More than £20 billion in market value vanished from Gautam Adani’s corporate empire after US corruption charges rattled one of India’s wealthiest businessmen, causing shares across his vast business portfolio to tumble dramatically.
The flagship Adani Enterprises witnessed its shares plunge by over 20% on Thursday, hemorrhaging nearly £9 billion following US prosecutors’ allegations of a concealed £265 million bribery scheme from investors and banks. Other entities within the conglomerate collectively shed more than £11 billion in market capitalisation.
The crisis deepened as Kenya swiftly moved to terminate £2.6 billion worth of deals in response to the US indictment. Kenyan President William Ruto announced the immediate cancellation of a proposed £1.85 billion airport expansion project and a £736 million power line investment previously awarded to the Adani group.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice’s claims assert that Adani personally supervised kickbacks to Indian officials to secure renewable energy contracts. The Adani group has firmly rejected these allegations as “baseless” and indicated they are exploring legal options.
The market upheaval has cast a shadow over the group’s planned return to international markets, just as it appeared to have weathered previous fraud allegations from short-seller Hindenburg Research. Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone experienced a sharp 13% decline, shedding £4.5 billion, while the group’s listed power transmission and renewables businesses saw similar significant losses.
The situation has also implicated Trafigura, where an employee has stepped back from duties after being accused of facilitating the alleged bribes during his previous role at a Canadian pension fund investing in the Adani group. These developments mark a significant setback for a conglomerate that has become synonymous with India’s national infrastructure development under Narendra Modi’s leadership.
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