Gautam Adani Indicted in U.S. on Bribery and Fraud Charges
Gautam Adani, chairman of India’s Adani Group and one of the world's wealthiest individuals, was indicted alongside several others in a New York federal court on Wednesday. The charges stem from allegations of a massive bribery and fraud scheme involving Indian government officials and international investors.
According to the indictment, Adani and his co-defendants allegedly paid over $250 million in bribes to Indian officials to secure solar energy contracts, generating more than $2 billion in profits. The 62-year-old billionaire, along with two executives from Adani Green Energy Limited—his nephew Sagar Adani and Vneet Jaain—is accused of misleading investors about the company’s compliance with anti-bribery and anti-corruption policies while raising over $3 billion in capital for these contracts.
The charges against Gautam and Sagar Adani, Jaain, and others include securities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, and securities fraud.
Other Individuals Named in the Case
The five-count indictment also implicates:
- Ranjit Gupta and Rupesh Agarwal, former executives of the renewable energy firm Azure Power Global.
- Three former employees of Canada’s Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec (CDPQ): Cyril Cabanes, Saurabh Agarwal, and Deepak Malhotra.
These individuals are accused of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and obstruct investigations by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
SEC Actions
The SEC has filed civil complaints against Gautam and Sagar Adani, as well as Cyril Cabanes, alleging they orchestrated bribes to Indian officials to win government contracts. The agency claims Adani Green raised $175 million from U.S. investors, while Azure’s stock was publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
The SEC described the scheme as one where Adani and his associates secured agreements to sell energy at inflated, above-market rates, enriching Adani Green and Azure Power.
Background
Adani’s indictment comes after a turbulent 2023, when his net worth plummeted following allegations by Hindenburg Research. The short-seller accused the Adani Group of decades-long stock manipulation and accounting fraud, calling it "the largest con in corporate history." Adani denied the claims, issuing a 413-page rebuttal and dismissing them as baseless.
Currently ranked as Asia’s second-richest individual, Gautam Adani’s fortune stands at approximately $85 billion, though his reputation faces mounting challenges amid these new allegations.
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