Indian billionaire Gautam Adani, chair of the Adani Group and one of the world’s wealthiest individuals, has been indicted in New York on charges of bribery and fraud.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn alleges that Adani and two other executives conspired to pay US$250 million (A$384.2 million) in bribes to Indian government officials between 2020 and 2024. The payments reportedly secured solar energy contracts projected to yield $2 billion in profits over 20 years.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also brought charges, describing the allegations as part of a “massive bribery scheme”.
Prosecutors claim that Adani and his associates misled investors while raising billions to finance the contracts.
Breon Peace, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, stated, “The defendants orchestrated an elaborate scheme to bribe India’s officials to secure contracts, and lied about the scheme while raising funds.”
Lisa Miller, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, added, “This indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions of dollars, and to obstruct justice.”
The charges come amid broader scrutiny of Adani Group. In 2023, Hindenburg Research accused the conglomerate of “brazen stock manipulation”, “accounting fraud”, and “money laundering”.
Adani dismissed those allegations as a “malicious” mix of “selective misinformation and stale, baseless and discredited allegations”.
Prosecutors also allege Adani personally met with Indian officials to advance the bribery scheme. Co-defendant Sagar R. Adani reportedly tracked “specific details of the bribes offered and promised to government officials” on his phone.
Executives are said to have frequently discussed the scheme using a messaging app.
Gautam Adani, ranked the 18th richest person globally by Bloomberg, has a net worth of approximately $85 billion (A$130.64 billion).
The Adani Group has yet to comment on the charges.