New Hindenburg report claims SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch had stake in offshore funds linked to Adani scandal

"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 report claimed.

Seventeen and a half months after U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research raised allegations of malfeasance and stock price manipulation involving the Adani group, the firm claimed on Saturday that the chairperson of India’s stock market regulator, responsible for investigating these matters, had a stake in obscure offshore entities implicated in the ‘Adani money siphoning scandal’.

"What we hadn’t realized: the current Sebi Chairperson and her husband, Dhaval Buch, had hidden stakes in the exact same obscure offshore Bermuda and Mauritius funds, found in the same complex nested structure, used by Vinod Adani," it alleged.

"Madhabi Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch first appear to have opened their account with IPE Plus Fund 1 on June 5th, 2015 in Singapore, per whistleblower documents. 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 $10 million," the report stated further.

The Opposition swiftly picked up the Hindenburg report with Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra taking a swipe at SEBI.

"This is both Conflict and Capture of SEBI. Chairperson of SEBI is an opaque investor in Adani Group. Samdhi Cyril Shroff is on Corporate Governance Committee. No wonder all complaints to SEBI fall on deaf ears," Moitra posted on X.

Even Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi reacted to the report. "Now we know why our letters went unanswered and unacknowledged," she said.

The recent claims by the US short-seller comes hours after it hinted at another revelation involving an Indian company. "Something big soon India," it had posted on X.

In January 2023, Hindenburg Research made serious accusations against billionaire Gautam Adani's extensive ports-to-power conglomerate, alleging stock market manipulation and financial misconduct.

However, Gautam Adani has repeatedly and categorically denied all allegations made by the short-selling firm.

What is Short Selling and who is Hindenburg Research?

According to Investopedia, short selling is a trading strategy where investors speculate on a stock's decline. A short seller (read Hindenburg) bets on, and profits from a drop in a security’s price. Traders use short selling as speculation, and investors or portfolio managers may use it as a hedge against the downside risk of a long position.

Founded by Nate Anderson, US-based Hindenburg Research LLC specializes in forensic financial research.

Wikipedia mentions Hindenburg as an investment research firm with a focus on activist short-selling. Named after the 1937 Hindenburg disaster, which they characterize as a human-made avoidable disaster, the firm generates public reports via its website that allege corporate fraud and malfeasance.

According to an explainer by Vox.com, Anderson, Hindenburg founder, is a short seller, meaning he stands to make money if the price of Adani Group company shares and bonds fall. He makes those prices fall with the report, it said.