Adani Group not looking to refinance debt, says chief financial officer
The statement came over a month after US-based firm Hindenburg Research alleged that the group amassed substantial debt by pledging overvalued shares.
The Adani Group is not looking to refinance its debts or inject any capital, the conglomerate’s Chief Financial Officer Jugeshinder Singh said on Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.
Singh made the statement on the sidelines of an investor roadshow in Hong Kong, over a month after a report by United States-based firm Hindenburg Research accused the Adani Group of “brazen stock manipulation and accounting fraud”.
Debt refinancing happens when an existing debt is replaced with new debt that comes with more favourable conditions. A refinanced loan lowers the interest paid over the life of the loan as well as potentially restructures the payment schedule.
Last week, the combined value of the Adani Group’s companies fell below the $100 billion mark in the wake of Hindenburg Research’s allegations that the group amassed substantial debt by pledging overvalued shares. In a major fallout of the report, the conglomerate’s flagship company Adani Enterprises was also forced to call off its Rs 20,000 crore follow-on public offering that was meant to repay debt.
Following the rout in the Adani Group’s shares, the Supreme Court last month suggested forming a committee to review and strengthen regulatory mechanisms in order to protect investors.
Meanwhile, Gautam Adani chairperson of Adani Group, also lost the title of Asia’s richest person to his rival industrialist Mukesh Ambani, the chairperson of Reliance Industries, reported Forbes. On February 1, Adani slipped to the 15th spot on Forbes’ list of the world’s wealthiest persons, with an estimated wealth of $75.1 billion. On March 1, the industrialist was on the 34th position on the list with his net worth coming down to $35.1 billion.