Insights from a presentation by Danielius Užnys, Chief of Staff at Tesonet, during the Lithuania City of London Club's 20th Anniversary event. 

When people think about NordVPN, they think about one of the world's leading cybersecurity brands.

What many do not realise is that behind NordVPN sits Tesonet, a Lithuanian-founded technology group that has quietly become one of the most impressive entrepreneurial success stories in Europe.

Speaking at the Lithuania City of London Club's 20th Anniversary conference, Danielius Užnys, Chief of Staff at Tesonet, shared the story of how two school friends built a company that today employs more than 4,000 people and operates globally across cybersecurity, technology, investing, sports and education.

The power of persistence

One of the most striking lessons from Danielius's presentation was that success rarely arrives overnight.

Tesonet's founders, Tomas Okmanas and Eimantas Sabaliauskas, first connected through their shared passion for technology while still at school. Long before NordVPN existed, they launched project after project, experimenting, learning and often failing.

Nord Security, the business behind NordVPN, was not their first venture.

In fact, Danielius revealed that it was approximately their 35th project.

Many entrepreneurs would have stopped long before reaching that point. Instead, the founders continued building, learning and refining until they found an idea that resonated globally.

The lesson was simple but powerful:

Persistence often matters more than luck.

From startup to global technology group

What began as a small technology venture has evolved into a substantial international group.

Today Tesonet includes globally recognised brands such as NordVPN, Nord Security, Surfshark, Oxylabs, and Investments in a wide range of growing technology businesses.

The group now serves customers across the world, with particularly strong positions in North America, the United Kingdom, Europe and other international markets.

Despite its scale, Danielius stressed that Tesonet continues to preserve many of the characteristics that made it successful in the first place.

The company still values speed, agility, experimentation and entrepreneurial thinking. Perhaps most importantly, it continues to maintain a strong Lithuanian identity while building globally.

A recurring theme throughout the presentation was culture. Danielius contrasted the culture of large traditional corporate organisations with the fast-moving environment found inside Tesonet.

Success, he suggested, is driven not only by technology, but by people. Collaboration, openness, teamwork and continuous learning remain central to how the company operates.

As Tesonet has grown, it has invested heavily in building a strong internal community, bringing people together through events, learning opportunities and shared experiences.

In many ways, Tesonet's story demonstrates that scaling internationally does not require abandoning startup principles.

It requires preserving the right ones.

Thinking beyond one business

Another fascinating aspect of Tesonet's evolution is how it has expanded beyond cybersecurity. As successful companies generated capital, the organisation began investing into new sectors and opportunities.

These include:

• Technology ventures
  

• Venture capital investments
  

• Education initiatives
  

• Sports organisations
  

• Digital infrastructure
  

• Fintech opportunities
  

Danielius described an organisation increasingly focused on helping the wider Lithuanian entrepreneurial ecosystem succeed.

Rather than simply building companies internally, Tesonet is also helping support the next generation of founders.

Investing in Lithuania's future

Perhaps the most inspiring part of the presentation was Tesonet's commitment to giving back.

Through the Tesonet Foundation, the group is increasingly investing in areas that strengthen society and create opportunities for future generations.

Key areas include:

Education

Improving access to high-quality education, particularly for talented young people who may not have opportunities available locally.

Supporting Ukraine

Continuing practical support for Ukraine and communities affected by war.

Youth Development and Sport

Investing in sports, youth programmes and initiatives that help young people develop confidence, skills and ambition.

Danielius explained that as the company has matured, its founders have increasingly focused on the question:

How can success create opportunities for others?

It is a philosophy that resonates strongly with Guildhawk's own belief that business success carries a responsibility to support communities and future generations.

A model for the next generation 

What makes Tesonet's story so compelling is that it reflects a broader transformation taking place in Lithuania.

A generation ago, few would have imagined that globally recognised technology brands serving millions of customers would be built from Vilnius.

Today, companies such as Nord Security demonstrate what becomes possible when entrepreneurial ambition is combined with technical expertise, persistence and global thinking.

For young founders in Lithuania and beyond, Danielius offered an inspiring reminder:

Success is rarely the result of one brilliant idea.

More often, it comes from the willingness to keep building, keep learning and keep trying until something works.

Tesonet's journey from a conversation between two technology enthusiasts to a global technology group stands as one of the strongest examples of what can be achieved when vision is matched by persistence.

And, as Danielius made clear, the story is still being written.

Guildhawk thanks Danielius Užnys and the Tesonet team for sharing their inspiring journey at the Lithuania City of London Club's 20th Anniversary celebrations and congratulates them on building one of Lithuania's most successful global technology businesses.

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