Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Adani's market loss swells to $70 bln as its fight with short-seller escalates

Adani, led by Asia’s richest man Gautam Adani, has locked horns with Hindenburg Research and on Sunday hit back at the short-seller’s report of last week that flagged concerns about its debt levels and the use of tax havens.

Adani's market loss swells to $70 bln as its fight with short-seller escalates

Adani group shares extended their sharp falls on Monday as the Indian conglomerate's rebuttal of a U.S. short-seller's criticism failed to pacify investors, driving stock market losses for the companies to almost $70 billion over three days.

Flagship Adani Enterprises ADEL.NS, which is facing a crucial test this week with a follow-on share offering, fell 2.5%, reversing its initial gains of as much as 10% and staying significantly below the offer price.


Adani, led by Asia's richest man Gautam Adani, has locked horns with Hindenburg Research and on Sunday hit back at the short-seller's report of last week that flagged concerns about its debt levels and the use of tax havens. Adani said it complies with all local laws and had made the necessary regulatory disclosures.

Adani Transmission ADAI.NS, Adani Total Gas ADAG.NS, Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS, Adani Power ADAN.NS, Adani Wilmar ADAW.NS and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone APSE.NS fell between 4.2% and 20% on Monday.

Adani Enterprises' $2.5 billion secondary share sale entered its second day amid weak investor sentiment. The stock was trading at 2,686 rupees, 13.6% below the 3,112 rupees lower end of the offer price band. The upper band is 3,276 rupees.

Initial data from stock exchanges on Monday showed Adani has now received bids for 687,840, or 1.5%, of the 45.5 million of shares on offer. The deal closes on Tuesday.

Foreign and domestic institutional investors, as well as mutual funds, have made no bids so far, according to the data.

"Retail participation is likely to have a shortfall with current market prices still trailing the offer price and sentiment taking a hit due to the Hindenburg controversy," said Hemang Jani, equity strategist at Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

"While there is a risk that the share sale does not go through, it will be crucial today to wait and see how institutional investors participate."

Adani Group told Reuters in a statement on Saturday that the sale remains on schedule at the planned issue price, even as sources said bankers of the country's largest secondary share sale were considering extending the timeline beyond Jan. 31, or tweaking the price due to the fall in its share price.

Indian regulations say the share offering must receive a minimum subscription of 90%, and if it does not the issuer must refund the entire amount. Maybank Securities and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority are among the investors who bid for the anchor portion of the issue.

Maybank said in a statement "there is no financial impact" on it as the subscription to Adani's offer was fully funded by client funds.

State-run insurance behemoth Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) LIFI.NS told Reuters on Monday it was reviewing the Adani group's response to Hindenburg's report and would hold talks with the management within days.

LIC took 5% of the anchor portion, worth around $734 million. It already holds a 4.23% stake in the flagship Adani firm, while its other exposures include a 9.14% stake in Adani Ports and 5.96% in Adani Total Gas.

"Since we are a large investor we have the right to ask relevant questions," LIC Managing Director Raj Kumar said.

DEBT, DE-LEVERAGING

Index provider MSCI has said it was seeking feedback from market participants on Adani and was monitoring the factors that "may impact the eligibility of those relevant securities" in MSCI indexes.

In its response on Sunday, Adani highlighted its relationships with local and international banks and touted its access to diverse funding sources and structures, listing U.S. banks Citigroup C.N and JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM.N and European lenders such as BNP Paribas BNPP.PA, Credit Suisse CSGN.S and Deutsche Bank DBKGn.DE.

Responding to Adani's rebuttal, Hindenburg said the "response largely confirmed our findings and ignored our key questions."

The stock market meltdown is a dramatic setback for 60-year-old Adani. The school-dropout's stunning rise came with over 1,500% gains in some of his group stocks over three years, making him the world's third richest man before he slipped to rank eighth on the Forbes list on Monday.

Hindenburg said that Adani companies had "substantial debt" and that shares in seven Adani-listed companies have an 85% downside due to what it called "sky-high valuations".

Adani's response stated that over the past decade, its group companies have "consistently de-levered".

(Reuters)

More For You

Police arrest five after anti-asylum protesters target Heathrow hotel

Anti-migrant protesters demonstrate outside the Cladhan Hotel on August 30, 2025 in Falkirk, Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Police arrest five after anti-asylum protesters target Heathrow hotel

BRITISH police said they arrested five people on Saturday (30) after masked men tried to force their way into a hotel used by asylum-seekers, a day after the government won a court ruling on the use of another hotel to house migrants.

Two groups of anti-asylum protesters marched to the Crowne Plaza Hotel near Heathrow Airport before some demonstrators tried to break in, London's Metropolitan Police force said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi backs peaceful Ukraine settlement in call with Zelenskyy

Volodymyr Zelenskiy (L) and Narendra Modi

Modi backs peaceful Ukraine settlement in call with Zelenskyy

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi reaffirmed his support for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine during a telephone conversation with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Modi's office said.

Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address on Saturday (30), said Modi supported Ukraine's call for a ceasefire in the war with Russia and hoped that notion would be heard at the forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in China.

Keep ReadingShow less
Modi says "peace and stability" achieved on China border in Xi meeting

India's prime minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Chinese president Xi Jinping during a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, China, August 31, 2025. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS

Modi says "peace and stability" achieved on China border in Xi meeting

INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi said New Delhi was committed to improving ties with Beijing in a key meeting with China's president Xi Jinping on the sidelines of a regional security forum on Sunday (31).

Modi is in China for the first time in seven years to attend a two-day meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, along with Russian president Vladimir Putin and other leaders from Central, South and Southeast Asia and the Middle East in a show of Global South solidarity.

Keep ReadingShow less
wasim bashir

Bashir retired from the force while under investigation but will still face misconduct proceedings. (Photo credit: West Yorkshire Police)

West Yorkshire Police

Former West Yorkshire Police officer jailed for misconduct

A FORMER West Yorkshire Police officer has been sentenced to two years and three months in prison after being convicted of misconduct in a public office.

Wasim Bashir, 55, who worked as a detective constable in Bradford District, was found guilty of one count of misconduct in a public office for forming a sexual relationship with a female victim of crime. He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 29 August.

Keep ReadingShow less
Epping protests

Protesters calling for the closure of The Bell Hotel, which was housing asylum seekers, gather outside the council offices in Epping on August 8, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Over a dozen councils plan legal action despite Home Office court win

Highlights:

  • Court of Appeal has overturned injunction blocking use of Epping hotel for asylum seekers.
  • Judges say human rights obligations outweigh local safety concerns.
  • At least 13 councils preparing legal action despite ruling.
  • Protests outside the Bell Hotel lead to arrests and police injuries.

MORE than a dozen councils are moving ahead with legal challenges against the use of hotels for asylum seekers despite the Home Office winning an appeal in the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less