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Adani group stocks fell on 21 November after US federal prosecutors filed bribery charges on founder Gautam Adani
Industrialist Gautam Adani (PTI Image)
Stocks of companies under the Gautam Adani-led Group saw a sharp decline of over 20 per cent during Thursday’s trading session, with several high-risk counters hitting lower circuit limits. In the midst of this heavy selloff, investors in the 10 listed Adani Group companies saw a loss of over Rs 2.60 lakh crore as the market opened.
Adani stocks plummeted sharply after US prosecutors indicted billionaire Gautam Adani and seven senior executives from the group in connection with a $250 million bribery scheme allegedly hidden from US investors.
The total market capitalization of all 10 listed Adani Group companies fell to Rs 11.91 lakh crore on Thursday, down from Rs 11.63 lakh crore on Tuesday. This represented a loss of approximately Rs 2.60 lakh crore in just the early hours of trading.
Adani Energy Solutions was the hardest hit, with shares crashing by 20 per cent. Adani Green Energy saw a decline of around 18 per cent, while Adani Total Gas and Adani Power dropped by 13-14 per cent. Other companies like Adani Enterprises, Ambuja Cements, ACC, and Adani Ports hit the 10 per cent lower circuit limits. NDTV’s shares dropped by 11 per cent, Adani Wilmar fell 8 per cent, and newly-acquired Sanghi Industries lost 6 per cent.
The downturn followed Adani’s announcement of a green energy investment on Wednesday, made while the company’s chairman congratulated U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Trump’s promises to ease regulations for energy companies were seen as beneficial for Adani’s interests.
Adani Enterprises, the flagship company of the group, was the biggest loser, hitting a 20 per cent lower circuit limit at Rs 2,256.2, down from Rs 2,820.2 on Tuesday. The company’s market capitalization dropped by Rs 61,096.85 crore to Rs 2.60 lakh crore.
Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone, a constituent of the Nifty50, also tumbled by 20 per cent, ending the day at Rs 1,031.25, erasing Rs 55,688 crore in market value. Adani Green Energy was the next major loser, with its stock down by over 19 per cent, wiping out Rs 42,887.68 crore in market capitalization.
Adani Power fell by 18 per cent, resulting in a loss of nearly Rs 36,000 crore in market value, while Adani Energy Solutions, formerly Adani Transmission, was locked at a 20 per cent lower circuit, losing Rs 21,000 crore in valuation. Adani Wilmar saw a 10 per cent drop, with a market cap loss of Rs 4,289 crore.
Acquired companies like Ambuja Cements and ACC also suffered losses, with Ambuja falling by 18 per cent and ACC dropping 15 per cent. Ambuja’s market cap was down by Rs 20,296 crore, and ACC lost Rs 5,700 crore. The smallest Adani Group stock, New Delhi Television (NDTV), saw a 14 per cent drop, losing Rs 157 crore in market capitalization on the day.
Why Are Adani Stocks Falling Today?
US prosecutors charged Adani, 62, his nephew Sagar and other defendants for paying over USD 250 million in bribes between 2020 and 2024 to Indian government officials to win solar energy contracts on terms that could potentially bring in more than USD 2 billion in profit.
This, they alleged, was concealed from the US banks and investors from whom the Adani group raised billions of dollars for the project.
US law allows pursuing foreign corruption allegations if they involve certain links to American investors or markets.
“The defendants orchestrated an elaborate scheme to bribe Indian government officials to secure contracts worth billions of dollars,” Breon Peace, US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, which brought the case, said in a statement.
Adani, chairman of the ports-to-energy Adani Group, his nephew Sagar R Adani, who is an executive director at the conglomerate’s renewable energy arm Adani Green Energy Ltd, and its former CEO Vneet Jaain were charged with securities fraud, securities fraud conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy.
The Adani’s were also charged in a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) civil case.
What Did Adani Say?
“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 our Board members, Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani. The United States Department of Justice have also included our Board member, Vneet Jaain, in such criminal indictment,” Adani Green said in a BSE filing.
It added that “in light of these developments, our subsidiaries have presently decided not to proceed with the proposed USD denominated bond offerings”.
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