• Adani Group, led by Gautam Adani, faces a $30 billion market value loss following U.S. bribery charges.
• The defendants allegedly paid $265 million in bribes to secure contracts for India's largest solar power project.
• The indictment implicates two former CEOs of Azure Power and three former executives of CDPQ, a Canadian pension fund.
• The case is being closely monitored for its potential impact on U.S.-India business relations.

Adani group's 10 listed stocks had a total market capitalisation of about $141 billion Thursday, compared to $169.08 billion on Tuesday.

Gautam Adani, along with seven other defendants including his nephew Sagar Adani, have been implicated in an alleged bribery and fraud scheme. This has led to a sharp decline in the shares of Adani Group companies, with Adani Enterprises falling by 10% and other companies such as Adani Ports, Adani Total Gas, Adani Green, Adani Power, Adani Wilmar, and Adani Energy Solutions experiencing a drop between9% and 20%.

US Indictment and Market Impact

The U.S. authorities have alleged that the defendants agreed to pay approximately $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials to secure contracts expected to yield $2 billion of profit over 20 years. These contracts were part of a plan to develop India's largest solar power plant project. The U.S. Justice Department has issued a criminal indictment against Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani, and Adani Green board member Vneet Jaain. In response to these developments, Adani Green's units have decided not to proceed with the proposed U.S.-dollar denominated bond offerings.

This indictment comes nearly two years after U.S. shortseller Hindenburg Research accused Adani of improperly using tax havens and being involved in stock manipulation. These allegations were vehemently denied by the conglomerate. However, the recent charges have led to a slump in Adani dollar bonds, marking the largest fall since the Adani Group came under a short-seller attack in February 2023.

Charges and Global Repercussions

The charges were announced by United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Criminal Division Lisa H Miller, and Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI) James E Dennehy.

They stated that the defendants orchestrated an elaborate scheme to bribe Indian government officials to secure contracts worth billions of dollars. The defendants also allegedly lied about the bribery scheme as they sought to raise capital from U.S. and international investors.

The indictment has also implicated two former CEOs of Azure Power and three former executives of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a Canadian pension fund managing $450 billion in assets. Adani Green Energy, one of the 10 listed companies of the Adani Group, went public in 2017 and has a market capitalization of nearly ₹2.24 trillion.

Azure Power, founded in 2008 by Indian-American renewable energy entrepreneur Inderpreet Wadhwa, became the first homegrown energy company to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange in October 2016.

The case against Gautam Adani is being closely monitored for its potential impact on U.S.-India business relations. Legal representatives for the accused have not issued public statements, and requests for comment from the Adani Group have gone unanswered. The charges have also led to calls for a parliamentary inquiry into Adani's activities.