Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

1. Description of Business

v3.8.0.1
1. Description of Business
12 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2018
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]  
Description of Business

Overview

 

Freedom Holding Corp. (the “Company” or “FRHC”) is corporation organized in the United States under the laws of the State of Nevada that owns several operating subsidiaries that engage in a broad range of activities in the securities industry, including retail securities brokerage, research, investment counseling, securities trading, market making, corporate investment banking and underwriting services in Central Asia. The Company is headquartered in Almaty, Kazakhstan, with supporting administrative office locations in Russia, Cyprus and the United States.

 

The Company owns directly, or through subsidiaries, the following companies: LLC Investment Company Freedom Finance, a Moscow, Russia-based securities broker-dealer (“Freedom RU”); FFIN Bank, a Moscow, Russia-based bank (“FFIN Bank”); JSC Freedom Finance, an Almaty, Kazakhstan-based securities broker-dealer (“Freedom KZ”); FFINEU Investments Limited, a Limassol, Cyprus-based broker-dealer (“Freedom CY”); LLC Freedom Finance Ukraine, a Kiev, Ukraine-based broker-dealer (“Freedom UA”); LLC Freedom Finance Uzbekistan, a Tashkent, Uzbekistan-based broker-dealer (“Freedom UZ”); and FFIN Securities, Inc., a Nevada corporation (“FFIN”).

 

The Company’s subsidiaries are professional participants on the Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE), Moscow Exchange (MOEX), Saint-Petersburg Exchange (SPB), the Ukrainian Exchange, and the Republican Stock Exchange of Tashkent (UZSE). Freedom CY serves to provide the Company’s clients with operations support and access to the investment opportunities, relative stability, and integrity of the U.S. and European securities markets, which under the regulatory regimes of many jurisdictions where the Company operates do not currently allow investors direct access to international securities markets.

 

In November 2015, the Company entered into a Share Exchange and Acquisition Agreement with Timur Turlov to acquire FFIN, Freedom RU and Freedom CY. The acquisition of FFIN closed in November 2015. In June 2017, the Company closed the acquisition of Freedom RU, which included the acquisition of Freedom RU and its wholly-owned subsidiaries FFIN Bank and Freedom KZ. In exchange for his 100% interest in Freedom RU and its subsidiaries, Timur Turlov, our chief executive officer and chairman, was issued 20,665,023 shares of restricted Company common stock. In November 2017, the Company closed the acquisition of Freedom CY. The Company issued Mr. Turlov 12,758,011 shares of restricted Company common stock in exchange for his 100% ownership interest in Freedom CY.

 

In November 2017, the Company closed the acquisition of Freedom UA (formerly known as FC Ukranet) with BusinessTrain, Ltd. in exchange for 387,700 shares of restricted Company common stock.

 

On September 6, 2017, the Company effected a one-share-for-twenty-five-shares reverse stock split of its common stock. Unless otherwise noted, impacted amounts and share information included in the financial statements and notes thereto have been retroactively adjusted for the stock split as if such stock split occurred on the first day of the first period presented. Certain amounts in the notes to the financial statements may be slightly different than previously reported due to rounding of fractional shares as a result of the reverse stock split.