In a bid to shore up investors’ confidence for Adani Group, Indian billionaire Gautnam Adani said all share-backed loans in the company have been paid back.
According to Bloomberg, Adani Group has repaid a $500 million bridge loan that was due Thursday. Adani’s efforts to rebuild investor confidence comes as the group seeks to allay concerns about its debt by pre-paying loans, in the aftermath of a scathing U.S. short-seller report.
The company’s senior also executives told investors at a meeting in London that the billionaire and his family have prepaid all borrowings backed by his conglomerate’s shares.
More details: The company announced earlier this week that the founders had paid off $902 million in borrowings secured by shares after making a similar prepayment of $1.1 billion in February. The payments were “consistent with promoters’ commitment to prepay all share-backed financing before 31 March 2023,” it was stated at the time.
The backstory: The shares of Adani Group’s seven listed companies have seen around $127 billion wiped out from their market valuation after Hindenburg Research’s report alleged stock manipulation, improper use of tax havens, and flagged “substantial” debt levels.
The conglomerate has repeatedly denied the allegations. But investors had many questions following the release of the Hindenburg report, especially regarding a plan for refinancing the $750 million Adani Green bond due in 2024 and how the parent company will reduce debt. A recent share sale by the Adani family trust to the US investment company GQG Partners for 154.5 billion rupees ($1.87 billion) fueled a rise in stock prices.
