Hindenburg: India Market Regulator Chief Had Stake In Adani Offshore Funds

U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research has alleged that the head of India's market regulator, Madhabi Puri Buch, previously held investments in offshore funds also used by the Adani Group, Jayshree P. Upadhyay reported for Reuters.

Buch denied the report's allegations as baseless. I Photo: Institution: Securities and Exchange Board (India) Wikimedia Commons

Buch denied the report's allegations as baseless, saying she would issue a detailed statement later.

In a personal statement on Sunday, Buch said that all disclosure requirements had been followed diligently and that investments in the fund referred to in the Hindenburg report were made in 2015 in a private capacity, two years before she joined the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

"The Adani Group has absolutely no commercial relationship with the individuals or matters mentioned in this calculated, deliberate effort to malign our standing," a spokesperson for the conglomerate argued.

Hindenburg's report sparked fresh criticism from India's opposition political parties, which demanded a parliamentary investigation.

Citing whistleblower documents, Hindenburg said that Buch and her husband held stakes in an offshore fund where a substantial amount of money was invested by associates of Vinod Adani, brother of Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani.

The Adani Group on Sunday rejected the allegations and said its overseas holding structure was fully transparent.

The conglomerate's spokesperson described the Hindenburg allegations as "no more than red herrings thrown by a desperate entity with total contempt for Indian laws."