The market value of the shares of listed companies related to the company declinedIndian Adani Group Today it’s worth $10.8 billion.
This comes after the research company, “Hindenburg Research”, issued a report targeting companies controlled by billionaire businessman Gautam Adani, after the “Hindenburg” took short-selling positions on the shares of the group’s subsidiaries.
The report of the investment research company, “Hindenburg”, pointed to a set of problems, including the group’s high debts, in addition to the fact that the companies associated with it are overvalued by about 85%.
A Hindenburg Research memo on Wednesday also accused the Adani Group of making improperly extensive use of entities established in offshore tax havens, expressing concern about high debt levels.
Shares in 7 companies included in the Adani Group fell by more than 5% on average. These declines brought the total loss in the market value of Adani Group shares to about 875 billion rupees ($10.8 billion).
Adani’s business is expanding rapidly. The self-made billionaire started out as a commodities trader in the 1980s before eventually building India’s largest private infrastructure group with around 10 ports and 8 airports. The group has several subsidiaries covering sectors including data and defense, according to the Financial Times, which was reviewed by Al Arabiya.net.
The report comes as Gautam Adani — who has a net worth of about $118 billion as the richest person in Asia, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index — moves forward with fundraising to fuel the rapid expansion of his existing industrial facilities and fossil fuel as well as green energy businesses.
In the report, Hindenburg alleges that the Adani Group has engaged in share price manipulation and accounting fraud for decades, and its report presents a list of 88 questions related to those allegations, writing in conclusion, “We hope the Adani Group will be pleased to answer them.”
Analysts also raised concerns about the debt-driven growth of the Adani Group, noting that the group’s total debt of about 2 trillion rupees (about $24 billion) is nearly 7 times pre-adjusted earnings.
For his part, the financial director of the Adani Group considered the “Hindenburg” report “unfounded and lacks credibility.” This report coincided with the opening of the door for subscription in the shares of “Adani Enterprises”, which sources indicate the interest of investors in the UAE to invest in, including the International Holding Company and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority “ADIA”.
The Adani Group, which derives much of its revenue from mining and burning coal, has pledged to become one of the world’s largest green energy companies by investing $70 billion by 2030 in everything from green hydrogen to manufacturing solar panels.