Fractional CFO services in Turkey

TÜBİTAK R&D grants

TÜBİTAK (Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) administers the dominant Turkish R&D and innovation grant programmes - TEYDEB R&D project grants, 1512 BiGG entrepreneurship grants and 1507 SME R&D programmes. Funding rates of 60-75% on qualifying project costs.

KOSGEB SME support

KOSGEB (Small and Medium Enterprises Development Organization) administers SME and startup-focused programmes including grants, subsidised loans and acceleration. Often combined with TÜBİTAK funding for early-stage Turkish tech companies.

Teknopark / Technology Development Zone benefits

Companies operating in Teknopark / Technology Development Zones benefit from corporate income tax exemption on qualifying R&D revenue, income tax exemption for R&D personnel, SCT/customs benefits and reduced social security contributions. Material for Turkish tech companies - most VC-backed startups operate from Teknopark zones.

Turkey Development Fund (TDF) and TVF Tech

Turkey Wealth Fund and adjacent vehicles invest in Turkish technology companies via TVF Tech and partner VC funds. Most active Turkish VC funds carry public LP backing. Combined with private participation from Türk Telekom Ventures, Vestel Ventures and Garanti BBVA's Garanti Partners.

Turkish VC ecosystem

Active funds include 212 Istanbul, Revo Capital, Diffusion Capital, Earlybird Digital East, ACT Venture Partners and Galata Business Angels. Cross-border participation from European, US and MENA investors common at growth stage, particularly following the Peak Games (2020) and Getir (2021-22) milestone rounds.

Venture debt

Limited domestic venture debt market. Cross-border providers (Kreos Capital, Claret Capital Partners) operate occasionally; sovereign-anchored Turkish banks (Garanti, Akbank, İş Bankası) provide structured SME and growth lending. Typically deployed against ARR or contracted revenue from Series A onwards.

Standard stock options

Turkish stock options are taxed at exercise on the spread as employment income at marginal rates (up to ~40% plus social security contributions). Materially less attractive than UK EMI or French BSPCE; most venture-backed Turkish startups structure carefully around grant pricing.

Teknopark R&D personnel exemption

Employees of companies operating in Technology Development Zones (Teknopark) benefit from full income tax and social security exemption on qualifying R&D personnel salaries. While not strictly an option-tax benefit, the cumulative effect materially reduces the personnel-tax burden in Turkish tech.

Phantom shares and SARs

Cash-settled equity-like instruments are widely used in Turkish startups, particularly to avoid the option tax-at-exercise complication. The holder receives a cash bonus equal to the value of a notional option at exit. Taxed as employment income at payout.

Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)

Used at later-stage Turkish companies, particularly those with US investors or US/EU parent structures. Taxed as employment income at vesting at marginal rates.

Option valuation

Turkish startups typically peg option strike values to the price of the most recent priced round. Independent valuations are useful for material grant programmes to support the tax authority position on fair market value at grant.

Reporting and tax authority

Option exercises flow through Turkish payroll for income tax and SGK (Social Security Institution) contributions. Annual employer reporting required. Worth aligning between cap-table tool, Turkish payroll provider and tax advisor at each material equity event.

Accounting

• •Logo, Mikro or Eta - established Turkish accounting platforms widely used at accounting firms.
• •Paraşüt - modern Turkish-built cloud accounting platform for SMEs.
• •NetSuite - for late-stage companies needing multi-entity consolidation.

Payroll

• •Logo Bordro, Mikro Bordro or Eta Bordro - common Turkish payroll modules.
• •Hubuc or local Turkish payroll providers - alternative for modern teams.
• •Deel or Remote - for hiring contractors and staff outside Turkey.

Business banking

• •Garanti BBVA, İş Bankası or Akbank - for treasury, FX and traditional debt facilities.
• •Yapı Kredi or QNB Finansbank - alternatives with strong commercial coverage.
• •Mercury - for Turkish founders with a US C-corp parent.
• •Wise Business - for multi-currency operations.

Cap table & equity admin

• •Ledgy - strong European coverage; common at Turkish venture-backed startups.
• •Carta - for Turkish companies with US investors or a Delaware parent.
• •Pulley - modern alternative at later stage.

Expenses & corporate cards

• •Pleo - European default; clean integrations.
• •Spendesk - strong approval workflows for larger teams.
• •Payhawk - alternative with strong European coverage.