Until very recently, Gautam Adani was the wealthiest man in Asia. At one point in 2022, he was the second richest man in the world, ahead of Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates. Adani’s rise came on the back of staggering growth in the value of the stocks of his conglomerate, the Adani group.
All that has changed dramatically in the last few weeks since Hinderburg Research, a US-based short seller, released a report that alleged fraud and stock price manipulation. The Adani Group’s stocks have witnessed a massive sell-off that has wiped USD 100 billion from the market capitalisation of the companies.
To examine some of the allegations, I spoke to M. Rajshekhar, a senior journalist and author of a fabulous book about India’s political economy, Despite The State. We also talked about the structure of the Adani Group, its various business interests, and what this might mean for India’s economy.
Interview: Decoding the Adani Saga