4 Adani group companies settle public shareholding violations case with Sebi. Check details

Adani Enterprises, Adani Power, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone and Adani Energy Solutions, along with several directors including Gautam Adani and Rajesh Adani, have settled proceedings with markets regulator Sebi over alleged violations of minimum public shareholding norms.

The probe was part of the 24 investigations Sebi had undertaken after US-based short-seller Hindenburg alleged in 2023 that Adani group companies manipulated their stock prices through tax havens. Adani Group had denied the allegations.

The four companies and their directors paid a combined settlement amount of Rs 1.48 crore, according to a Sebi settlement order dated September 28. The proceedings have been settled without the applicants admitting or denying the facts and conclusions of law in the regulator’s show-cause notices.


Sebi had begun investigating certain Adani group companies in October 2020 after receiving complaints in June and July that year alleging non-compliance with minimum public shareholding, or MPS, requirements. The probe covered Adani Enterprises, Adani Power, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone and Adani Transmission, which is now known as Adani Energy Solutions.

Following the investigation, the market regulator issued a show-cause notice in September 2024 and a supplementary notice in March 2025. Sebi alleged that the four companies and persons responsible for their affairs failed to comply with the MPS requirements prescribed under securities laws and listing regulations.

Under Indian listing rules, listed companies are generally required to maintain a prescribed minimum level of public shareholding, intended to ensure adequate public float and prevent excessive concentration of ownership.

The settlement was divided equally across the four listed companies and the respective directors named in each case. Adani Enterprises, together with Gautam Adani, Rajesh Adani, Devang Desai, Vasant Adani, Ameet Desai, Pranav Vinod Adani and Vinay Prakash, also agreed to pay Rs 37.05 lakh.

With the payments completed, Sebi directed that proceedings arising from the September 2024 show-cause notice and March 2025 supplementary notice be disposed of. The regulator also said it would not initiate another enforcement action against the applicants for the violations alleged in those notices.

Disclosure: This article has been written by Podishetti Akash, who is not a SEBI-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Podishetti Akash and his ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective SEBI-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment. Brokerage disclosures here.