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Major global companies are increasingly eyeing Istanbul as a regional hub after the Iran war, with U.S. tech giants Amazon and Google moving ahead with plans to shift operations from Dubai, Turkish media reported.
Amazon has moved a significant portion of its regional operations from Dubai to Türkiye following the May launch of its AWS Local Zone in Istanbul, while Google is preparing a similar move after announcing a new Cloud Region with Turkcell under its 10-year, $2 billion investment plan, sources told ekonomim.com.
According to the report, while higher costs remain a key consideration in Türkiye, security is becoming increasingly important in investment decisions, prompting global companies, particularly in technology, energy and data centers, to expand their operations in the country.
The shift comes as companies reassess Dubai's role as a base for Middle East operations amid growing security concerns over the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, which has brought Iranian missile and drone strikes to the UAE.
Iranian attacks also damaged two Amazon Web Services data center facilities in the country, disrupting cloud services and causing structural and power damage, with the resulting outages continuing for months.
The reported moves by Amazon and Google go beyond their publicly announced technology investments. Istanbul is increasingly being considered as a place from which multinational companies can oversee operations in the Middle East and neighboring countries.
The interest extends beyond U.S. technology firms. Japanese, Chinese, Indian and U.S. companies with regional bases in Dubai are also assessing Istanbul, while some are moving part of their management and specialist staff to Türkiye, the report noted.
At the same time, major Saudi groups are sending investment teams to different parts of Türkiye, while other Asian investors are conducting similar searches.
The report highlighted that data centers are emerging as a major target for fresh investment as artificial intelligence and cloud technologies drive demand for additional capacity. Istanbul and nearby areas, along with Thrace, are increasingly being considered for technology and data center projects.
Another key point is that Türkiye expanded tax incentives to attract global companies’ regional management centers, allowing them to deduct 100% of earnings from overseas operations managed through the Istanbul Financial Center (IFC) and 95% for those managed outside it for 20 years.
Qualified employees can also receive salary exemptions subject to certain conditions.
The report also cited Turkish industry representatives who attended the Sept. 1-3 electricity and energy trade fair at the Dubai World Trade Center, saying some major global companies sent representatives without their senior executives, while others scaled back their participation.
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