Since last week, investors have lost over $100 billion of market value in the Adani group after US short seller Hindenburg Research accused the company of using tax havens and flagged debt concerns in a report.
Foreign institutional investors have been reducing their stakes in Group firms since well before the recent selloff started.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have reduced their stakes in Adani Enterprises for seven consecutive quarters, from 20.51 percent in the March 2021 quarter to 15.39 percent in the three months ended December 2022. Similarly, FIIs pared their stake in Adani Green Energy for eight consecutive quarters, from 22.78 percent in the third quarter of 2020 to 15.14 percent.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone and Adani Power saw a decline in FII stakes for the second consecutive quarter. Adani Total Gas and Adani Transmission saw a reduction in FII stakes for five consecutive quarters, to 17.25 percent and 19.32 percent in Q3 2022 from 18.89 percent and 21.05 percent in Q2 2021, respectively. The FII stake in newly listed Adani Wilmar also fell for the second consecutive quarter.
The names of Apms Investment Fund and LTS Investment Fund are missing from the key shareholders’ list of Adani Enterprises and Adani Total Gas, respectively, as per BSE shareholding data.
However, it is not clear whether Apms has sold its entire stake or its ownership has come down to less than 1 percent. Publicly listed companies only list the names of investors who own more than 1 percent.
According to the September quarter shareholding data, Apms Investment Fund and LTS Investment Fund held 14.29 million shares and 12.08 million shares, or 1.25 percent and 1.1 percent stake, in Adani Enterprises and Adani Total Gas, respectively.
Cresta Fund and Elara India Opportunities Fund Ltd have reduced their stake in Adani Transmission to 1.6 percent and 3.62 percent in the December quarter from 1.92 percent and 3.88 percent a quarter ago, respectively.
Since last week, investors have lost over $100 billion of market value in the Adani group after US short seller Hindenburg Research accused the company of using tax havens and flagged debt concerns in a report.
Following this selloff, Adani Enterprises has called off a Rs 20,000 crore follow-on public offering even as it got fully subscribed on the final day. The group said it will return the money to its investors amid the ongoing controversy. Recently, Citigroup and Credit Suisse have stopped accepting bonds of Adani companies as collateral for margin loans.
According to a Reuters report, the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is examining the recent crash in shares of Adani Group and looking into any possible irregularities in the share sale by its flagship company. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is looking into details of banks’ exposure to Adani group companies and has sought details on the present status of these loans.