Gautam Adani US indictment: Adani Group stocks extend fall by another 11%

In two days, the stock price of Adani Enterprises and Green Energy have tanked by 28%, Adani Energy slipped 27%, while Ports, Power, Total Gas, Wilmar and Ambuja Cements are down between 14% and 18%

Shares of Adani Group companies continued trading under pressure for the second straight day, declining by up to 11 per cent on the BSE in Friday’s intra-day trade. In two days, the stock of the group's companies have tanked by up to 28 per cent after Gautam Adani, along with other executives, were charged by US prosecutors for allegedly bribing ($250 million) Indian officials to secure renewable energy suply contracts.

 

However, the Adani Group has strongly rejected the allegations made by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the US Department of Justice, regarding charges of fraud and bribery involving several key figures from the conglomerate. In a statement, the group described the allegations as “baseless and denied.”

 

Meanwhile, most of the group shares have recovered between 3 per cent and 6 per cent from their respective day’s lows. ACC and Ambuja Cements were trading higher by up to 2 per cent at 09:44 AM.

 

The SEC indictment accuses Gautam Adani and six other defendants of conspiring to pay approximately $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials in exchange for securing renewable energy supply contracts for Adani Green Energy, the group’s renewable energy division.

 

Shares of Adani Energy Solutions (Rs 637.85), Adani Enterprises (Rs 2,030) and Adani Wilmar (Rs 279.20) have hit their respective 52-week lows on the BSE in intra-day trade. In two days, the stock price of Adani Enterprises and Adani Green Energy have tanked by 28 per cent, while Adani Energy Solutions slipped 27 per cent. Adani Ports, Adani Power, Adani Total Gas, Ambuja Cements and Adani Wilmar were down between 14 per cent and 18 per cent in two days.

 

The United States Department of Justice and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission have issued a criminal indictment and brought a civil complaint, respectively, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, against Gautam Adani, as well as two other board members of Adani Green Energy, the company said in an exchange filing.

 

There are no allegations made against the company in the subject matters, it added.

 

A spokesperson for the Adani Group stated that the allegations made by the US Department of Justice and the US Securities and Exchange Commission against directors of Adani Green are baseless and denied.

 

As stated by the US Department of Justice itself, "the charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty." All possible legal recourse will be sought, the Group's media release stated.

 

“The Adani Group has always upheld and is steadfastly committed to maintaining the highest standards of governance, transparency and regulatory compliance across all jurisdictions of its operations. We assure our stakeholders, partners and employees that we are a law-abiding organisation, fully compliant with all laws,” the statement said.