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Share debacle a rare setback for Indian tycoon Adani


Indian billionaire Gautam Adani grinned as he posed this week for photos with Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu after acquiring one of the country’s main ports, in Haifa.

“I promise you that in the years to come, we will transform the skyline we see around us,” said Adani, his manner upbeat even as his business empire was losing billions.

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Investors have been dumping Adani shares for more than a week after US short-selling firm Hindenburg Research put out a report alleging his businesses have engaged in fraud and stock price manipulation. The Adani group has denied this.

Before the debacle, Adani, 60, was Asia’s richest man and the third wealthiest in the world, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index. Not anymore.

The massive losses are a rare setback for the coal mining tycoon from western India’s Gujarat state and raise questions about what lies ahead.

Expansion has been at the heart of Adani’s success story. The son of a middle-class family in the Gujarat capital, Ahmedabad, he quit college to become a diamond trader in the country’s financial capital, Mumbai. He returned home to join his brother in importing plastics before establishing Adani Enterprises in the 1980s, trading in everything from shoes to buckets.

Adani shifted to investing in ports, construction and coal mining as India opened up its economy in the 1990s. A new middle class emerged and the ambitious businessman placed bets on providing energy to serve them.

Adani’s first big project, Mundra Port, is now India’s largest commercial port and he is the country’s biggest private port operator. Within a decade, he also became India’s largest developer and operator of coal mines.

Today, Adani companies also operate airports in major cities, build roads, generate electricity, manufacture defense equipment, develop agricultural drones, sell cooking oil and run a media outlet. He has his eyes set on becoming the world’s largest renewable energy player by 2030.

Citing market volatility, late Wednesday his flagship Adani Enterprises scrapped a $2.5 billion share offering that, despite the bloodletting in the group’s shares and a 28 percent plunge that day in its own share price, had been oversubscribed.

In a video address Thursday, Adani said the share offering was canceled to “insulate investors from potential losses.”

“For me, the interest of my investors is paramount and everything else is secondary,” he said.

The share offering was seen as a test of investor confidence in the self-made industrialist, whose ascent has been celebrated as a symbol of India’s economic ambitions. The Adani Group said in a statement that canceling the offering would not “have any impact on our existing operations and future plans.”

The Adani Group said its balance sheet was “very healthy” and its history of servicing debt was “impeccable.”

Still, Brian Freitas, a New Zealand-based analyst with Periscope Analytics who has researched the Adani Group, said the collapse in share prices for India’s second-largest conglomerate may hinder its future plans for expansion.

“It’s going to be difficult for them to raise new money,” he said.

Adani shares are still losing value. Shares in Adani Enterprises tumbled 27 percent Thursday, while stock in six other Adani companies fell 5 percent-10 percent.

The tycoon, who favors a plain white shirt and dark trousers over fancy dress and is said to be affable and quiet spoken, slid from being the world’s third richest man to the 13th as his fortune sank to $72 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. Prior to the Hindenburg report, his net worth was about $120 billion.

More vitally, the company is now without the funds it had hoped to raise in this week’s offering. Companies often launch such share offerings to finance growth while reducing debt.

“Thanks to the short-seller, Adani’s plans will get slowed down significantly,” said R.N. Bhaskar, a journalist who wrote a biography on Adani.

Analysts say that rapid expansion has largely been fueled by borrowing. The group’s debt stands at $30 billion, out of which $9 billion is from Indian banks, the group’s chief financial officer said recently.

After the stock rout of the past week, lenders may deem his group high risk and toughen their criteria for borrowing, like demanding higher interest rates or more collateral, said Freitas.

“Equity investors are going to be wary because the stock isn’t doing well — if they can’t raise equity, they will have to go to the debt market,” he added. “Given the situation, foreign lenders will think twice before lending any new money to Adani.”

Despite Adani’s longstanding ties with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a fellow Gujarati, and other powerful politicians, the government has so far remained silent on his recent troubles even as pressure from the political opposition for an investigation into Adani’s situation grows.

In recent years, Adani has pumped money into sectors like agriculture, defense and renewable energy — all seen as high priorities for the Indian government.

