Not aware of any subpoena from US regulators to investors: Adani Group

Gautam Adani’s conglomerate Adani Group said that it was not aware of any subpoena from the US regulators to investors, news agency Reuters reported on Friday.

This comes after Bloomberg reported that US regulators are looking into the representations made by the group to its American investors after the Hindenburg report accused it of manipulating stock prices.

According to the report, the US Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn, New York, has sent inquiries in recent months to institutional investors with large holdings in the conglomerate. The requests for information were focused on what Adani Group told those investors.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also has a similar probe underway, the Bloomberg report added.

Notably, requests for information from US prosecutors don’t necessarily mean that criminal or civil proceedings will be filed as law enforcement agencies often open inquiries that don’t lead to action.

Following the report, Adani Group stocks took a hit on the Indian bourses. On Friday, the conglomerate’s stocks fell up to six per cent in intra-day trade on the BSE.

In India too, the market regulator the Securities Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is investigating allegations made by a foreign short-seller on January 25, 2023 and also into market activity before and after that date. The verdict is expected from the securities watchdog in August.

A panel of experts appointed by the Supreme Court, however, said in a report last month that they could not find any regulatory failure or wrongdoing behind the wild swings of Adani stocks.

“We are fully compliant with all laws, rules and regulations and are confident that truth will prevail. We are fully cooperating with Sebi and will continue to provide all our support and cooperation,” Adani Group had said in a media statement on April 29.

Adani Group’s troubles began when Hindenburg, on January 25, released a report accusing the conglomerate of using a network of offshore companies in tax havens to embellish share prices and financial results. The report also alleged that the group had flouted disclosure and shareholding laws.