Adani Group hires top US law firm Wachtell in battle against Hindenburg

NEW DELHI: Adani Group has hired one of US legal powerhouses, Wachtell, as billionaire Gautam Adani fights the allegations leveled against the conglomerate by short-seller Hindenburg Research, Financial Times reported.

According to the British daily news report, the Adani Group has tapped senior lawyers at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz to advise it on how to deal with the crisis facing the conglomerate. The New York-based legal firm specializes in corporate law, regularly handling large and complex transactions.

Over the past week, share prices of companies in the Adani Group have dropped significantly, following the report, which alleged stock manipulation and fraud by the conglomerate.

The Adani Group has attacked Hindenburg as “an unethical short seller” and stated that the report by the New York-based entity was “nothing but a lie”.

The continued sell-offs in the group’s stocks have led its flagship firm, Adani Enterprises Limited, to cancel a fully subscribed Rs 20,000 crore follow-on public offer.

Adani Group on January 29, in a long 413-page report, said the recent report by Hindenburg Research was not an attack on any specific company but a “calculated attack” on India, its growth story, and ambitions.

“This is not merely an unwarranted attack on any specific company but a “calculated attack on India, the independence, integrity and quality of Indian institutions, and the growth story and ambition of India,” it said.

A short seller in the securities market books gains from the subsequent reduction in the prices of shares.