Gautam Adani, the founder of the Adani Group, one of India’s largest companies, has seen his fortune halved in the past two weeks following allegations of stock manipulation and accounting fraud by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research.[0] The report published on January 24 accused the Adani Group of engaging in a “brazen” stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the decades, and the company’s stocks have since tumbled by as much as 70%.[1]
The report claimed that Adani had added over $100 billion to his net worth over the past three years, largely due to stock price appreciation in the group’s seven key listed companies, which had risen by 819% in the same period.[2] The group has denied the allegations, but several lenders have rejected Adani’s securities as collateral for client trades, and the group was forced to cancel a $2.5 billion share offering earlier this week.
Hindenburg Research engages in activist short selling, which involves selling borrowed stocks with the hope of buying the same at a lower price later.[1] The short seller’s profit lies in the money that is left after buying back the stock at a reduced value, but if the bet doesn’t pay off and stock prices rise, the short seller will incur a loss.[3]
The Adani Group has threatened legal action against Hindenburg and accused the investment firm of attempting to damage its reputation before a large share offering. In response, Hindenburg has pointed out that it is profiting from the chaos, and has accused the Adani Group of holding back India’s future.
Three investment funds with ties to the Adani Group have been identified as having purchased shares in Adani Enterprises’ scuttled $2.5 billion offering.[4] Goldman Sachs trading executives have expressed their view that Adani debt had hit a floor in the short term, and JPMorgan credit analysts said they saw value in debt of some Adani operating companies.[5] But until the allegations are addressed, the slide in Adani’s fortune is likely to continue.
0. “Who Got Rich And Who Got Poor This Week: Zuckerberg, Musk, Adani And More” Forbes, 4 Feb. 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/richardjchang/2023/02/04/who-got-rich-and-poor-zuckerberg-musk-adani/
1. “Adani-Hindenburg issue in Supreme Court: Declare ‘short selling’ an offence, says petition” Moneycontrol, 3 Feb. 2023, https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/current-affairs/adani-hindenburg-issue-in-supreme-court-declare-short-selling-an-offence-says-petition-10000581.html
2. “Gautam Adani Drops Out Of 10 Wealthiest List: Here’s How His Loss Stacks Up To Musk, Zuckerberg And SBF – Meta …” Benzinga, 4 Feb. 2023, https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/02/30712783/gautam-adani-drops-out-of-10-wealthiest-list-heres-how-his-loss-stacks-up-to-musk-zuckerberg-and-sbf
3. “Explained | Adani Group stocks: What is Hindenburg Research, and how does a short seller operate?” The Hindu, 30 Jan. 2023, https://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/explained-adani-group-stocks-what-is-hindenburg-research-and-how-does-a-short-seller-operate/article66437011.ece
4. “Adani Enterprises’ Failed Share Offering Exposes More Investment Funds With Questionable Ties To The Adani Group” Forbes, 3 Feb. 2023, https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnhyatt/2023/02/03/adani-enterprises-failed-share-offering-exposes-more-investment-funds-with-questionable-ties-to-the-adani-group
5. “Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Say Adani Debt Offers Value To Trading Clients” NDTV Profit, 3 Feb. 2023, https://www.ndtv.com/business/goldman-sachs-jpmorgan-say-adani-debt-offers-value-to-trading-clients-3750088