What Gautam Adani told shareholders after SEBI cleared Adani Group

Billionaire Gautam Adani on Wednesday declared a “powerful validation” of the Adani Group’s governance standards after market regulator SEBI cleared the conglomerate of stock manipulation and disclosure violations alleged by US short-seller Hindenburg Research.

In a letter to shareholders dated September 24, Adani said the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) decision last week to dismiss all allegations was “more than a regulatory clearance” and instead marked a defining moment for Indian enterprise.

“Truth alone will prevail,” Adani said, invoking the Sanskrit phrase ‘Satyameva Jayate’ and vowing to “further strengthen governance standards that inspire confidence across markets and regulators.”

SEBI, in two detailed orders, said it found no evidence of insider trading, market manipulation or violations of related-party transaction rules after investigating fund transfers between Adani-linked entities Adicorp Enterprises, Milestone Tradelinks and Rehvar Infrastructure from 2018 to 2023.

The regulator said the transactions were loans that had been repaid with interest and did not meet the legal definition of related-party deals during the period in question.

The clean chit follows a January 2023 report by now-defunct Hindenburg Research, which accused the ports-to-power conglomerate of using opaque offshore structures to inflate stock prices and conceal debt.

The report triggered a dramatic selloff in Adani Group shares and, at one point, wiped more than $150 billion off the group’s market value, sparking months of regulatory scrutiny in India and abroad.

A Supreme Court-appointed panel earlier this year similarly found no prima facie evidence of wrongdoing.

In January, the court said no further investigation was required after SEBI closed its probe.

Adani, in his letter, acknowledged the turmoil the episode caused for investors and partners but highlighted what he described as the group’s “resilience in adversity.”

He detailed a surge in financial performance over the two years since the Hindenburg report, with portfolio EBITDA rising 57% to ₹89,806 crore in fiscal 2025 and the company’s gross block expanding 48% to ₹6,09,133 crore.

The chairman also pointed to major project milestones, including commissioning India’s first container transhipment port at Vizhinjam, adding 6 gigawatts of renewable capacity anchored by the world’s largest single-location project at Khavda, and opening the world’s biggest copper smelter and metallurgical complex.

“What was meant to weaken us has instead strengthened the very core of our foundations,” Adani wrote. “This moment is…a powerful validation of the transparency, governance and purpose with which your company has always operated.”

While the Sebi clean chit is a big boost for the Adani Group, the ports-to-energy conglomerate is not yet clear of all charges. The group chairman and key aides were charged by the US Department of Justice last year in a $265-million bribery scheme.

Shares of Adani Enterprises Ltd, the group’s flagship, have recovered most of their post-Hindenburg losses, though they remain below their 2022 peaks.