Hamdi Akın İpek

Hamdi Akın İpek is a Turkish businessman and entrepreneur. He founded Koza Altın İşletmeleri A.Ş. in 2005 and established the mining platform of Koza İpek Holding. He served as Chairman of the Koza İpek Group until October 2015. He is Chairman of İpek Investment Ltd. in the United Kingdom, Director of Koza Ltd., and Chairman of its international subsidiaries.

His mining investments began with antimony, followed by silver and gold. In 2005 he acquired Normandy Mining’s Turkish gold assets from Newmont Mining and founded Koza Altın İşletmeleri A.Ş. Over the subsequent decade, Koza Altın developed a multi-mine gold mining and processing platform spanning exploration, development and production.

By 2015, the Group operated five producing gold mines, four processing plants, seventeen development and exploration projects, fifty-seven operating licences and two hundred and eighty-one exploration licences. During this period Koza Altın produced more than three million ounces of gold and established a resource base exceeding 13.4 million ounces. The company maintained a debt-free balance sheet with more than USD 500 million in cash.

In 2010, Koza Altın completed a 30% initial public offering managed by Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan. In 2014, Hamdi Akın İpek established Koza Ltd. in London to lead the Group’s international mining investments. Koza Ltd. subsequently developed international mining activities in Alaska, Idaho, Nevada, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Alongside mining, the Group invested in media, hospitality, energy, construction, aviation and agriculture. Education and social responsibility formed part of the Group’s capital allocation. More than USD 153 million was invested in educational and social responsibility projects, including schools, student accommodation and university development. İpek University was established as Turkey’s first university dedicated to fine arts and was fully financed by the Koza İpek Group.

Akın İpek is Chairman of İpek Investment Ltd, the Director of Koza Ltd and Koza USA, and Chairman of SAM Alaska LLC JV and Uncle Sam.