Gautam Adani loses Asia’s richest crown

Shares in tycoon Gautam Adanirsquos conglomerate plunged again on Wednesday as a rout in his companies deepened to USD 86 billion in the wake of a US shortseller report with the billionaire also losing his title as Asiarsquos richest personWednesdayrsquos stock losses saw Adani slip to 15th on Forbes rich list with an estimated net worth of USD 75 billion below rival Mukesh Ambani the chairman of Reliance Industries Ltd who ranks ninth with a net worth of USD 836 billionBefore the critical report by Hindenburg Research Adani had ranked thirdMajor setbackThe losses mark a dramatic setback for Adani the schooldropoutturnedbillionaire whose business interests stretch from ports and airports to mining and cement Now the tycoon is fighting to stabilise his businesses and defend his reputationAlso Read Interest of my investors is paramount Gautam Adani after calling off Rs 20000 crore FPOBefore the report by Hindenburg Research Gautam Adani had ranked third File picAFPThe share slides come just a day after the Adani Group managed to muster support from investors for a USD 25 billion share sale for flagship firm Adani Enterprises in what some saw as a stamp of investor confidence at a time of crisisThe report by Hindenburg Research last week alleged improper use by the Adani Group of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation It also raised concerns about high debt and the valuations of seven listed Adani companies The group has denied the allegationsldquoThere was a slight bounce yesterday after the share FPO sale went through after seeming improbable at a point but now the weak market sentiment has become visible again after the bombshell Hindenburg reportrdquo said Ambareesh Baliga a Mumbaibased independent market analystldquoWith the stocks down despite Adanirsquos rebuttal it clearly shows some damage on investor sentiment It will take a while to stabiliserdquo Baliga addedUnderscoring the nervousness in some quarters Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that Credit Suisse had stopped accepting bonds of Adani group companies as collateral for margin loans to its private banking clientsDeven Choksey managing director of KRChoksey Shares and Securities said this was a big factor in Wednesdayrsquos share slidesSEBI probes share saleThe Securities and Exchange Board of India SEBI is examining a recent crash in shares of Adani Group a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Wednesday The source said SEBI is also looking into any possible price manipulation of Adani Group stocks as well as examining possible irregularities in the USD 25 billion share sale of the flagship firm Adani Enterprises which concluded on TuesdayWhile the share offeringrsquos book building process was covered only 337 on Monday it was fully subscribed on TuesdayScrutiny in AustraliaScrutiny of the conglomerate is stepping up with an Australian regulator saying on Wednesday it would review Hindenburgrsquos allegations to see if further enquiries were warrantedData also showed that foreign investors sold a net USD 15 billion worth of Indian equities after the Hindenburg reportthe biggest outflow over four consecutiveHeadaches for the Adani Group are expected to continue for some time SEBI which has been looking into deals by the conglomerate has said it will add Hindenburgrsquos report to its own preliminary investigationThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever