MUMBAI: Experienced investor Rajiv JainGQG Partners LLC has increased its stake in billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate by approximately 10% and will participate in the conglomerate’s future fundraising, doubling what it describes as “the best infrastructure assets available in India.”
“Within five years, based on family valuation, we want to be one of the largest investors in Adani Group,” Jain, GQG’s chief investment officer, said in an interview. “We would definitely want to be a partner in any new Adani Group offerings.”
Jain said the value of GQG’s Adani holdings is close to $3.5 billion. He gave no details on which companies he bought into or what portion of the investment value came from outright buys and rallies in Adani stock.
In March, GQG purchased nearly $2 billion in shares in four of Adani’s companies from a family trust. That initial investment in the struggling conglomerate bolstered the tycoon’s businesses after they were accused of “brazen” stock price manipulation and corporate fraud by New York short seller Hindenburg Research, causing the Adani Group to lose more than $150 billion in market value at one point.
The Indian-born investor, who works in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said he was unaffected by the short seller’s allegations, which Adani has repeatedly denied and which Jain said are natural in the Indian business context. “I haven’t found a perfect company in my 30-year investment career,” Jain told Bloomberg News earlier this year.
Jain has also justified his contrarian investment by citing the value of the Adani Group’s businesses, including coal mining and airport facilities, which are tied to India’s development goals. Prime Minister Narendra Modi – who is said to share a close friendship with Adani – is urging domestic companies to build critical infrastructure and lure manufacturing from places like China.
Market momentum appears to be in Jain’s favor for now, as shares in Adani Group surged after a preliminary report by a panel of experts submitted to India’s Supreme Court last week found no conclusive evidence of the conglomerate’s share price manipulation became.
Flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd rose as much as 19% on Tuesday, matching its three-day jump to 46%, while Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd rose 8%, erasing all Hindenburg-induced losses.
“Within five years, based on family valuation, we want to be one of the largest investors in Adani Group,” Jain, GQG’s chief investment officer, said in an interview. “We would definitely want to be a partner in any new Adani Group offerings.”
Jain said the value of GQG’s Adani holdings is close to $3.5 billion. He gave no details on which companies he bought into or what portion of the investment value came from outright buys and rallies in Adani stock.
In March, GQG purchased nearly $2 billion in shares in four of Adani’s companies from a family trust. That initial investment in the struggling conglomerate bolstered the tycoon’s businesses after they were accused of “brazen” stock price manipulation and corporate fraud by New York short seller Hindenburg Research, causing the Adani Group to lose more than $150 billion in market value at one point.
The Indian-born investor, who works in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, said he was unaffected by the short seller’s allegations, which Adani has repeatedly denied and which Jain said are natural in the Indian business context. “I haven’t found a perfect company in my 30-year investment career,” Jain told Bloomberg News earlier this year.
Jain has also justified his contrarian investment by citing the value of the Adani Group’s businesses, including coal mining and airport facilities, which are tied to India’s development goals. Prime Minister Narendra Modi – who is said to share a close friendship with Adani – is urging domestic companies to build critical infrastructure and lure manufacturing from places like China.
Market momentum appears to be in Jain’s favor for now, as shares in Adani Group surged after a preliminary report by a panel of experts submitted to India’s Supreme Court last week found no conclusive evidence of the conglomerate’s share price manipulation became.
Flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd rose as much as 19% on Tuesday, matching its three-day jump to 46%, while Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd rose 8%, erasing all Hindenburg-induced losses.
