Kairat Akhmetov
Freedom HoldingAbout Kairat Akhmetov
Kairat Akhmetov is Chief Executive Officer of Freedom Telecom Operations LLP (since January 2024) and Director and Chief Executive Officer of Freedom Telecom Holding Ltd. (since August 2023), both 100%-owned subsidiaries of Freedom Holding Corp. He previously founded and served as CEO of Sergek Group, and holds a degree from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (Faculty of General and Applied Physics, 2004). He is listed as age 42 in the company’s executive officer roster. Company context: FRHC revenues have been volatile in recent years, while the company’s pay-versus-performance table shows a cumulative TSR of $497 on a $100 base measured from FY2020 to FY2024 year-end, contextualizing shareholder value creation during the period.
Company performance context:
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 | FY 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues ($USD) | $490,463,000* | $398,299,000* | $574,187,000* | $447,216,000* |
| Pay vs Performance (Value of $100 invested as of 3/31/2020) | FY 2021 | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Company TSR (dollars) | $376 | $420 | $506 | $497 |
Values marked with * retrieved from S&P Global.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sergek Group (Korkem Telecom LLP, Sergek Technologies Ltd, Sergek Projects Ltd, Open Technologies Group LLP, Sergek Europa) | Founder; previously CEO | Not disclosed | Built and led a multi-entity technology group later cited in FRHC filings as Akhmetov’s prior executive track record |
External Roles
No additional external public-company directorships or committee roles disclosed for Akhmetov in FRHC filings reviewed.
Fixed Compensation
| Component | FY 2024 | FY 2025 | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Base salary | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Akhmetov is not listed among FRHC’s named executive officers (NEOs); the proxy’s compensation tables cover CEO, President, CFO, and select subsidiary executives, not Akhmetov |
| Target bonus (%) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed in proxy/CD&A for Akhmetov |
| Actual bonus paid | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed in proxy/CD&A for Akhmetov |
Performance Compensation
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting/Timing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not disclosed | — | — | — | — | — |
Notes:
- FRHC’s incentive framework for NEOs emphasizes discretionary cash bonuses and long-term performance-based stock; however, no award detail is disclosed for Akhmetov (not an NEO). The company states long-term equity awards typically vest over multi-year periods and are price-performance conditioned for NEO grants.
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership | 140,000 FRHC common shares, held directly (Form 3) |
| Date of event requiring Form 3 | 07/29/2024 (filed 11/25/2024) |
| Ownership as % of outstanding | ~0.23% (140,000 ÷ 60,721,010 shares outstanding on 7/24/2024) |
| Vested vs unvested | Not disclosed |
| Options outstanding | None disclosed for Akhmetov |
| Hedging/Pledging | Company policy prohibits hedging and pledging by executives and directors |
| Section 16 compliance | Company disclosed a late initial Form 3 for Akhmetov in FY2024 (delinquent Section 16(a) report) |
Employment Terms
| Agreement | Counterparty | Date | Key economics (if disclosed) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment Agreement No. 1 | Freedom Telecom Operations LLP | Jan 5, 2024 | Agreement exists; terms not summarized in 10-K body (exhibit listed) |
| Supplementary Agreement No. 1 to Employment Agreement No. 1 | Freedom Telecom Operations LLP | Oct 16, 2024 | Amendment exists; terms not summarized in 10-K body (exhibit listed) |
| Employment Agreement No. 1 | Freedom Finance SPC LTD. | Aug 21, 2023 | Agreement exists; terms not summarized in 10-K body (exhibit listed) |
Additional context:
- FRHC discloses that NEOs currently have no special severance or change-in-control payments; this is not necessarily indicative of Akhmetov’s terms, which are governed by subsidiary agreements listed above.
Investment Implications
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Alignment and retention: Direct ownership of 140,000 shares (~0.23%) provides moderate alignment; the company’s prohibition on hedging/pledging strengthens alignment quality and reduces collateral-driven selling risk. However, lack of disclosed vesting schedules or additional awards for Akhmetov limits visibility into future time-based or performance-based retention hooks.
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Insider trading/filing hygiene: The company flagged a late initial Form 3 for Akhmetov—an operational control blemish but not, by itself, indicative of adverse trading behavior. No Form 4 sale/purchase data was available in the documents reviewed, so near-term selling pressure cannot be assessed.
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Contract economics: Employment agreements with Freedom Telecom Operations LLP and Freedom Finance SPC LTD. are in place and amended, but severance, CoC triggers, non-compete, and vesting acceleration terms are not summarized in the 10-K body, constraining risk assessment on separation/change events.
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Company performance backdrop: FRHC revenues have oscillated, and TSR since FY2020 shows significant appreciation through FY2023 with some moderation in FY2024; telecom initiatives under Akhmetov’s remit sit within a group that is emphasizing at-risk pay and long-term shareholder value creation for NEOs. While Akhmetov is not an NEO, the broader governance and pay philosophy may indirectly inform incentive design at subsidiaries.
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Shareholder sentiment: Say-on-pay support in 2024 was resoundingly favorable (FOR 42,599,378; AGAINST 18,826; ABSTAIN 557), suggesting limited investor pressure on compensation governance overall; not specific to Akhmetov but reduces near-term headline risk on pay practices.
If you want, I can attempt to retrieve and parse the employment agreement exhibits to extract severance, non-compete, and any equity vesting acceleration terms for a deeper retention-risk analysis.