Barış EKDİ

Executive Overview

Barış Ekdi is a senior regulatory executive, competition policy expert, and certified corporate compliance professional with almost 30 years of experience spanning senior public enforcement, C-suite corporate governance, university lecturing, and international diplomacy.

Currently serving as Chief Regulatory Officer for a multinational enterprise operating across multiple countries and industries, Barış specializes in regulatory compliance. He is also an award-winning literary author and active researcher at the intersection of law, economics, technology, and governance.

He operates with a strategic, builder-oriented mindset in high-stakes environments:

• Strategic Architecture & Execution : Designing scalable systems to resolve regulatory complexity and structural risks.
• Decisive Leadership In Ambiguity: Providing clear, evidence-based perspectives as a trusted “truth-teller” to senior leadership.
• Modern Governance:  “Compliance by design” approach to transform compliance into a strategic capability, integrating controls into workflows, using AI & ML to shift functions from a reactive cost-center to a proactive strategic asset.

Career Trajectory & Public Policy Leadership

• Chief Regulatory Officer & Private Sector Governance (2013–Present)
  Transitioned to the private sector in early 2013 as Government Relations Manager at Philip Morris International. Currently holds the position of Chief Regulatory Officer, leading multi-jurisdictional compliance and risk management on key regulatory areas.
• Advisor to the Minister — Ministry of Industry and Commerce (2008–2009)
  Coordinated cross-sectoral workstreams among ministry officials, academia, industry leaders, and NGOs during the preparation of Turkey’s National Industrial Strategy. Developed foundational methodologies and designed the Entrepreneurship Information System to support data-grounded policymaking.
• Turkish Competition Authority (1997–2013)
  Joined the newly established Authority in 1997 as an Assistant Competition Expert, rising through the ranks to Senior Competition Expert, Director of Training, and Head of the 5th Audit and Enforcement Department. Managed complex antitrust enforcement investigations across diverse sectors, led regulatory proposals, and represented Turkey in key international organizations including the OECD, EU, UNCTAD, WTO, and the International Competition Network (ICN).

Academic Background & University Lecturing

• LL.M. – University of Cambridge, Faculty of Law (UK, 2003)
• M.B.A. – Ankara University, Institute of Social Sciences (Ankara, 2006)
• B.A. – Ankara University, Faculty of Political Sciences, Public Administration (Ankara, 1997 )
• Part Time University Lecturer (2011–2015) – Taught graduate courses at Bilkent University:
  • Media Law and Economics (Public and Economic Law Master’s Program)
  • Competition Law (Executive MBA Program)

Professional Certifications & Specialist Credentials

Certified across international governance, ethics, compliance, and trade law disciplines:

• SCCE Certified Compliance & Ethics Professional – International (CCEP-I)
• OCEG Certifications:
  • Governance Risk and Compliance Professional (GRCP)
  • GRC Auditor (GRCA)
  • Integrated Audit & Assurance Professional (IAAP)
  • Integrated Compliance & Ethics Professional (ICEP)
  • Integrated Audit & Assurance Professional (IRMP)
  • Integrated Artificial Intelligence Professional (IAIP)
• Executive & International Seminars: Specialized certificates from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), World Trade Organization (WTO), College of Europe (Bruges), City University London, and International Neuro Linguistic Programming Trainers Association (INLPTA Diploma); No Code AI and Machine Learning: Building Data Science Solutions (MIT).

Publications, Literary Achievements & Hobbies

• Orhan Kemal Story Award (2010): Awarded for his short-story collection “Yazı” (Heads & Tails).
• Publications: Author of four books, several book chapters, three theses, and various scholarly essays on competition law and regulation.
• Professional Focus Areas: Competition Law & Policy, Regulation, Intellectual Property Rights, International Trade, Industrial Policy, Science & Innovation Policies, Corporate GRC, Kaizen, and Personal Development.
• Personal Hobbies: Prose & Poetry, Scuba Diving, Computers & Technology.