Adani slashes growth targets amid rout sparked by Hindenburg – Bloomberg News

Feb 13 (Reuters) – India’s Adani Group has halved its revenue growth target and plans to scale down fresh capital expenditure, Bloomberg News reported on Sunday.

Listed companies controlled by billionaire Gautam Adani have lost more than $100 billion in market value since Jan. 24, when U.S. short-seller Hindenburg Research accused the conglomerate of stock manipulation and improper use of offshore tax havens.

The group has rejected the allegations and denied any wrongdoing.

The Adani Group will now shoot for revenue growth of 15% to 20% for at least the next financial year, down from the original target of 40%, Bloomberg News said citing people familiar with the matter.

Holding back on investments for even as little as three months could save the conglomerate as much as $3 billion, the report said, adding that the plans are still imminent.

A spokesperson for the Adani Group said the report was “baseless, speculative”, without elaborating further.

The group has also been a part of India’s market regulator’s investigation into its links to some of the investors in its scrapped $2.5 billion share sale.

Earlier this month, India’s ministry of corporate affairs started a preliminary review of the group’s financial statements and other regulatory submissions made over the years, Reuters reported, citing two senior government officials.

Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing by Kim Coghill and Savio D’Souza

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