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Стас ЮрасовThat's Life
29 September 2026, 14:57
2026-09-29
Fractal (ex-Netpeak Group) changes model: the group abandons startup studio in favor of buying up ready-made businesses
Ukrainian group of companies Fractal (formerly known as Netpeak Group) plans to transform its approach to building a business portfolio. The holding company is moving away from the traditional startup studio model, where products are created from scratch, and is preparing to transition to the Serial Acquirer format.
Ukrainian group of companies Fractal (formerly known as Netpeak Group) plans to transform its approach to building a business portfolio. The holding company is moving away from the traditional startup studio model, where products are created from scratch, and is preparing to transition to the Serial Acquirer format.
According to Artem, finding Product-Market Fit (PMF) is the most difficult part of building any business, where only 20–30% of success depends on the team. The remaining 70–80% are external factors: timing, market conditions, geopolitics, and pricing. Due to mistakes in market selection or launch delays, the group has “leaked” at least 5 large projects over the years that had the potential to become successful.
“Finding Product-Market Fit is the hardest part. I really liked the phrase of the guys from Bending Spoons (an Italian company that buys Evernote, Airtable, etc.): “We want to outsource this.” They buy what has already been tested. And I want to do the same,” said Borodatyuk.
Launching your own products from scratch has become too expensive: now it takes at least $1–2 million to bring a new SaaS product to market.
"Fractal 2" concept: a trailer for the Canadian star giant
The new stage of the group’s development is internally called "Fractal 2." Instead of cultivating its own ideas, the company plans to raise capital ($100–200 million) and buy ready-made software businesses that already have revenue ($2–5 million ARR) and have proven their viability.
Fractal takes as a reference the experience of the Canadian giant Constellation Software (which has bought over 800 businesses), as well as companies such as Roper Technology, Vitek Software, and Bending Spoons.
Fractal’s key advantage after the acquisition is to provide founders with great decentralization and freedom, but connect them to their own operating system, frameworks, and strict financial discipline.
What will happen to the current projects?
All existing companies continue to operate. Assessing the previous institutional formats, Borodatyuk noted:
Classic incubators (like their former Wannabiz) are useful for the country’s economy, but do not operate as profitable businesses.
Startup studio Fractal has shown viability, but requires too many operational resources. At the same time, the group is preparing several new spin-offs (independent exits), similar to how the Kiss Maps company grew out of the group at one time. Among the potential candidates for spin-offs and future exits, the founder names Netpeak Agency, Ringostat, and units from Tonti Laguna Group.
