Cape Town Chess Tournament. Who Is Sponsoring the Continental Stage of the Competition?

In July, Cape Town will host the African continental stage of the World Schools Team Chess Championship, with Freedom Holding Corp. and its founder, Timur Turlov, acting among the event's partners. The company, which was built in Kazakhstan and now operates in more than 20 countries, represents one of the examples of a new economic strategy — a transition from the export of raw materials to the export of technologies, digital platforms, and intellectual products.

From 6 to 11 July 2026, Cape Town will host the African continental stage of the World Schools Team Chess Championship (WSTC), an international team chess championship for school students. The tournament will be held on the African continent for the first time and will form part of the International Chess Federation's (FIDE) “Year of Chess in Education” initiative.

School teams from more than ten African countries will participate in the competition. The winners will earn the right to compete in the World Championship Final, which will take place at the end of the year.

One of the key partners of the tournament is Timur Turlov, President of the International School Chess Federation (ISCF) and founder of Freedom Holding Corp., one of the largest fintech holdings in Central Asia. For both the company and Mr. Turlov personally, support for chess has become part of a broader strategy aimed at investment in education, human capital development, and international cooperation.

Who Is Timur Turlov

According to Forbes, Turlov ranks among the wealthiest entrepreneurs in Kazakhstan. In 2008, while still a college student, he established the Freedom brokerage business. Eighteen years later, the company has evolved into the international fintech group Freedom Holding Corp., whose shares are traded on the Nasdaq and whose market capitalization is estimated at approximately $8.5 billion. The Freedom ecosystem serves more than 14 million clients in 22 countries across Central Asia, Europe, the United States, and the Middle East.

Freedom combines dozens of business areas, including financial services, telecommunications assets, insurance, electronic commerce, technology solutions, and grocery delivery. Rather than developing separate services independently, Turlov is integrating all of the holding's services into the Freedom SuperApp. The platform operates as a “one-stop shop”, enabling clients to open bank accounts, invest, book hotels, purchase concert tickets, access public services, and perform numerous other functions.

Export of Technologies

The participation of the Freedom ecosystem in sporting events and charitable activities reflects a much broader process currently taking place in Kazakhstan. The largest republic in Central Asia is seeking to move away from an economic model based predominantly on raw material exports toward one in which technologies, digital services, and intellectual capital play an increasingly significant role.

Kazakhstan remains the largest economy in Central Asia, while in recent years the country's authorities have been consistently pursuing policies aimed at reducing dependence on the oil and gas sector. One of the key priorities has become the development of digital infrastructure and the creation of conditions conducive to the growth of high-technology businesses.

In early June, Kazakhstan signed an agreement with the American company Firebird and the technology giant Nvidia concerning the construction of data centers in the so-called “Data Center Valley,” a large-scale project located approximately 300 kilometers from Astana. According to Bloomberg, the volume of investments may reach $10 billion.

At the same time, exports of digital services continue to expand. According to the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence of Kazakhstan, exports of information technology services exceeded $1.14 billion in 2025. For comparison, five years earlier the figure had been less than $50 million. Although these amounts remain modest compared with oil exports, which stand at approximately $40 billion annually, the pace of growth demonstrates the emergence of a new segment of the economy. In 2025, Kazakhstan became a net exporter of technology.

Financial Results of Freedom Holding Corp.

The history of Freedom has become an illustrative example for the Kazakh market, as the company placed a strategic emphasis on technology, digital banking, and artificial intelligence. In 2019, the company's shares commenced trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol FRHC. At that time, Freedom Holding Corp. shares traded at slightly above $14, whereas they are currently valued at approximately $143, representing an increase of more than tenfold. At their peak last year, the shares traded at $192.

Since its listing and through the 2026 financial year, the company's revenue has increased more than twenty-six times, reaching $2.19 billion. Net income for the reporting period amounted to $153.3 million, while total assets exceeded $13 billion.

In recent years, the holding has been actively investing in technological infrastructure as part of its development strategy. The company is developing the Freedom Cloud platform, participating in projects related to the creation of next-generation data centers, and investing in the advancement of artificial intelligence technologies. In 2026, Freedom, together with the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence of Kazakhstan and international partners, announced the implementation of a sovereign artificial intelligence infrastructure project valued at $2 billion based on Nvidia technologies.

Global Markets

The international expansion of Freedom Holding Corp. is also continuing. Since the summer of this year, the company has been working on obtaining a banking license in France, while in Türkiye it is developing brokerage and banking operations and preparing to launch elements of its digital ecosystem. The expansion of Freedom Holding Corp. reflects a broader strategy aimed at exporting not individual products but fully integrated digital platforms and technological solutions.

Timur Turlov, Chief Executive Officer of the corporation, has noted that Kazakhstan has developed a unique environment conducive to the emergence of such projects.

In one of his articles, the head of Freedom drew a parallel between the modern digital economy and the experience of South Korea in the second half of the twentieth century. At that time, major industrial conglomerates — Samsung, Hyundai, and LG — became the driving forces behind economic growth and succeeded in transforming the country into one of the world's technological leaders.

For this reason, an entrepreneur who has placed his strategic focus on the export of technologies sponsors chess tournaments for young athletes throughout the world. Firstly, the development of chess is naturally aligned with a business model based on intellectual potential and the monetization of knowledge and technology. Human capital development is one of the company's principal priorities. Secondly, Freedom continues to expand its geographical presence, and it cannot be excluded that, in the future, the company will also enter markets on the African continent.