World
Billionaire Adani’s Conglomerate Faces Scrutiny And Setbacks Around The World Amid U.S. Indictment
Topline
A day after billionaire Gautam Adani was indicted in a major bribery case in the U.S., his conglomerate faced a series of setbacks and increased scrutiny both around the world and in India.
Gautam Adani’s net worth has slumped by over $13 billion since Wednesday.
Key Facts
According to Reuters, the Adani Group’s controversial coal mining project in Australia is facing racism allegations after an Aboriginal group filed a complaint with Australia’s Human Rights Commission earlier this week—an allegation the company “wholly rejected.”
The complaint alleges that employees at the Adani-owned Bravus Mining and Resources attempted to “verbally and physically obstruct and prevent” members of the Wangan and Jagalingou Aboriginal groups from accessing springs near the company’s coal mine in the state of Queensland “to perform cultural rites and share cultural knowledge.”
Ruto announced the decision in a State of the Nation address and said it was based on “new information provided by our investigative agencies and partner nations,” without offering additional details.
In Sri Lanka, experts called for more scrutiny of Adani’s $442 million wind power deal, which the country’s new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake referred to as a “corrupt” deal during his campaign and his government has promised to review.
Earlier this week, Bangladesh’s High Court ordered a high-level probe into the conglomerate’s power supply deal to the country—as the Adani group threatened to cut off power supply to the country over $850 million in unpaid dues.
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Tangent
Adani’s indictment by the U.S. government triggered a political firestorm in India on Thursday, as the opposition attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his long-time close ties to the billionaire. The leader of the opposition parties, Rahul Gandhi, demanded the immediate arrest of Adani. Gandhi also called for the immediate removal of Madhabi Buch as the chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), accusing her of protecting the billionaire. On Friday, Bloomberg reported that SEBI has opened an investigation into potential disclosure violations by the Adani Group. The regulator is reportedly investigating if Adani Green Energy, the main entity linked to the U.S. indictment, failed to properly disclose details about the Justice Department’s investigation into the company. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not commented on the U.S. indictment so far.
Key Background
The DOJ on Wednesday charged Adani and other executives at his company, including Adani Green Energy CEO Vneet Jaain and the firm’s Executive Director Sagar Adani, with conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud and substantive securities fraud. The charges stem from an alleged bribery scheme, where the accused sought to pay $250 million to Indian government officials “to secure contracts worth billions of dollars.” The Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a complaint against the billionaire and his executives, alleging they violated the antifraud provisions of federal securities laws. The regulator alleged Adani and the others raised $175 million from U.S. investors through false and misleading statements. In a statement, the Adani Group said the allegations were “baseless and denied.”
Forbes Valuation
According to our estimates, Adani’s current net worth is $56.8 billion, down from $69.8 billion before the U.S. indictment was announced. This makes Adani the 26th richest person in the world on Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires list, down from the 22nd spot on Wednesday.
Further Reading
Gautam Adani’s Fortune Sinks By $12.3 Billion As US Indictment Triggers Stock Selloff (Forbes)
Billionaire Gautam Adani Charged For Alleged $250 Million Bribery Scheme (Forbes)
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