One of the World’s Richest People, Gautam Adani, Indicted on Fraud Charges in the US

Billionaire Gautam Adani has been charged by U.S. federal prosecutors with defrauding investors and orchestrating a covert scheme to bribe officials in India, authorities said Wednesday.

Who Is Gautam Adani?

Adani, ranked among the world’s wealthiest individuals, built his fortune in the coal business in the 1990s in India and has since been a power player in the world’s most populous nation.

According to Forbes, Adani is worth $69.8 billion, which makes him the world’s 22nd richest person.

According to an indictment unsealed on Wednesday, the 62-year-old billionaire and head of the Adani Group conglomerate is charged with securities fraud and conspiring to commit securities and wire fraud.

He is accused of defrauding investors to secure lucrative contracts for a solar energy project in India.

U.S. prosecutors claim Adani and his associates, his nephew Sagar Adani and Vneet Jaain, who are executives of Adani Green Energy Limited, funneled over $250 million in bribes to Indian officials, deceiving investors who contributed billions of dollars to the initiative.

Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa Miller stated that Adani’s actions aimed to “obtain and finance massive state energy supply contracts through corruption and fraud at the expense of U.S. investors.”

While online court records did not list lawyers for Adani, an email message seeking comment was left with an arm of his company, the Adani Group, according to The Associated Press (AP.)

Adani has yet to respond to the allegations, but the case has sent shockwaves through international financial markets and heightened scrutiny over corporate governance in one of the world’s fastest-growing economies.

What Is Adani Group?

Adani’s wealth is mainly concentrated in the Adani Group, an organization that’s involved in a number of business areas including integrated coal management, mining and services, solar manufacturing, shipping, ports, media and green energy. The company was founded by Adani in 1988 and is headquartered in Ahmedabad, India.

In 2024, the company has made $12.7 billion in revenue with $391.4 million in profits and $19.3 billion in assets, according to Forbes.

The allegations add another layer of controversy to Adani’s expansive empire, as the Adani Group has previously faced criticism. Last year, a U.S. financial research firm accused the company of stock manipulation and accounting fraud, charges that Adani’s team dismissed as “stale, baseless and discredited.”

Despite this, the Adani Group has pushed forward with its slogan, “Growth with Goodness,” reflecting its ambitious pivot toward renewable energy.

This article includes reporting from The Associated Press.