Timur Turlow on why ecosystems acquire startups and what is more beneficial for founders in Kazakhstan

On startups, ecosystems, and competition for customers

In reality, many startups, especially in the consumer sector and outside of ecosystems, are finding it difficult to survive: customer acquisition costs are too high, and it is too hard to compete for customer attention when large, major ecosystems are competing for it. By partnering with an ecosystem, you can achieve what would be difficult to accomplish alone.

But there are other aspects as well. For large businesses, engaging with startups is sometimes an opportunity to find unique talent. Every leader dreams of proactive, responsible people who can set their own goals and monitor their execution. These are entrepreneurs. These are the people who dare to take responsibility, start a business, go where there is no path, and venture where no one has gone before. These are rare individuals. Those who truly survive in this arena are those who persist in their efforts over many years.

We are accustomed to the labor market and average salaries, but in reality, people who find the strength and talent to push through the darkness toward the light despite all uncertainty are one-of-a-kind. They can build billion-dollar companies and possess incredible value. And when we work with startups, we find exactly such people.

What is more beneficial for founders in Kazakhstan: independence or selling?

In most cases, you will have to build an independent company. Then, if you build a strong business, you can determine whether selling it is advantageous. If you understand that you will earn more through the sale, the product will improve, it will be used by a huge number of people, and you will still thrive—then you should sell.

If you see that no one is needed, you are handling your task excellently, you have fit into the existing reality, found a unique niche, and it is easier for you to move forward quickly alone—go alone. If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.

Everyone has different goals and objectives. At some point, everything will become ecosystems. You can build your own ecosystem. There are many B2B solutions where ecosystems are not needed—there, it is important simply to work with other companies, find niches, and fill them.

I would avoid entering markets where survival requires a multi-million-user audience. It is incredibly difficult to survive in such segments right now. But it is possible, and if you succeed, it will be a business worth tens of billions.

On startup acquisitions and the Freedom strategy

Our main update now is related to integrations—ensuring we properly assimilate what we already have.

But I believe that one cannot ignore true pearls. And they occasionally appear in our country. If talented people emerge who see that working with us will be better for them, we are happy to consider it.

We do not actively seek them out—we are fortunate to be in a position where the strongest people find us on their own. And this, in fact, is one of Freedom’s strongest structural competitive advantages right now, which almost no large corporation possesses.