For several years now, Kazakhstan’s media market has seen a large-scale wave of publications criticizing NASDAQ-listed Freedom Holding Corp. founder Timur Turlov. According to the local media outlet, the total spending on such materials over this period may have reached $50 million. The publication notes that the intensity of the media pressure appears unusual for a local market. While most reputational attacks in Kazakhstan typically last weeks or months, in the case of fintech group Freedom Holding Corp. and Timur Turlov the negative flow has been observed for seven years, since the company’s NASDAQ listing.
The bulk of the messages comes from the Russian-language internet segment. Approximately 72,000 publications were recorded in 2025: approximately 55,000 on Telegram and another 17,000 on websites presenting themselves as media outlets but lacking licenses and not complying with basic journalistic standards. Such platforms are often anonymous, do not disclose editorial information, and frequently publish unverified content. From January to early February alone, the number of such messages exceeded 3,200. The cost of the campaign, according to Kursiv, is estimated at $20–50 million over seven years, with peak spending in 2025 estimated at around $11–12 million.
For comparison, the number of similar publications about the owners of Kazakhstan’s largest banking groups, Kaspi and Halyk Bank – Vyacheslav Kim, Mikhail Lomtadze, and Timur Kulibayev – amounts to only a few dozen per year.
PR experts indicate that the repeated circulation of the same talking points may suggest less an attempt at informational blackmail (“pay to block negative coverage”) and more a form of systemic competitive rivalry. Alexander Likhtman (ITCOMMS) notes that classic blackmail campaigns usually involve a direct “call to action,” which is not observed in this case. Alexey Bendzy (2B AGENCY) links the situation to Freedom’s strengthening position in adjacent markets – banking, telecommunications, media, and fintech.
Timur Turlov himself previously stated that he has felt constant information pressure since 2019 and believes that only players with substantial resources could sustain such a prolonged campaign.
Despite this, the holding’s market performance has shown growth. Since listing on NASDAQ, the company’s shares have increased nearly eight times – from $14 to $116 – and its market capitalization has exceeded $7 billion. In the Forbes ranking, Turlov’s fortune was estimated at $5.8 billion last year.
In recent years, Freedom Holding Corp. has transformed from a brokerage providing clients with access to the U.S. securities market into an international financial group operating in more than 20 countries. In Kazakhstan, Freedom Bank became a key element of its ecosystem, acquired in 2020 from Bulat Utemuratov. The bank strengthened its market position, and its digital services became some of the most downloaded applications. The total number of clients across the ecosystem’s companies approached 7.2 million, exceeding 11 million when partners are included.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Timur Turlov raised the possibility of new deals in the banking market. Beyond financial services, the holding’s structure includes insurance, retail, telecommunications, travel services, and other assets. The company also participates in digital infrastructure projects, including the construction of data centers. Last year, Freedom signed an agreement with the Government of Kazakhstan and Nvidia to create a 100 MW sovereign AI computing center with $2 billion in investments. A similar agreement was signed with OpenAI, under which 165,000 educators are expected to be granted access to ChatGPT Edu.
Commenting on the situation, Turlov emphasized that he does not intend to respond with similar “black PR” tactics and prefers to act within the legal framework, considering this approach more constructive for the business environment.
