India’s Adani Group, run by Asia’s richest man, has hit again at a report from U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Analysis, calling it “malicious,” “baseless” and stuffed with “selective misinformation.”

Shares within the conglomerate have suffered large losses since Hindenburg issued its report alleging fraud and different malfeasance. In buying and selling Monday, the corporate’s Adani Enterprises gained 4.8% however shares in different Adani listed firms fell between 5% and 20%.

Adani’s 400-page rebuttal issued late Sunday accused Hindenburg of attacking India and its establishments and of breaking securities and international alternate legal guidelines. Adani has additionally accused Hindenburg, which stated it was betting towards the group’s firms, of making an attempt to derail a share sale initially anticipated to herald about $2.5 billion.

“This isn’t merely an unwarranted assault on any particular firm however a calculated assault on India, the independence, integrity and high quality of Indian establishments, and the expansion story and ambition of India,” Adani’s assertion stated.

Hindenburg denied the accusations and stated Adani’s response largely confirmed its findings and failed to handle key questions. It stated the group was making an attempt to conflate its rise with the success of India itself.

“We consider India is a vibrant democracy and rising superpower with an thrilling future. We additionally consider India’s future is being held again by the Adani Group,” Hindenburg stated in a press release. “We additionally consider that fraud is fraud, even when it is perpetrated by one of many wealthiest people on this planet.”

Gautam Adani and his household have constructed an unlimited fortune mining coal to gas energy-hungry India’s fast-growing financial system. Companies within the conglomerate embody infrastructure, ports, information transmission, media, renewable vitality, protection manufacturing and agriculture. Adani’s personal web price has skyrocketed practically 2,000% in recent times.

His web price reached practically $125 billion late final yr, surpassing Amazon boss Jeff Bezos to briefly make him the world’s second-richest man, in accordance with Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index. After final week’s losses, the Bloomberg index ranked him seventh richest on this planet with a fortune price $92.7 billion.

The report from Hindenburg stated it judged the seven key Adani listed firms to have an “85% draw back, purely on a elementary foundation owing to sky-high valuations.”

Hindenburg stated its report, “Adani Group: How the World’s third Richest Man is Pulling the Largest Con in Company Historical past,” adopted a two-year investigation. It listed 88 questions it invited the corporate to reply. Many of the allegations concerned considerations concerning the group’s debt ranges, actions of its high executives, use of offshore shell firms and previous investigations into fraud.

Buyers started dumping Adani-linked shares on Wednesday, wiping out some $48 billion in market worth.

Over the weekend, Adani stated it will stick with it with its share sale in Adani Enterprises as scheduled, regardless of the worth of its shares falling nicely under the value vary of the providing. On Monday, Adani Enterprises was buying and selling at 2,892.85 rupees ($35.50), up 4.8%, however nicely under the band of three,112 to three,276 rupees initially set for the providing, which closes Tuesday.

In its response to Hindenburg, the Adani Group stated not one of the 88 questions was “primarily based on unbiased or journalistic reality discovering.” It rejected quite a few questions as baseless, deceptive or biased. In response to different questions, the group connected paperwork and tables of information and stated it had adopted native legal guidelines.

Adani additionally dismissed considerations over its debt-fueled development, saying the “leverage ratios of Adani portfolio firms proceed to be wholesome and are in keeping with the trade benchmarks of the respective sectors.”

In an interview with CNBC TV-18 on Monday, Adani chief monetary officer Jugeshinder Singh stated the group’s gross debt was $30 billion, out of which $9 billion was with Indian banks.

Hindenburg stated solely 30 pages in Adani’s response centered on points it raised and the remaining consisted of court docket information, normal info, firm financials and “irrelevant company initiatives.” Adani did not particularly reply 62 of the 88 questions it had posed, it stated.

Late Thursday, Jatin Jalundhwala, head of the Adani group’s authorized division, stated the group was contemplating authorized motion towards Hindenburg. Hindenburg stated it stood by its report and would welcome authorized motion by the Adani group.