Dmitrii Vastianov's Fintech Builder-in-Public Playbook

Dmitrii Vastianov's Fintech Builder-in-Public Playbook

I stumbled on Dmitrii Vastianov and did a double take: 6,829 followers, posting only 0.5 times per week, yet a Hero Score of 162.00. That combo is rare. It usually means the audience is small-ish but unusually responsive, like people are not just scrolling past - they're actually paying attention.

So I started pulling on the thread. I wanted to understand what makes his content work when he isn't posting daily and he isn't trying to be a "growth hacker" on main. After comparing him with two big creators (Daniel Moka and Khizer Abbas), a few patterns jumped out fast.

Here's what stood out:

• He sells trust, not features: founder storytelling that makes fintech updates feel human.
• High-signal posting beats high-frequency posting (when the narrative is consistent).
• His "vulnerability-led authority" builds credibility faster than pure expertise dumps.

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Dmitrii Vastianov's Performance Metrics

Here's what's interesting: Dmitrii's audience is roughly 18x smaller than Daniel Moka's and 19x smaller than Khizer Abbas'. But his Hero Score is the highest of the three. That suggests the people who follow him are not casual. They're invested in the story, the ecosystem (KSA fintech), and the startup journey.

Key Performance Indicators

Now, to make that Hero Score pop, you need a side-by-side view.

One more detail I can't ignore: Dmitrii is based in Saudi Arabia. If you're building in KSA fintech right now, the network effects are real. A thoughtful post can travel far because the ecosystem is tight, curious, and still forming its "who should we listen to?" map.

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What Makes Dmitrii Vastianov's Content Work

A lot of people think LinkedIn success is about "tips" and "templates." Dmitrii's edge is different. It's closer to: "Come watch us build something hard, in public, with all the messy emotions included." And weirdly enough, that often converts better than polished thought leadership.

1. Vulnerability-led authority (the founder credibility shortcut)

The first thing I noticed is that Dmitrii doesn't posture. He admits fear, uncertainty, and the awkward parts of pitching and building. Then he pairs it with real forward motion: meetings, pilots, ICs, KYB, demos, co-founder selection, accelerators.

That mix is powerful because it signals: "I'm in the arena, not on the sidelines." And the audience feels it.

Key Insight: Lead with what felt risky, then earn the right to share the lesson.

This works because readers don't need another perfect playbook. They want proof that someone like them can move through doubt and still ship.

Strategy Breakdown:

Quick comparison: Daniel Moka tends to lead with crisp software lessons (high clarity). Khizer Abbas often leads with outcomes and growth (high certainty). Dmitrii leads with "this is hard" (high relatability) and then proves competence.

2. The "Trojan Horse" structure: personal moment -> business update

Now, here's where it gets interesting. Dmitrii can start with something simple (a week recap, a chance meeting, a moment of clarity) and before you notice, you're reading about trust, onboarding, institutional data, or the reality of getting pilots moving.

It's not sneaky in a bad way. It's reader-friendly. The personal opening is the doorway, and the business insight is the room you end up in.

Comparison with Industry Standards:

And honestly, this is where many founders miss. They either:

• Only post personal stuff (and it never connects to the business), or
• Only post product updates (and nobody cares yet).

Dmitrii connects both.

3. Social proof that doesn't feel like bragging

A subtle pattern: he names people, programs, and real events. That does two jobs at once. First, it shows he's actually doing the work in the ecosystem. Second, it highlights others, which makes the post feel generous instead of self-centered.

Want to know what surprised me? With a smaller audience, this can be even more effective. In tight communities, names are signals. People recognize each other. They tag, comment, and the post gets pulled into new circles.

You can see the contrast like this:

4. Low frequency, high intent (posting like a founder, not a creator)

Dmitrii posts around 0.5 times per week. So when he does post, it tends to matter. There's usually a reason: a milestone, a reflection, a shift in the journey.

The result is that followers don't feel spammed. They feel included.

