VakıfBank Anual Report 2014

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VAKIFBANK ANNUAL REPORT 2014
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VAKIFBANK’S INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION
VakıfBank International AG
VakıfBank International AG, headquartered in Vienna,
was established in 1999 in line with VakıfBank’s plans
to expand overseas and conduct international banking
operations. VakıfBank International AG has branches in
Vienna, Frankfurt and Cologne.
New York Branch
The New York Branch was established in 1995 to better
exploit opportunities in international financial markets and
to provide more comprehensive solutions to customers in
foreign trade.
Bahrain Branch
The Bahrain Branch was established in 2005 to finance
foreign trade transactions, which continue to expand due
to the soaring business volume between Turkey and the
Gulf Region, and to fund projects planned in this region.
Arbil Branch
Pioneering the banking industry once again, VakıfBank
secured its place among the first Turkish banks that
have opened branches in Northern Iraq. The Bank’s
aim is to support the commercial and economic
collaboration between Turkey and Iraq and to back Turkish
entrepreneurs who make investments in the region. The
Arbil Branch commenced operation in February 2011.
EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION WITH INVESTORS
During 2014, VakıfBank regularly provided information
about its corporate affairs and operations to investors and
securities firms.
In 2014, the Investor Relations Department:
• Attended 20 local and international investor
conferences, and held face-to-face meetings with
approximately 650 international investors and domestic
institutional investors.
• Held more than 225 meetings at the Bank’s Istanbul
office, and met with approximately 400 investors/
analysts.
• Organized four teleconferences to assess the results
of financial statements, and published the records of
these teleconferences on the Bank’s English-language
website.
• Held regular annual assessment meeting with four
credit rating agencies (Fitch, Moody’s, S&P, and Capital
Intelligence).
• Remained in close contact with numerous equity
analysts issuing reports about VakıfBank and provided
timely and accurate input during the preparatory
stages of the reports. Feedback on these reports was
communicated to the analysts.
• Continuously updated the English version of the Bank’s
website and provided convenience English translations
for material event disclosures published on the Public
Disclosure Platform, allowing all stakeholders and
shareholders to remain informed in an accurate and
up-to-date manner.
• Reviewed all regulations relating to the duties of the
Investor Relations Department and its business lines
in order to ensure full compliance with the Corporate
Governance Communiqué (Serial II, No. 17.1) published
on January 3, 2014 in the Official Gazette numbered
28871. Responsibility for tasks and duties such as
relations with shareholders, the Bank’s Investor
Relations website in Turkish and English, material
event disclosures and particularly the process of the
General Assembly were transferred from Head Office
departments to the Investor Relations Department.
The Investor Relations Department has been in full
compliance with the Investor Relations Unit article
amended in Article 11 of the Corporate Governance
Communiqué (Serial II, No. 17.1).
• Organized and held the 60th Ordinary General Assembly
Meeting and the Extraordinary General Assembly
meeting as stipulated by the Banking Law, the Capital
Markets Law, the Corporate Governance Communiqué,
the Articles of Incorporation, and other related
legislation.
• Carried out the duties of the “Sustainability Working
Group” operating under the Corporate Management
Committee, so as to coordinate all projects related to
sustainability; arranged meetings on sustainability; and
determined the agenda topics and steps to be taken.
• Identified and prioritized steps to be taken by
communicating with EIRIS, the group selected by the
BIST to assess companies’ sustainability projects, and
exchanged opinions about the reports written on the
Bank by EIRIS.
• Revised all policy documents related to bribery and
corruption, profit distribution, donations and relief,
employee rights, and the environment in order to fully
participate in the BIST Sustainability Index according
to the content stipulations defined by the index; these
were presented to the Board of Directors for approval.
VAKIFBANK BECAME ONE OF TWO MOST-ADMIRED
BANKS FOR INVESTOR RELATIONS
In 2014, VakıfBank became one of the five most-admired
companies and two most-admired banks in the field of
investor relations in Turkey, according to the Extel Pan-
European Investor Relations Survey organized by Thomson
Reuters in order to encourage and promote excellence
in investor relations. The results of the voting by foreign
institutional investors were announced to the public by
the Turkish Investor Relations Association (TÜYİD).
VAKIFBANK LAUNCHED THE FIRST INVESTOR RELATIONS
APPLICATION PROJECT IN TURKEY
Breaking new ground in 2014, VakıfBank became the first
Turkish bank to launch an investor relations application
called the “VakıfBank IR App” developed for foreign
investors. The application was rolled out for iPhone and
iPad users. The most frequently visited interfaces from the
English language investor relations site were transferred
to iOS-compatible devices with a user-friendly design. The
application was downloaded by 2,354 users in 2014, and
can be accessed via tablets and smart phones.
2,354
APP USERS
VakıfBank’s Investor
Relations Application
was downloaded on
tablets and smart
phones by 2,354 users
in 2014.