The Adani Group has released its annual report for the fiscal year 2022-23. In this report, Gautam Adani, the Chairman of the Adani Group, addresses the shareholders, shedding light on a significant challenge faced by the group earlier this year. He discusses the adverse impact of a US-based short-seller report, released in January, which triggered a sudden decline in the stock prices of various group companies.
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Gautam Adani refers to this report, authored by Hindenburg, as a concoction of targeted misinformation and outdated, discredited allegations. He emphasizes that its sole purpose was to tarnish the reputation of the Adani Group while generating profits through a deliberate drive-down of stock prices. "The short-selling incident resulted in several adverse consequences that we had to confront. Even though we promptly issued a comprehensive rebuttal, various vested interests tried to opportunistically exploit the claims made by the short seller. These entities engaged and encouraged false narratives across various news and social media platforms," adds Gautam Adani.
In his address to the shareholders, Gautam Adani also highlights the recent release of the expert committee's report, appointed by the Supreme Court. Drawing from this report, Gautam Adani asserts that the expert committee found no regulatory failure on the part of the Adani Group. He further emphasizes that the committee's report not only acknowledged the mitigating measures undertaken by the group to rebuild confidence but also acknowledged credible charges of concerted destabilization of the Indian markets. Furthermore, Gautam Adani emphasizes that the expert committee's report confirmed the impeccable quality of the group's disclosures and found no instances of regulatory failure or breaches. "While we eagerly await the report from the market regulator, SEBI, we maintain utmost confidence in our governance and disclosure standards," adds Gautam Adani.
Headquartered in Ahmedabad, Adani Group experienced a significant decline in market capitalisation of over Rs 13 lakh crore within a month following the release of the Hindenburg report on January 24. This report, published just two days before the flagship Adani Enterprises' follow-on public offer of Rs 20,000 crore, alleged that the group had engaged in a brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud scheme spanning decades.
However, the stock prices of the Adani Group companies witnessed a rebound following a substantial investment by GQG Partners, a US-based investment firm. On March 3 of this year, marquee investor Rajiv Jain's GQG injected over Rs 15,000 crore into the group. And, after three months of the initial investment, Rajiv Jain recently made an additional investment ranging between Rs 2,000-3,000 crore.
As of today, the share prices of Adani Group companies remain somewhat lower, ranging between 5-83 percent from the levels observed on January 24.
On June 27 morning, Adani group stocks trade marginally higher.