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Istanbul Bilgi University, one of Türkiye's oldest private universities, has had its operating license revoked by presidential order, bringing a formal end to an institution that had spent the past eight months under state trusteeship following a sweeping criminal investigation into its conglomerate owner.
The closure was published on Friday in Official Gazette and signed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan under Article 11 of Higher Education Law No. 2547, which governs the revocation of operating permits for foundations placed under court-appointed administration.
The presidential decree stated that the university's license had been removed because its founding foundation had been placed under trusteeship.
Founded on June 7, 1996 as Türkiye's fourth private foundation university, Istanbul Bilgi came under the umbrella of Laureate International Universities in 2006, a U.S.-based network that operates institutions across several continents. In 2019, the university was sold for $90 million to Can Holding through the personal company of Kemal Can, making the conglomerate its operator.
Can Holding subsequently expanded into media in March 2025, acquiring broadcaster Habertürk, Show TV and Bloomberg TV from Ciner Group, giving it a foothold across the education, media and energy sectors.
The conglomerate's troubles began in September 2025, when the Küçükçekmece Chief Public Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation into the holding on charges of establishing a criminal organization, smuggling, fraud and money laundering.
Financial intelligence agency MASAK reports revealed that tax liabilities had been reduced through fictitious documents and off-invoice transactions, and that shell companies had recorded fabricated partner loans to conceal unlawful capital increases.
Acting on prosecutors' requests, a court placed 121 of Can Holding's companies under the management of the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF), a state body established in 1983 that has, in recent years, expanded significantly beyond its original banking remit to manage assets seized during criminal proceedings.
The seized entities included Haberturk, Show TV, Doga Koleji, Energy Petrol and Istanbul Bilgi University. Ten people were detained and four were arrested in the initial operation.
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The Küçükçekmece Prosecutor's Office issued detention orders on September 11, 2025, targeting 10 people including Can Holding principals Mehmet Sakir Can, Kemal Can and Kenan Tekdag. By September 15, five of those referred to court had been formally arrested; Tekdag was released under house arrest conditions.
Kemal Can, the conglomerate's board chairman, was detained on September 25 on charges of leading a criminal organization and concealing the illicit origin of assets. A magistrates' court ordered his formal arrest on September 28.
The same day the investigation widened: authorities simultaneously raided Park Holding, a company linked to the Ciner Group, and its affiliates, issuing detention and search orders against 12 additional individuals.
A second major operation in October swept across four provinces in Istanbul, resulting in 25 suspects being referred to prosecutors. Eleven were remanded in custody, including Tekdag and Mehmet Remzi Sanver, while 14 were released under judicial supervision. Those detained over the course of the investigation included multiple members of the Can family, among them Zaman Han Can, Mehmet Sakir Can, Cemal Can, Murat Can and Devran Can, alongside various company executives.
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