Like Adani’s commitment to the port in Israel’s Haifa, many of the group’s overseas infrastructure projects, in countries such as Sri Lanka and Tanzania, have served as an Indian counterweight to rival China’s holdings.

The Haifa deal was a coup for India, located close to another port managed by the Shanghai International Port Group.

“India is working with great fervor with Israel on defense and technology, and Adani now has a port there. You think the Indian government can sniff at that?” said Bhaskar. “The thing is, you can’t wish away Adani — because he is indispensable at this point.”

He expects Adani to remain undaunted.

“The more challenging a situation gets, the more defiant and creative he becomes to overcome it,” Bhaskar said.

Read more:

Adani group losses snowball to $100 bln on shelved share sale, market turmoil

Indian magnate Adani says to keep investing in Israel after Haifa port takeover

Adani Group calls Hindenburg fraud claim a ‘calculated attack on India’

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Abu Dhabi Overtakes Oslo for Sovereign Wealth Fund Capital in Global SWF’s First City Ranking

Today, industry specialist Global SWF published a special report announcing a new global ranking of cities according to the capital managed by their Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWFs). The findings show that Abu Dhabi is the leading city that manages the most SWF capital globally, thanks to the US$ 1.7 trillion in assets managed by its various SWFs headquartered in the capital of the UAE. These include the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Mubadala Investment Company (MIC), Abu Dhabi Developmental
Holding Company (ADQ), and the Emirates Investment Authority (EIA). Abu Dhabi now ranks slightly above Oslo, home to the world’s largest SWF, the Government Pension Fund (GPF), which manages over US$ 1.6 trillion in assets. Abu Dhabi and Oslo are followed by Beijing (headquarters of the China Investment Corporation), Singapore (with GIC Private and Temasek Holdings), Riyadh (home to the
Public Investment Fund), and Hong Kong (where China’s second SWF, SAFE
Investment Corporation, operates from). Together, these six cities represent two thirds
of the capital managed by SWFs globally, i.e., US$ 12.5 trillion as of October 1, 2024.
For the past few decades, Abu Dhabi has grown an impressive portfolio of institutional
investors, which are among the world’s largest and most active dealmakers. In addition
to its SWFs, the emirate is home to several other asset owners, including central banks,
pension funds, and family offices linked to member of the Royal Family. Altogether, Abu
Dhabi’s public capital is estimated at US$ 2.3 trillion and is projected to reach US$ 3.4
trillion by 2030, according to Global SWF estimates.
Abu Dhabi, often referred to as the “Capital of Capital,” also leads when it comes to
human capital i.e., the number of personnel employed by SWFs of that jurisdiction, with
3,107 staff working for funds based in the city.
Diego López, Founder and Managing Director of Global SWF, said: “The world ranking
confirms the concentration of Sovereign Wealth Funds in a select number of cities,
underscoring the significance of these financial hubs on the global stage. This report
offers valuable insights into the landscape of SWF-managed capital and shows how it is
shifting and expanding in certain cities in the world.”

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AM Best Briefing in Dubai to Explore State of MENA Insurance Markets; Panel to Feature CEOs From Leading UAE Insurance Companies

AM Best will host a briefing focused on the insurance markets of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) on 20 November 2024, at Kempinski Central Avenue in Dubai.
At this annual regional market event, senior AM Best analysts and leading executives
from the (re)insurance industry will discuss recent developments in the MENA region’s
markets and anticipate their implications in the short-to-medium term. Included in the
programme will be a panel of chief executive officers at key insurance companies in the
United Arab Emirates: Abdellatif Abuqurah of Dubai Insurance; Jason Light of Emirates
Insurance; Charalampos Mylonas (Haris) of Abu Dhabi National Insurance Company
(ADNIC); and Dr. Ali Abdul Zahra of National General Insurance (NGI).
Shivash Bhagaloo, managing partner of Lux Actuaries & Consultants, will his present
his observations in an additional session regarding implementation of IFRS 17 in the
region. The event also will highlight the state of the global and MENA region
reinsurance sectors, as well as a talk on insurance ramifications stemming from the
major United Arab Emirates floods of April 2024. The programme will be followed by a
networking lunch.
Registration for the market briefing, which will take place in the Diamond Ballroom at the
Kempinski hotel, begins at 9:00 a.m. GST with introductory comments at 9:30 a.m.
Please visit www.ambest.com/conference/IMBMENA2024 for more information or to
register.
AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics
provider specialising in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United
States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in
London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City.

