Turkcell’s board is to hold crisis talks this week in order to resolve an increasingly bitter shareholder dispute, which has seen shares in the Turkish operator suspended and dividend payments blocked. The company asked that the stock be suspended last Friday after shareholders failed to approve the 2010 accounts and dividend at an AGM last Thursday, reports Reuters. The row centres on opposition to Turkcell board chairman Colin Williams (pictured), the designated independent member on a board of seven, which includes two members from Sweden’s TeliaSonera, two from Turkish conglomerate Cukurova and two from Russian stakeholder Altimo. Both TeliaSonera, which has the largest direct and indirect stake amounting to 37 percent, and Altimo, which has a 13.22 percent indirect stake, argue that Williams is not truly independent and has sided with Cukurova. TeliaSonera failed in its attempt to have Williams removed at the AGM last Thursday, and is separately suing him over his alleged lack of independence.

The drama over the last few days is the culmination of a long-running ownership dispute at the operator. TeliaSonera and Altimo are attempting to merge their joint interests in Turkcell and Russian mobile operator MegaFon into a single firm, which would see them become the largest shareholder in both operators – but the move is being contested by Cukurova on the Turkish side. Turkcell is Turkey’s largest mobile operator, controlling over 50 percent of the market.