Turan Corporation
Encyclopedia
Turan Corporation was founded as Turam (“Turkish-American”) Corporation by Robert P. Smith
in 1978, and soon became one of the largest privately held sovereign debt trading firms in the world. According to Smith, after a dispute with the original partners, Smith sold his interest to another party and reformed as Turan Corporation, in effect "selling the M". It is notable for being the first Western company to invest in Turkish sovereign debt, setting the investment strategy the company would follow later on in Argentina
, Nigeria
, and El Salvador
.
Peter Marber, the author of From Third World to World Class: The Future of Emerging Markets in the Global Economy (Marber 1998), credits Smith as one of four individuals who contributed "significantly to the birth of the debt market, and possibly even the entire emerging markets investment community, well ahead of Wall Street's more prominent houses." The other individuals cited by Marber in this context are Giacomo DeFillippis of Giadefi, J. Player Crosby:http://www.stbernards.org/newslet/no31_p30.html of Finamex:http://somarela.com/about.html and Martin Schubert of Eurinam.
In pioneering the trade in emerging market debt, Turan became involved with a number of risky assets, including Iraq
, Ecuadorian and even Soviet-era Russian
debt More recently, they profited from the Dubai World 2009 debt standstill by investing in Nakheel bonds that were in severe danger of default.
Turan Corporation are one of the major private, non-governmental parties who did not accept the results of the Argentine debt restructuring
and remain in litigation to recover funds from the Argentine government.
Robert P. Smith
Robert P. Smith is a financial pioneer, philanthropist and author.Robert P. Smith of Turan Corporation, or Bob Smith, as he is known in among those who trade the debt of emerging market countries, is one of four people who "...significantly contributed to the birth of the debt market, and possibly...
in 1978, and soon became one of the largest privately held sovereign debt trading firms in the world. According to Smith, after a dispute with the original partners, Smith sold his interest to another party and reformed as Turan Corporation, in effect "selling the M". It is notable for being the first Western company to invest in Turkish sovereign debt, setting the investment strategy the company would follow later on in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, and El Salvador
El Salvador
El Salvador or simply Salvador is the smallest and the most densely populated country in Central America. The country's capital city and largest city is San Salvador; Santa Ana and San Miguel are also important cultural and commercial centers in the country and in all of Central America...
.
Peter Marber, the author of From Third World to World Class: The Future of Emerging Markets in the Global Economy (Marber 1998), credits Smith as one of four individuals who contributed "significantly to the birth of the debt market, and possibly even the entire emerging markets investment community, well ahead of Wall Street's more prominent houses." The other individuals cited by Marber in this context are Giacomo DeFillippis of Giadefi, J. Player Crosby:http://www.stbernards.org/newslet/no31_p30.html of Finamex:http://somarela.com/about.html and Martin Schubert of Eurinam.
In pioneering the trade in emerging market debt, Turan became involved with a number of risky assets, including Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Ecuadorian and even Soviet-era Russian
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
debt More recently, they profited from the Dubai World 2009 debt standstill by investing in Nakheel bonds that were in severe danger of default.
Turan Corporation are one of the major private, non-governmental parties who did not accept the results of the Argentine debt restructuring
Argentine debt restructuring
Argentina went through an economic crisis beginning in the mid-1990s, with full recession between 1999 and 2002; though it is debatable whether this crisis has ended, the situation has been more stable, and improving, since 2003....
and remain in litigation to recover funds from the Argentine government.