Hindenburg Effect: Now Standard Chartered bank stops accepting Adani Group bonds

Banks worldwide have reported a steady drop in the creditworthiness of Gautam Adani and his group companies. Major banks such as Citibank and Credit Suisse have already declined to accept Adani Group’s bonds as loan collateral. In a recent development, Standard Chartered Plc announced to a news outlet that it has also declined to use the bonds of Adani Group companies as collateral for margin loans. The spokesperson for Standard Chartered India declined to comment on this report.

This decision follows similar ones made by Citigroup Inc and Credit Suisse Group AG. Short seller Hindenburg, based in the US, has accused Adani Group of various financial frauds leading to international banks rejecting Adani Group’s bonds and securities. Adani Group has repeatedly denied these allegations made by the short seller. Bond holders of Adani Group firms are in preliminary talks with financial advisors and lawyers.

Following a drop in Adani Group’s shares, the company has abruptly cancelled its largest FPO. According to a report by Bloomberg News on Saturday, it has also delayed its plans to sell bonds worth 10 billion rupees ($122 million) through a retail offering. It is noteworthy that due to Adani and Hindenburg, Gautam Adani’s net worth has experienced a loss of over $50 billion, resulting in a total loss of more than $100 billion from Adani Group’s market cap. This report may cause a decline in the shares of Gautam Adani’s companies on Monday as well.