Gautam Adani’s Fortune Plummets After Allegations of Fraud and Money Laundering
By Gautam Adani, the Indian billionaire and second-richest person on the planet, has seen his fortune plummet after a damning report by U.S. based short-seller firm Hindenburg accused him of pulling “the largest con in corporate history.” The report alleges that Adani has engaged in stock manipulation, fraud and money laundering, resulting in the loss of over $90 billion of his conglomerate's total market value in just a week.
Adani Group has published a 400-page rebuttal of Hindenburg's claims, but investors have already taken their money out of Adani-related companies in industries including energy and construction.[0] This has caused Adani's net worth to drop from $124 billion to $77 billion and has resulted in him occupying the 21st spot on Bloomberg's Billionaires Index.
Hindenburg's report also claims that almost all listed companies that are part of the Adani Group are seriously overleveraged and overvalued, with promoter ownership just under permissible limits.[1] This lack of transparency and accountability raises serious questions about the Adani Group.[1]
Adani's meteoric rise to riches over the last decade has been well-documented, but this scandal has shown just how quickly fortunes can be lost in the business world. It remains to be seen if the allegations against him will be proven true or if Adani will be able to rebuild his empire and regain his place at the top of the financial ladder.
0. “Gautam Adani will be playing defense for a while after mauling by short seller” CNN, 10 Feb. 2023, https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/10/business/india-adani-hindenburg-report-impact-intl-hnk/index.html
1. “D Raja writes on Adani-Hindenburg: It is time to fix accountability” The Indian Express, 11 Feb. 2023, https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/d-raja-writes-on-adani-hindenburg-time-to-fix-accountability-8439095/
