US-based short seller Hindenburg Research in its fresh report on Saturday alleged that Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) chairperson Madhabi Buch and her husband had stake in obscure offshore entities used in Adani scandal.
The new allegation came around 18 months after the Hindenburg claimed that the Adani Group had orchestrated the "largest con in corporate history", leading to a massive plunge in the conglomerate's market valuation.
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“Eighteen months after its damning report on Adani, SEBI has shown a surprising lack of interest in Adani's alleged undisclosed web of Mauritius and offshore shell entities,” it claimed in its new report.
"We had previously noted Adani’s total confidence in continuing to operate without the risk of serious regulatory intervention, suggesting that this may be explained through Adani’s relationship with SEBI Chairperson, Madhabi Buch,” the Hindenburg said, adding that it had not realised that the SEBI chaiperson and her husband Dhaval Buch had hidden stakes in the exact same obscure offshore Bermuda and Mauritius funds.
The whistle-blower further stated that a declaration of funds, signed by a principal at IIFL states that the source of the investment is 'salary' and the couple's net worth is estimated at USD 10 million.
Image source: Hindenburg report
It claimed during Madhabi Buch’s tenure as a whole time member at SEBI, her husband was appointed as a senior advisor to Blackstone in 2019. “He had not worked for a Fund, in real estate or capital market before, as per his LinkedIn profile,” it added.
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In January 2023, Hindenburg had accused the Adani Group of orchestrating a corporate scam by using a web of companies in tax havens to inflate its revenue and manipulate stock prices, even as debt piled up.
The conglomerate dismissed the allegations, but the group’s shares witnessed a free fall.