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Future of Automotive Mobility 2024: UAE Leads the Charge in Embracing Digital Car Purchases and Alternative Drivetrains

-UAE scores show highest percentage among the region in willingness to purchase a car
completely online
– Openness to fully autonomous cars has grown to 60% vs previous 32%.
– More than half of UAE respondents in the survey intend to move to hybrid cars during
next car purchase, while less than 15% intend to move to fully electric car.
– UAE sees strong use of new mobility services such as ride-hailing (Uber, Careem, Hala
Taxi)
– The perceived future importance of having a car is not only increasing in UAE but is
higher than any other major region globally, even China

Arthur D. Little (ADL) has released the fourth edition of its influential Future of Automotive Mobility (FOAM) report, presenting a detailed analysis of current and future trends in the automotive industry. This year’s study, with insights from over 16,000 respondents across 25 countries, includes a comprehensive focus on the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The report examines car ownership, electric vehicles,
autonomous driving, and new mobility services within the UAE.

“The UAE is at the forefront of automotive innovation and consumer readiness for new mobility
solutions,” said Alan Martinovich, Partner and Head of Automotive Practice in the Middle East
and India at Arthur D. Little. “Our findings highlight the UAE’s significant interest in
transitioning to electric vehicles, favorable attitudes towards autonomous driving technologies,
and a strong inclination towards digital transactions in car purchases. These insights are critical
for automotive manufacturers and policymakers navigating the evolving landscape of the UAE
automotive market.”
Key Findings for the UAE:
1. Car Ownership:
o Over half of UAE respondents perceive that the importance of owning a car is
increasing, with the study showing the increase higher than any other major
region, including China.
o Approximately 80% of UAE respondents expressed interest in buying new (as
opposed to used) cars, above Europe and the USA which have mature used
vehicle markets

2. Shift to Electric and Hybrid Vehicles:
o While a high number of UAE respondents currently own internal combustion
engine (ICE) vehicles, more than half intend that their next vehicle have an
alternative powertrain, with significant interest in electric and plug-in hybrid
(PHEV) options. Less than 15% plan to opt for pure battery electric vehicles
(BEVs).

3. Emerging Mobility Trends:

o Ride-hailing services are the most popular new mobility option among UAE
residents, with higher usage rates than traditional car sharing and ride sharing.
The study indicates a strong openness to switching to alternative transport modes
given the quality and service levels available today.

4. Autonomous Vehicles:
o UAE consumers are among the most open globally to adopting autonomous
vehicles, with a significant increase in favorable attitudes from 32% in previous
years to 60% this year versus approximately 30% in mature markets. Safety
concerns, both human and machine-related, remain the primary obstacles to
broader adoption.

5. Car Purchasing Behavior and Sustainability:
o The internet has become a dominant channel for UAE residents throughout the car
buying process, from finding the right vehicle to arranging test drives and closing
deals. UAE car buyers visit dealerships an average of 3.9 times before making a
purchase, higher than any other region in the world, emphasizing the need for
efficient integration of online and offline experiences.
o Upwards of 53% of respondents from the region would prefer to ‘close the deal’
and complete the purchase of their car online, which is the highest for any region
in the world.
o Sustainability is a key factor cited by UAE consumers as influencing car choice.
The UAE scored among the top half of regions, highlighting the importance of
environmental considerations.

“Our study confirms the promising market opportunities for car manufacturers (OEMs) and
distributors in the UAE” commented Philipp Seidel, Principal at Arthur D. Little and co-Author
of the Global Study. “Consumers in the Emirates show a great and increasing appetite for cars
while being among the most demanding globally when it comes to latest vehicle technologies
and a seamless purchase and service experience.”
The comprehensive report, “The Future of Automotive Mobility 2024” by Richard Parkin and
Philipp Seidel, delves into global automotive trends and their impact on various regions,
including the UAE. This study is an invaluable tool for industry stakeholders seeking to navigate
and leverage the dynamic changes driving the future of mobility.

 

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