We Must Keep Global Technology Companies Within Our Country

Having global technology companies operating in our country is of vital importance.

I n the last two years, the world’s giant and multinational technology companies have started to leave Turkey or gone downsizing. First, important companies such as NettApp and Accenture ended their operations in Turkey. A couple of weeks ago, one of the world’s leading technology companies announced that it would lay off 10,000 employees in all of Europe and downsized its operation in Turkey up to 70%.

We talk every chance we get about how domestic and national technologies are important both for keeping critical data in our country and for supporting our domestic technology initiatives. As a group that develops domestic technologies, we have an important mission in this area.

However, it is of vital importance that global technology companies maintain their operations in our country, even for the survival of these domestic and national initiatives only. Technology will determine the course of the future. In an ecosystem where the need for digitalisation is increasing day by day and new ways of doing business determine the future, we must find a way to keep global technology companies for the sake of our country. We do not have the luxury to lose any technology giant in an environment where new technologies such as edge computing, 5G, blockchain, and quantum computers will reshape the whole world with the increase of cyber security risks. We must also note that global companies have become role models to local technology developers and also to other industries with their corporate cultures. Their contributions to the development and export of innovative domestic technologies through cooperation with the enterprise ecosystem are quite valuable.

Strategıc Investment

As Hitay Holding, we have been investing in technology since 1988. One of our group companies Teknoser is operating as a system integrator. We are always in contact and cooperation with international brands by the very nature of what we do. As you know, digital transformation has been on the agenda for very long, but it has gained great momentum with the pandemic. Just like any sudden acceleration, certain aspects of technology receive a little more attention, leading to gaps in other aspects. Most importantly, the need for cyber-security has increased to keep up with the technological infrastructure. In light of these developments, Hitay Holding started to do market research for opportunities.

When we heard that Fujitsu wanted to end their operations in some countries, we started meetings with them. After a long and meticulous process, Teknoser purchased Fujitsu Technology Solutions Bilişim Limited, the subsidiary of Fujitsu Technology Solutions in Turkey. Keeping Fujitsu in our country is valuable in many ways.

Our purchasing decision was a quite strategic move for our group and country in a time when most of the companies decided to go downsizing and global technology companies ended their operations in our country. Our investment in a global technology company also shows our trust in Turkey’s great potential and future. The fact that most public institutions continue their services without interruption is also related to these investments. Fujitsu’s solutions in the digital world are so much more stable than its counterparts. With this decision, while meeting the increasing cyber security solution needs, we also gained direct access to some technologies on a global scale.

Opportunıtıes Are Always There

I have been an entrepreneur since the 1980s. Hitay Holding invests in information technologies, payment systems, online research, security technologies, and online sports betting games. Our country offers great foundations and opportunities for technology investments. It always did. And it will continue to do so in the future with the increasing speed of technology and its different forms. We work in close cooperation with all shareholders to build the digital future of our company. And we will continue to actively make use of the experience of global technology companies such as Fujitsu.

Hitay Holding companies, for example, are experts in their fields but also consumers of this technology. What they do is to obtain the technology under accurate competitive conditions, bring it to the market, and they also use it themselves. Today, we can say that together with Fujitsu, we can be in a more flexible, affordable, and competitive market, especially with our own group companies.

Fujitsu is a producer, service supplier and allows us to have access to other brands it has contracts with. This acquisition also makes other companies in our group stronger. In a market consisting of lots of uncertainty, we were putting our eggs in different baskets, so to speak. Bilyoner, Teknoser, DORinsight, and Exim; each conduct different works in different areas of business. By purchasing Fujitsu, we continue to keep our technology investments on a more flexible and dynamic foundation.

Founder and Chairperson of Hitay Holding and Chairperson of Turkey-New Zealand Business Council Emin Hitay