As part of a money laundering investigation, Swiss authorities have frozen $311 million (₹2,610 crore) held by a Taiwanese resident in multiple Swiss bank accounts.
They believe the man may be a front man for the Adani group, a claim the conglomerate vehemently denied, claiming it is not a party to any court proceedings in Switzerland and that none of its accounts are under sequestration.
The US short seller claimed late Thursday, citing recently released Swiss criminal court records, that the Adani-Hindenburg saga is still ongoing and that the Swiss authorities have frozen more than $310 million in funds across Swiss bank accounts as part of an investigation into allegations of money laundering and securities forgery linked to the Adani Group, dating back as early as 2021.
The “baseless allegations” made in the Hindenburg post, however, have been categorically repudiated and denied by the Adani Group.
The Adani Group responded by restating that their foreign holding structure is open, completely disclosed, and complies with all applicable legal requirements. Additionally, they made it clear that they are not a part of any Swiss court proceedings and emphasized that neither the court records nor any requests for clarification had referenced any of their group firms.
The U.S.-based short seller claimed in a post on X, formerly Twitter, that Swiss criminal court records provide a detailed account of how an Adani front man invested in opaque BVI/Mauritius & Bermuda funds that held Adani shares almost entirely. The post cited a Swiss media outlet.
According to the article, five Swiss banks are holding about $310 million that is purportedly linked to a frontman for billionaire Gautam Adani.
“We unequivocally reject and deny the baseless allegations presented,” the Adani Group declared in response to the accusations. The Adani Group is not involved in any legal procedures in Switzerland, nor has any authority sequestered any of our company’s accounts.”
Hindenburg recently claimed that Madhabi Buch, the chairperson of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), may be influencing the investigation into the conglomerate’s slow pace because of her previous investments and dealings.
Hindenburg had previously accused the Adani Group of using tax havens to circumvent local market regulations back in January 2023.
About Adani and Hindenburg row
They publish the results of our two-year research, demonstrating that the Indian conglomerate Adani Group, worth INR 17.8 trillion (about $218 billion in the United States), has been involved in a flagrant system of accounting fraud and stock manipulation for decades.
The founder and chairman of the Adani Group, Gautam Adani, has accumulated a net worth of over $120 billion, to which he has added over $100 billion in the last three years, primarily due to increases in the stock prices of the group’s seven major listed firms, which have increased by an average of 819% during that time.
Speaking with numerous people—including former Adani Group senior executives—examining hundreds of papers, and visiting diligence sites in nearly six countries were all part of our study.
Despite disregarding the results of our analysis and accepting the Adani Group’s financial statements at face value, the seven major listed companies of the group have an 85% fundamental downside due to their exorbitant valuations.
Important Adani listed companies have also incurred significant debt, with some even using shares of their inflated stock as security for loans, placing the group’s finances in jeopardy. There is short-term liquidity pressure as evidenced by the “current ratios” of five out of seven major public corporations.
Eight of the 22 important leaders in the group and the top ranks are Adani family members; this dynamic concentrates power over the group’s finances and crucial choices within a small number of people. According to a former CEO, the Adani Group is “a family business.”
Four significant government fraud investigations involving the Adani Group have previously been the subject of allegations of money laundering, taxpayer fund theft, and corruption totaling an estimated $17 billion.
Members of the Adani family are accused of working together to establish offshore shell companies in tax havens such as the United Arab Emirates, Mauritius, and the Caribbean Islands.
They allegedly produced falsified import/export paperwork in an apparent attempt to produce fictitious or illegitimate turnover and embezzle money from the listed companies.
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) accused Rajesh Adani, the younger brother of Gautam Adani, of being a key player in an import/export diamond trafficking operation in the years 2004–2005. The purported plan was to create false turnover by using offshore shell companies. Rajesh was detained on multiple occasions due to distinct accusations.
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