The New York-based professional trader Alexander Gerchik (LinkedIn) and his Ukrainian partner Ivan Kroshny ioperate several websites offering online trading education and brokerage services via legal entities in Vanuatu and other jurisdictions. The online trading scheme Gerchik solicits Russian-speaking clients offering them trading in U.S. stocks. According to Similarweb, his websites attracted more than 260,000 visitors in December 2022. Of these, more than 40% come from Russia and Belarus.
Key Data
| Trading names | Gerchik Alexander Gerchik |
| Business activity | Online trading education Online trading brokerage services |
| Related domains | https://gerchik.com httsp://gerchik.co https://gerchikco.market https://gerchikfx.com https://gerchikco-fx.com https://gerchik-stocks.com https://ivankroshnyi.com |
| Legal entities | Gerchik & CO Limited, Vanuatu J.B. Finance LLP, UK Solo Trading Ltd, Belize White Heaven SIA, Latvia Gerchik & Co Consulting OÜ |
| Jurisdictions | United States, United Kingdom Latvia, Estonia, Vanuatu |
| Authorization | VFSC registration |
| Payment processor | Connectum |
| Support data | +380680171457 |
| Related individuals | Alexander Gerchik (LinkedIn) Ivan Kroshnyi (LinkedIn) |
| Member of | The Financial Commission (link) |
Short Narrative
On LinkedIn, Alexander Gerchik (link) claims that he has more than 15,000 students and had no losing months in the daily trading sector in a period of 15 years. The Gerchik brokerage sites (Gerchik.co and Gerchikco-fx.com) are operated through Gerchik & Co Limited, registered in Vanuatu by the VFSC. The website also mentions J.B. Finance LLP in London, White Heaven SIA in Latvia, and Gerchik & Co Consulting OÜ in Estonia.
At the legal entity in the UK and in Estonia, the Ukrainian Ivan Kroshnyi is registered as the beneficial owner.
The partners of J.B. FINANCE LLP in the UK are Gerchik & Co Limited, Vanuatu, and Solo Trading Ltd, Belize. The latter is believed to belong to Ivan Kroshnyi, who is currently said to be a Dubai resident and also offers services for setting up companies in Dubai via his website. He has been running the offshore broker Gerchik together with its namesake Alexander Gerchik since 2014.
Regulatory Issues
It is probably very difficult as a company or person in the West to offer financial services to Russian persons or companies in times of Western sanctions. How Gerchik can map this in regulatory terms is not clear to us.
Apart from that, Gerchik does not have a license to acquire clients in the EEA or other regulatory regimes. However, in our review, it was no problem to open an account as an EEA resident. In the drop-down menus, all countries were stored.
Membership in The Financial Commission is not a substitute for regulatory permission and oversight. As such, clients are not entitled to the protection afforded by an Investor Protection Scheme.
On a positive note, however, no pre-KYC deposits are possible. The opening of a real account and deposits are only possible after KYC verification.
Share Information
If you have any information about Gerchik and the individuals and facilitators involved, please share it with us through our whistleblower system, Whistle42.
