Head of legal | Sabanci Holding
Şebnem Önder
Head of legal | Sabanci Holding
Legal director | British American Tobacco
Following a successful twenty-year career at White & Case, in 2014 Şebnem Önder assumed her first in-house role as the legal director at British American Tobacco Turkey and Northern Cyprus....
Legal director Turkey and North Africa area | British American Tobacco
Şebnem Önder holds overall responsibility for the world’s most international tobacco group, British American Tobacco (BAT), in Turkey and North Africa Area with respect to legal and security functions. As...
Şebnem Önder started her career at White and Case LLP in Türkiye as an Associate in 1994. She then took her expertise to New York between 1999 and 2000, working in the same capacity at the company’s headquarters. Her tenure at White & Case LLP saw significant progression when she returned to Türkiye to serve as a partner until 2014.
In 2014, Mrs. Önder transitioned to British American Tobacco (Türkiye and North Africa), where she took on the role of legal director. Her responsibilities expanded as she assumed the position of European regional head of compliance between 2018 and 2022, overseeing compliance activities across the region.
Since September 2022, Mrs. Önder has been serving as the legal and compliance president at Sabancı Holding. In addition to her executive role, she holds board memberships at several Sabancı Group companies, including Akçansa, Brisa, Carrefoursa, Temsa Skoda Sabancı Ulaşım Araçları, and Sabancı Building Solutions, contributing her legal and compliance expertise to the governance of these entities.
Şebnem Önder completed her law education at Ankara University Faculty of Law in 1994.