NSE Asks Adani Enterprises For Clarity On The Status Of Pledged Shares

The stock exchange has requested clarification from Adani Group’s flagship entity, Adani Enterprises Ltd, in response to a story that raised concerns about whether the empire had truly repaid $2.15 billion in debts.

Shares of Adani Green Energy, Adani Power, and Adani Wilmar all fell by 5% on a daily basis.

ACC fell 4.8% to its lowest since February 2021, while Ambuja Cement fell 4.2%.

“Despite the Adani Group’s claim of “complete” repayment of $2.15 billion in share-backed debt, regulatory filings show that banks have not released a significant portion of the promoters’ shares held as collateral, indicating that the debt has not been fully paid off,” the Ken report said.

According to the report, the company only reduced the loan amount through partial repayment to prevent pledging more shares and further action by lenders. It also stated that following the group’s prepayment statement, banks have only released Adani Ports’ pledged shares.

Furthermore, it claimed that the bank had not released the pledged shares of Adani Green Energy and Adani Transmission even a month after the loan repayment declaration. “This is extremely unusual because pledged shares are usually released immediately after the borrower settles their debts,” according to the report.

“The Ken report increases the risks,” said Sameer Kalra, founder of Target Investing. “The global banking crisis has resulted in a tightening of liquidity and an increase in the cost of borrowing”, Kalra noted.