Hindenburg row: Adani stocks rise up to 4% after SC postpones hearing

Adani Group stocks gained up to 4% in intraday trade on Tuesday after the Supreme Court postponed the hearing of the SEBI’s status report on its investigations against the port-to-power conglomerate regarding allegations of stock price manipulation by the U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research. The Adani-Hindenburg case, which was slated to be heard today, has reportedly been placed for hearing on September 1, as the constitution bench led by the Chief Justice of India will continue hearing pleas challenging the abrogation of Article 370.

Meanwhile, shares of Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone, Adani Power, Adani Total Gas, Adani Wilmar, Ambuja Cements, and NDTV rose between 1% to 4%. On the other hand, Adani Green Energy, Adani Transmission, and ACC fell up to 1%.

Among 10 listed entities of billionaire Gautam Adani-led Adani Group, Adani Power was the best performer, rising as much as 3.9% during the session so far. It was followed by Adani Enterprises, the flagship company of the group, with a 2.6% gain during the trade so far, while Adani Ports & SEZ added 2.5% intraday.

On August 25, capital market regulator SEBI submitted its 15-page “status report” before the apex court, saying that it will “take appropriate action based on the outcome of the investigations in accordance with law”.

The SEBI in its submission says that out of the 24 investigations, 22 were final in nature and had been approved by the competent authority in the regulatory body, while remaining two are interim in nature as the regulator had sought information from external agencies and entities.

“SEBI has sought information from external agencies/entities and upon receipt of such information will evaluate the same vis-à-vis the interim investigation report to determine further course of action, if any, in the said matters,” the report noted.

Sebi in its report says it was awaiting information from five tax havens on actual owners behind foreign investors investing in the conglomerate.

After Hindenburg Research released an adverse report against the Adani Group on January 24, the Supreme Court on March 2, 2023, set up a six-member expert committee “to investigate if there was a regulatory failure in dealing with the alleged contravention of laws pertaining to the securities market in relation to the Adani Group or other companies.”

Hindenburg Research in its detailed report, alleged the port-to-power conglomerate had engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme over the course of decades. “Gautam Adani, Founder, and Chairman of the Adani Group, has amassed a net worth of roughly $120 billion, adding over $100 billion in the past 3 years largely through stock price appreciation in the group’s 7 key listed companies, which have spiked an average of 819% in that period,” the report highlighted.

However, Adani Group strongly refuted the claims made in the Hindenburg report and said it was an attempt to tarnish the reputation of the conglomerate.

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