on certain index-related changes for Turkish equity securities until further notice, citing concerns about possible coordinated trading and free float reliability.[CNBC]
MSCI said it would consider reclassifying the MSCI Turkey Indexes to Frontier or Standalone Market status if sufficient progress is not evident by June 2027, and it proposed reclassifying the MSCI Indonesia Indexes to Standalone Market status.[CNBC]

The price-inflation allegations remain unproven in the available reporting, which relies on statements from SPK and MSCI.[CNBC]
Whether Turkey shows sufficient progress by June 2027 is unknown, and any reclassification would first require a consultation.[CNBC]

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.