Hindenburg Research is a US investment research firm specialising in activist short-selling. It was founded by Nathan Anderson in 2017. In the past years, Hidenburg has been actively unfolding the activities that have received global headlines due to the unfolding of scams or investment fraud against Adani Group, one of the conglomerate in India.
Adani-Hidenburg Row: A Brief History
Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of fraud and stock price manipulation in January 2023, leading to a market cap erosion of Rs 96,672 crore across 10 counters. The Adani Group is evaluating legal action under US and Indian laws for remedial and punitive action.
Market regulator SEBI is investigating Adani Group's links to investors in the aborted $2.5 billion share sale. The Supreme Court has granted SEBI time until August 14 to submit its report on the investigation. In January 2024, the Supreme Court granted three months to SEBI to complete its probe into Hindenburg Research allegations against the Adani Group.
Recent Turn Of Events
Madhabi Puri Buch, Chairperson of SEBI and her husband, Dhaval Buch, clarified that the investments were made in 2015, prior to her role as a full-time member of SEBI in 2017 and later as chairperson in March 2022. Upon her appointment in SEBI, these funds became inactive. Hindenburg argued that this is a significant conflict of interest. Buch's statement mentioned that her two consulting firms, including the Indian and opaque Singaporean entities, became inactive as soon as she joined SEBI in 2017, and her husband began managing them in 2019. Hindenburg stated that Madhabi Buch still owns 99 percent of Agora Advisory Limited (India), not her spouse, and that this organisation is currently engaged and producing income from consulting services.
Need For Investigative Journalism
In an ongoing investigative process, reaching a solution involves a thorough examination of documents, accusations, statements, and allegations. This is necessary to determine whether the reports are fabricated or warrant legal action. As the fourth pillar of democracy, the media holds the power to expose the truth. Throughout history, investigative journalism has played a crucial role in uncovering critical evidence in cases requiring journalistic investigation. By gathering primary data and publicly reporting it, the media can help facilitate the delivery of justice.
