Adani Group has denied allegations by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission that it paid $250 million (about Rs 2,100 crore) in bribes to top Indian government officials to win solar contracts. In a statement, Adani Group clarified that these are baseless allegations and will seek all possible legal avenues against the US Department of Justice.

The Adani Group and the accused in the case are completely innocent until the charges are proven with evidence. The Group’s operational structure is to maintain high standards. The operation is transparent and fully compliant with all rules and regulations. The Adani Group also assured its shareholders, business partners and employees that the Group is moving ahead in compliance with all the laws of the country.

Stocks tumbled; Heavy fall in value too

Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and others have been charged with corruption, fraud and criminal conspiracy on allegations of bribing government officials to get contracts and raising capital by misleading US investors. Arrest warrants have also been issued against Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani, an Adani Green Energy executive.

Adani Group shares tumbled in the stock market today following reports of the case in the US. Adani Group shares are now facing a fall similar to the collapse in January 2023 in the wake of the Hindenburg allegations.

The share price of Adani Enterprises, the parent company of the group, fell by 23.45% today. Adani Energy Solutions fell 20%, Adani Green Energy 18.89%, Ambuja Cement 12.56%, Adani Ports 13.11%, ACC 7.22%, Adani Power 9.56%, Adani Total Gas 10.35% and Adani Wilmar 10%. NDTV shares were also up 0.18% by the afternoon, although they were down around 10%. The combined market capitalization of the Adani Group companies fell by Rs 2.25 lakh crore to Rs 12 lakh crore in one fell swoop today.

Following the case in the US, the announcement by GQG Partners that it will review its investment in the Adani Group and the assessment of the leading rating agency Moody’s that the Adani Group is ‘credit negative’ caused the shares to lose heavily today. This rating indicates that the future of the stock is not bright.

Huge leak in Gautam Adani’s assets; Back in the rankings

More than one lakh crore rupees have been washed away from Gautam Adani’s assets in a single day. He has fallen to the 25th position on Forbes’ global billionaire list with a current net worth of $5,570 crore (Rs 4.86 lakh crore). 1,240 crores (Rs 1.04 lakh crores) fell today alone. His fall from the 22nd rank. Gautam Adani is the second richest person in Asia and India after Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani.

A similar fallout from the time of the Hindenburg Allegations exists in his assets. After the Hindenburg allegations in January 2023, $15,000 crore (roughly Rs. 12 lakh crore) was lost from the combined value of Adani Group companies and $8,000 crore from Gautam Adani’s assets in a month. Adani was also in the world’s $100 billion club with assets of over $10,000 crore (over Rs 8.3 lakh crore) at the start of 2024. The current huge fall is from that level.