If you want to borrow this approach, pair it with timing discipline. Based on the available data, the strongest windows are 07:00-09:00 and 11:00-12:30. Not magic, but it helps when you're not posting often.

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Their Content Formula

Dmitrii's posts read like mini founder episodes. There's usually a hook that feels human, a compressed core with the real details, and a closing that invites conversation without begging for it.

Content Structure Breakdown

The Hook Pattern

He tends to open like a real person talking to a friend. Not "5 tips for fintech". More like: "This week was chaos, and here's what it taught me." That is a very different entry point.

Template:

"I didn't expect [emotion/event] to hit me this hard this week. But it did."

A few variations that match his vibe:

• "Reflecting on a whirlwind week in [city/event]."
• "I thought [thing] would be easy. Nah."
• "While everyone sees the polished version, here's what it looked like backstage."

Why it works: it creates curiosity without bait. You can feel there's a story coming, and LinkedIn readers love a story when it earns a point.

The Body Structure

His body is where the "builder in public" craft shows up. The spacing often starts airy, compresses in the middle (lots of detail, fast rhythm), then opens up again at the end.

Body Structure Analysis:

If you compare that to Daniel Moka: Daniel often goes problem -> principle -> example -> takeaway. Super clean. If you compare to Khizer: he often goes hook -> result -> method -> CTA. Super direct. Dmitrii is more cinematic.

The CTA Approach

He rarely ends with a hard ask. It's usually one of these:

• "If you're around, hit me up"
• "Happy to share what we learned"
• "DMs are open"

Psychology-wise, it reduces pressure. People comment because they want to, not because they feel manipulated. And in B2B fintech, that matters. The buyers and partners can smell desperation from a mile away.

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The Bigger Comparison: Three Creator Archetypes

I kept thinking: these three creators are playing different games.

And you can map it like this:

So if you're reading this and thinking, "Which one should I copy?" My take: copy the one that matches your real life. Dmitrii's style works because it's true. He's not pretending to be a full-time creator.

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What I Would Steal From Dmitrii (If I Were Building Anything B2B)

A few tactics in his approach are shockingly portable.

Make the audience feel like insiders

Dmitrii writes as if the reader is already in the room. That does not mean spilling secrets. It means giving just enough real process detail that people feel included.

Instead of: "We had a productive week."

He implies: "We ran from meetings to demos, tried to keep energy up, and still found time to push the product forward."

You can do this in any industry:

• Sales: "The objection that almost killed the deal"
• Recruiting: "The interview question that changed my mind"
• Product: "The user behavior we didn't expect"

Use "named gratitude" as community glue

Calling out other people isn't fluff if it's specific. Dmitrii's style of respect (co-founders, peers, program leads) builds a reputation that compounds.

And it creates a nice side effect: those people often engage, which expands reach without gaming the system.

Keep your promotional content disguised as progress

Not hidden. Just earned.

When you post "We launched X," most readers ask: "Why should I care?" When you post "We fought for X for six months and here's the twist that finally made it click," readers lean in.

Same update. Different story.

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3 Actionable Strategies You Can Use Today

1. Write one "messy middle" post - share the part between idea and win, then end with the lesson you earned.

2. Turn one business update into a scene - start with where you were and what happened, then slide into the work details naturally.

3. Swap a hard CTA for a soft invite - try "If you're working on something similar, I'd love to compare notes" and watch the comments improve.

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Key Takeaways

1. Dmitrii's 162.00 Hero Score comes from trust, not volume - he posts less, but each post feels like a real chapter.
2. His best move is the personal-to-professional transition - the "Trojan Horse" structure makes fintech content readable.
3. Daniel wins with clarity, Khizer wins with scale, Dmitrii wins with intimacy - different games, different strengths.
4. You don't need 100k followers to feel "big" on LinkedIn - you need a narrative people care about.

If you try one thing from this, make it this: tell the truth about the work, then show the work. Pretty simple. Weirdly rare.

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Meet the Creators

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This analysis was generated by ViralBrain's AI content intelligence platform.