Erdogan appoints son-in-law as Turkey’s treasury and finance minister

FT: Recep Tayyip Erdogan appointed his own son-in-law to head Turkey’s powerful new treasury and finance ministry as he unveiled a cabinet composed of a mix of loyalists, technocrats and business figures drawn from the private sector.

The choice of Berat Albayrak, who married the president’s daughter in 2004, was met with alarm from analysts and foreign investors who are anxious over the health of the Turkish economy and the independence of the central bank.

During the campaign for elections held last month, Mr Albayrak warned that the plunging Turkish lira was the result of an “operation” of “overseas origins” aimed at bringing down the government. Investors argued that it was the product of concern about an overheating economy and insufficiently high interest rates.