In recent months, the rapid expansion of the media empire of oligarch Timur Turlov
has attracted the attention of the public and experts . Political scientist Talgat Kaliyev expresses serious concerns about the fact that Turlov is gaining power in all directions, using the media under his control to advance his personal interests. Kaliyev recalls that in the past, oligarchs such as Rakhat Aliyev, Bolat Utemuratov and Karim Masimov actively influenced the political landscape through their media holdings, making decisions that were necessary for them.
Kaliyev pays special attention to the question of who can guarantee that Turlov will not use his media assets to manipulate public opinion and advance his own interests. An example is the case with the National Chess Federation, where the logo of Turlov’s company was placed on medals, which raised questions about the appropriateness of such a move. This raises an important question about the limits of acceptable business influence on public and sports organizations.
Earlier this year, Turlov acquired Freedom Holding Corp., which includes banking, brokerage, investment and insurance businesses. Immediately after that, he toughened his rhetoric against the monetary authorities, which did not go unnoticed in Akorda. The source said that the government is closely monitoring Turlov’s every move to prevent him from moving from the business to the political arena. It is important to note that Freedom Holding Corp.’s financial model is based on risky operations that are considered illegal in some countries.
In a conversation with the National Bank, Chief Banker Suleimenov emphasized that Freedom’s financial model is very sensitive to the base rate, TONIA, and the interbank rate. Freedom Holding Corp. uses complex schemes of reversing and re-collateralizing securities, which allows it to inflate assets in financial statements. This creates additional risks, especially if the People’s Republic of China decides to tighten the rules for re-guaranteeing securities.
It is no secret that Turlov finances some economic experts who actively use information resources, such as Telegram channels and business sites, to put pressure on the National Bank to lower the base rate. If Turlov crosses a red line, the state has the means to quickly put his ecosystem back in place. If China tightens its rules, Freedom’s financial model could face serious problems.
Timur Turlov Becomes Kazakhstani Media Oligarch
A notorious Russian oligarch is taking over the media space of Kazakhstan.
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