Team size: Three

First, can you please give us an idea of the sort of work your team has done recently (cases, transactions, projects)?

AHT is one of the leaders in the healthcare industry, serving over 17.000 pharmacies in Türkiye. In 2021, AmerisourceBergen acquired us as part of Walgreen Boots Alliance healthcare business for $ 6.5bn. The legal department had a pivotal role in closing the transaction by providing key legal advice. Additionally, it has also been responsible for the successful capital injection of $131m in cash by AmerisourceBergen to AHT’s main company — Alliance Healthcare Ecza Deposu. The process was rather complex, and the legal department was responsible for conducting the capital injection procedure for all the companies involved (the target company and two external organisations). Furthermore, my team and I filed an unfair competition lawsuit and asked for indemnification against one of our competitors — the case is still pending.

Which recent political, economic, or regulatory changes have impacted the company and the team the most?

Covid-19 has completely reshaped the health industry and its key players. Procurement and distribution of medicines to every citizen became essential, and people had to receive appropriate treatments relying on pre-defined schedules. We have done our best to keep delivering goods on time, guaranteeing storage and transportation safety by complying with new regulations. Our top priority is to provide healthier life to communities — we co-operated with the government and authorities to distribute free face masks without getting any profit in return.

What do you think are the biggest risks facing your industry now and how are you preparing your company and team to face these risks?

The biggest risks facing my industry in the next years will come from the pressure due to the government’s price bands for the regressive margins by which wholesalers are paid, negatively impacting profitability. Other challenges will be posed by delays in payments to pharmacies and inflationary economic conditions in Türkiye. Although there have not been remarkable changes to the Good Distribution Practice regulations, authorities are implementing strict requirements. Our legal department is closely monitoring all the above-mentioned potential risks, with the support of HR and other functions, to find flexible and viable solutions.