Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani during the opening ceremony of Navi Mumbai International Airport in Navi Mumbai, India, Wednesday, October 8, 2025.
Indranil Aditya | Bloomberg | Getty Images
shares of Adani Enterprises and adani green energy India’s civil suit against billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani eased early losses on Friday after U.S. regulators asked a court to approve a settlement.
Both stocks are still above their 52-week highs, according to LSEG data. Adani Enterprises shares are up about 24% this year, while Adani Green is up about 41%.
The Securities and Exchange Commission had alleged that the two misled investors as part of a bribery and fraud scheme related to solar power contracts in India. Under the settlement, Gautam Adani will pay a $6 million penalty and Sagar Adani will pay $12 million.
Indian renewable energy company Adani Green said in a filing with the Indian Stock Exchange that the pair had agreed to “enter final judgment without admitting or denying the allegations in the civil suit” and to pay the fine.
The company added that it was not part of these proceedings and “no charges have been filed.”
Shares in the group’s flagship Adani Enterprises rose 1.8%, while Adani Green, the company at the center of the bribery scandal, rose 0.6% after recovering from early losses on news of a settlement with the SEC.
The SEC’s civil case against Gautam, Sagar Adani, and other Azure Power Global executives centered on bribery charges related to solar energy contracts awarded by the Indian government.
According to multiple media reports, the US Department of Justice is also likely to drop criminal fraud charges against Adani.
In November 2024, a New York federal court indicted Gautam Adani and seven others on criminal charges related to an alleged bribery and fraud scheme.
Prosecutors alleged that the defendants paid more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, deceived investors and banks into raising billions of dollars, and obstructed justice, according to court documents.
Although the alleged acts at the center of the indictment occurred in India, the fundraisers took place in the United States, and the defendants were charged in federal court in Brooklyn.
Adani Group denied the US authorities’ claims as “baseless”.
The New York Times reported on Thursday that during a meeting at the Justice Department’s headquarters in Washington last month, Mr. Adani’s defense team, led by Robert J. Giuffra Jr., argued that the prosecution lacked “fundamental evidence.”
The Indian businessman had offered to invest $10 billion in the US economy and create 15,000 jobs, the report added.
Earlier this year, the SEC asked U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis in Brooklyn to allow it to serve a legal subpoena against Adani after India’s Justice Department twice refused to do so last year.
Fund relief?
Deven Choksey Research said in a report that the easing of legal uncertainty in the US could allow Adani Group to reopen international capital markets and accelerate its renewable energy and infrastructure expansion plans.
The group had net debt of nearly 2.78 trillion rupees ($29 billion) as of September last year, according to company data. Global banks and capital markets account for 41% of Adani Group’s total debt.
“High debt remains a structural warning,” the report said, adding that it is “well-managed” by 20% annual profit growth.
Gautam Adani, chairman of India’s Adani Group, oversees a vast business empire spanning ports, power and infrastructure. The conglomerate is made up of 11 listed companies, many of which are held by the Adani family with a majority stake.
The group has also come under intense scrutiny since a 2023 report accusing short seller Hindenburg Research of accounting fraud and stock price manipulation. Adani Group has repeatedly denied the allegations.
