Introduction

Hindenburg Research, an American ‘activist’ short-seller, known for going after companies that they believed are excessively overvalued, has unleashed a storm in the markets and regulatory circles with a report on the Adani Group of companies. In its report, Hindenburg has accused the Adanis of pulling off “the most egregious corporate fraud” in history. The allegations include stock manipulation and round-tripping of funds using shell companies. While the Adanis hit back with a 413-page rejoinder, the markets have so far sided with Hindenburg, as Adani stocks tumbled and more than $100 billion of market cap was wiped out.

The Adanis then scraped through in their follow-on public offer (FPO) that closed on January 31. But the very next day, they withdrew the FPO, citing moral reasons. In the meantime, Credit Suisse has announced that it will no longer accept Adani bonds as collateral, while Dow Jones has dropped Adani Group companies from its Sustainability indices. So, what do the allegations mean for the lay investor? Will SEBI act? Where does this leave Indian banks who already have high exposure to Adani stock? 

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