Michael Evans, President of Alibaba Group, one of the top 10 technology companies in the world with a gross merchandise volume (GMV) of 1.3 trillion USD and current market capitalization of 284 billion USD, came to Türkiye and visited the headquarters of Trendyol, where Alibaba is a strategic investor. In addition, he had meetings with high-level public and private sector representatives. CAĞLAYAN CETİN - BEGUM TEKIN - MICHAEL EVANS TÜRKİYE BECOMES THE REGION’S TECHNOLOGY HUB ACCORDING TO ALIBABA GROUP PRESİDENT, MICHAEL EVANS Stating that Türkiye has become the region's technology hub, Evans added: “During my visit to Baykar, I saw a pioneering Turkish company in drone technologies, developing technologies that have no precedent in the world. I have also observed the progress Turkiye has made with Togg on mobility solutions that many countries in the world are presently working on. I am extremely pleased with Trendyol's collaboration with Togg, in this respect." Michael Evans, President of The Alibaba Group, one of the top 10 technology companies in the world with a gross merchandise volume (GMV) of 1.3 trillion USD and current market capitalization of 284 billion USD, came to Türkiye and visited the headquarters of Trendyol, where Alibaba is a strategic investor. Moreover, he had meetings with high-level public and private sector representatives Remarking on his visit to Türkiye, Michael Evans stated that the country is a very important logistics and manufacturing center, as well as the region's technology hub. Evans went on to say, “Türkiye is a global player in many sectors such as textiles, automobiles, durable goods, home appliances, and agriculture. At the same time, it is in a unique location that connects the East and the West. Moreover, it is a regional hub in logistics and is among the biggest players in Europe regarding road freight. In addition to these advantages, taking into account the number of enterprises that produce globally recognized, value-added technologies, we consider Türkiye as the region's technology hub. Creating an ecosystem requires a long-term perspective. Considering that the interest in technology is constantly increasing, we see that Türkiye is growing as an ecosystem, launching companies that will show significant success in the global arena in the future. We think that regulations which will establish a healthy competitive environment are essential for Türkiye to tap into its extraordinary potential in the field of technology as well” TRENDYOL'S SUCCESS IN TÜRKİYE INSPIRES US IN DIFFERENT MARKETS Evans stated that “We invested in Türkiye in 2018 for three reasons. Firstly, Türkiye's strong and diverse production structure was of critical importance in our investment decision. Secondly, its advantageous geographical location, high-quality internet, and transportation infrastructure made Türkiye stand out among the investment destinations. Following the decision to invest in Türkiye, we searched for a company with a management team and technological competencies we could trust. Thirdly, Trendyol was the most prominent company among all the potential alternatives. We trusted and literally invested in the founders and senior management of the company; therefore, we entrusted the management to this team fully from day one. They will continue to pursue their successful operations independently in the future as well. We have full confidence in them, and their success in Türkiye inspires us in different markets. Today, I am glad that we invested into Trendyol. Trendyol's next goal will be to introduce e-exports to SMEs in Türkiye. This country is the most advantageous one in the region vis-a-vis e-exports to Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia. The efforts of Trendyol for e-export in the upcoming period will contribute significantly to the achievement of the targets set out in the Export Master Plan of Türkiye’s Ministry of Trade. In addition, İstanbul Airport is a very good indicator of Türkiye's logistics competencies and a very important advantage that the country has for growing e-exports. We also attach great importance to the vision of the Ministry of Industry and Technology to develop 10 Turcorns in Türkiye by 2023 and 100 Turcorns by 2030. I am sure that in the future, Turkish technology companies will emerge and make a name for themselves in the world, in many different fields. Human capital in Turkiye is highly qualified. During my visit to Baykar, I saw a pioneering Turkish company in drone technologies, developing technologies that have no precedent in the world. I have also observed the progress Turkiye has made with Togg on mobility solutions that many countries in the world are presently working on. I am extremely pleased with Trendyol's collaboration with Togg, in this respect.” TRENDYOL İS AN EXEMPLARY TECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE Reminding that Alibaba Group made its first investment in both Türkiye and the region with Trendyol in 2018 and became the company’s strategic investor, Evans underlined that they had made additional investments in the course of 2020 and 2021 thanks to Trendyol constantly raising the bar of success. Evans continued: “The fact that not only us, but also funds from different geographies such as Japan, USA, Qatar, and the UAE invested in Trendyol in 2021, is an indication of the global technology ecosystem's conviction not only in Trendyol but also in Türkiye's potential in the field of technology. We believe that Türkiye’s new success story will be driven by technology, and Trendyol will contribute to this very vision.” Underlining that Trendyol is an exemplary technology company, Evans said, “Trendyol develops end-to-end technology solutions. Moreover, under its recently announced Sustainable Impact Plan, it aims to be the pioneer in the solution of environmental and social problems while transforming its own operations and value chain. In this context, we will prioritize sustainability targets in all other investment plans, especially in the Ankara data center, which we will start to build soon. The focus of Trendyol's future plans is to support local producers and open them to the world, provided that the current legislation allows and supports such investments. Trendyol will connect Turkish manufacturers with millions of customers in different countries.”