Insights from Onlayer’s Co-Founder on Revolutionizing Enterprise Security and Navigating High-Stakes B2B Growth w/ Kıvanç Harputlu
In this episode of We Made It Growth, Kıvanç Harputlu, co founder of Onlayer, shares the thinking behind a seven year journey shaped by focus, persistence, and hard trade offs in enterprise B2B.
Kıvanç’s path began with a background in radio and tech management before identifying a major gap in the payment card industry. What started as a compliance focused tool called PCI Checklist later evolved into Onlayer, a comprehensive third party risk management platform.
He recounted the early days of solving a highly niche problem, which led to the company’s first major milestone: closing a deal with QNB Finansbank in just five months. This was a rare achievement in the slow moving world of enterprise sales.
Today, Onlayer has moved far beyond simple compliance. By obsessing over customer pain points, the company transformed into an all in one solution for merchant monitoring, fraud prevention, and performance analysis. One of its most significant achievements has been securing a global partnership with Mastercard, which now distributes Onlayer’s solutions across 60 countries.
Kıvanç emphasized that the company’s growth was not fueled by the easy money of the post Covid boom. Instead, the team focused on capital efficiency and profitability. He shared a pivotal moment in Onlayer’s journey: walking away from a global acquisition offer. While many founders dream of an exit, Kıvanç and his team chose to remain independent, believing they had only scratched the surface of their potential. This decision later paved the way for their 8.2 million dollar investment round, aimed at strengthening their presence in the MEA and APAC markets.
Reflecting on the grit required for long term B2B success, Kıvanç spoke about the importance of staying on edge even when things are going well. He noted that in the age of AI, standing still is equivalent to falling behind. He also highlighted the human side of building a company, describing how he views angel investors as potential future C level contributors and prioritizes a culture where the team grows alongside the product.
“This journey is about being the obsessive person who solves a problem better than anyone else,” he said, sharing the following advice with the ecosystem:
“Don’t be afraid to ask the same question 40 times until you truly understand the customer’s pain. Focus on sustainability. Don’t get distracted by vanity metrics. And remember that in enterprise B2B, trust is your most valuable currency.”