Barış Özus

Ali Akarçay is Digital Assets Product Owner and Vice President at Yapı Kredi Bank, based in Istanbul. He has held the Digital Assets Product Owner role since January 2022, and has been a Vice President at the bank since August 2017, with responsibilities spanning retail loans, insurance, payment systems, business development, and process management.

In his digital assets mandate, Akarçay plays a central role in establishing a fintech subsidiary focused on cryptocurrency and the custody and trading of digital assets. His responsibilities include leading capital raising efforts, managing budget and tax processes, directing negotiations and contract procedures with external vendors in collaboration with legal teams, and leading Proof of Concept processes with digital custody software providers. He also contributes directly to the product development of Yapı Kredi's crypto custody and trading platform. His broader areas of expertise include business process analysis and optimization, product design and re-engineering, agile methodologies, UI/UX, workflow management, automation technologies including RPA, OCR, and BPM, and risk management. He holds interest in AI, machine learning, blockchain technology, and distributed ledger systems. His total professional experience spans over 17 years across fintech, banking, and financial services sectors.

Doruk Yılmaz is a professional with experience at Move Intermodal Lojistik A.S. and education from Özyeğin University. He has a background in logistics and business, with a strong network in Turkey.

Emre Bereket is Head of Digital Asset AML Compliance at Yapı Kredi, a position he has held since August 2024. In this role he leads the bank's digital asset anti-money laundering compliance function. He holds Chainalysis certifications in Cryptocurrency Fundamentals, Reactor, and Ethereum Investigations, all issued in 2025, alongside his broader AML credentials.

Bereket's career at Yapı Kredi and its subsidiaries spans nearly 14 years. Prior to his current position, he served as Head of AML Compliance Officer (MLRO) at Yapı Kredi Faktoring from June 2021 to August 2024, where he held primary responsibility for anti-money laundering compliance at the factoring subsidiary. Before that, he was a Sanctions Specialist within Yapı Kredi's Legal department from August 2015 to June 2021, and an Operations Officer from June 2012 to August 2015. He holds certifications from ACAMS in CAMS (2022) and CGSS (2023), an ICA qualification in Trade-Based Money Laundering (2024), and Capital Market Activities Level 3 and Credit Rating licences issued by the Turkish capital markets licensing body. He studied at Yeditepe University between 2015 and 2017.

Evren Bilen is Head of Digital Channels Investments & Assets Application Development at Yapı Kredi Technology, a position he has held since January 2021. In this role he oversees the development and implementation of digital channel investment and asset management applications. In March 2024, he led the team that introduced foreign stock trading capabilities to Yapı Kredi's mobile banking platform.

Bilen has been with Yapı Kredi since December 2010, initially serving as Project Analyst and UX Lead across digital channels including internet banking, mobile banking, ATM, call center, and IVR, covering both retail and corporate customers. From June 2014 he also held the role of Head of Mobile Banking Analysis, which he continues to hold concurrently. Prior to Yapı Kredi, he worked at HSBC from October 2007 to December 2010 as an Analyst Developer and Visual Designer in digital channels, and before that spent two years as a Full Stack Developer at LEO, working on e-commerce and CMS projects using PHP. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Information Technologies from Işık Üniversitesi, completed between 2000 and 2006.