The reshuffle, initiated by General Manager Hüseyin Aydın, comes months after the July resignation of former general manager Can Akın Çağlar. The 11 top managers were removed from their posts but reinstated as “advisors” for the time being, according to the Finans Gündem website, which added that the empty seats would be filled by “more professional” executives, possibly through transfers from the private sector.

Most of the 11 deputy general managers were appointed between 2008 and 2010. There was no official statement from Ziraat Bank when the Hürriyet Daily News went to press yesterday. However, the reshuffle could be related to the resignation of former General Manager Çağlar, who reportedly was criticized among government circles for refusing to finance the company that won the $1.2 billion privatization auction of Başkent Doğalgaz, the natural gas network in Ankara. The auction was later canceled as MMEKA, the winner, failed to pay.

What triggered Çağlar’s resignation, however, was a letter sent to government ministers shortly afterward, claiming irregularities in loans.