BackMore trouble for Gautam Adani? Deloitte may resign as Adani Ports' auditor, says report
Deloitte is reportedly looking to resign as the auditor of Adani Ports, following concerns raised over transactions between Adani Ports and three entities.
PremiumThe crisis wrought by US short seller Hindenburg's explosive report against the Adani Group appears to be continuing till date. US-based accounting giant Deloitte is reportedly mulling an exit from Adani Ports in the coming days. The development mere weeks after the Indian unit of the firm raised concerns over transactions between Adani Ports and three ‘unrelated parties’.
According to a Bloomberg report quoting people in the know, Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP has already communicated its resignation plans to Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd. It had flagged transactions between Adani Ports and three other entities in May following the short-seller report. The auditor had said at the time that it couldn’t verify Adani’s claims and couldn’t determine if the business was fully compliant with local laws.
While the reports remain unverified at the moment, a a formal announcement is expected in coming days. The publication however noted that Deloitte and Adani Ports had not responded to requests for comments.
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Meanwhile a Reuters report quoting a source said that Deloitte had asked Adani Ports to conduct an independent inquiry on related party transactions flagged by Hindenburg. The resignation reportedly came after the company did not agree.
Adani Group-linked stocks have lost nearly $150 billion in market value earlier this year after US short-seller Hindenburg Research raised questions about its corporate governance. It has since regained some lost ground after it paid its debt and gained investor confidence.
The Group had denied all allegations, dubbing it a "malicious attempt" at damaging its reputation. In May, a Supreme Court panel said it was "not possible" to conclude regulatory failure on allegation of price manipulation.
(With inputs from agencies)
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