NEW DELHI: According to Forbes and Bloomberg indexes, Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani's net worth dropped below USD 43.4 billion on February 22. With this impact, he is no longer considered one of the world's top 25 billionaires. The decline occurs more than a month after US short-seller Hindenburg Research claimed that the conglomerate with headquarters in Gujarat was deeply involved in stock manipulation and accounting fraud.

Adani group repays Rs.1,500 crore to SBI Mutual Fund, Aditya Birla Sun Life. Gautham Adani, who held the title of Asia’s richest person and the world’s third richest until recently, saw his personal net worth fall, making him the 26th richest billionaire, as per Forbes.  

But, due to a decline in his personal net worth, Forbes now ranks him as the 26th richest billionaire. On Wednesday, the stock of the Adani Group experienced yet another round of selling, erasing USD 3.6 billion from Mr. Adani's personal wealth. With a net worth of USD 46.3 billion, Phil Knight and his family from Nike have topped Mr. Adani to claim place 25 on the Forbes list. He is positioned between France's Francois Pinault and Italy's Giovanni Ferrero & family (USD 42.9 billion) on the Bloomberg Index (USD 41.3 billion).

Adani began the year as the third-richest person in the world with a net worth of USD 121 billion. It was predicted that he will pass Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and move closer to the top two. According to Forbes Real-time billionaire list for 2023,  Adani dropped to position 10 on February 1 as his net worth decreased relative to Mukesh Ambani, the owner of Reliance Industries, who assumed the title of richest Indian in the world.

On February 3,  Adani's net worth has further decreased to USD 58 billion, placing him outside the top-20 group. This week's market gyrations caused Mr. Adani to drop to the 25th spot on the Forbes and Bloomberg real-time billionaires lists. How much money has the Adani Group lost as a result of the Hindenburg Report?

From February 2022, Adani has held the title of richest person in India. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, he saw a significant increase in wealth during the COVID-19 epidemic, adding a significant USD 42.7 billion to his fortune, making it the sixth highest wealth increase in the world. With a net worth of USD 156.3 billion, he temporarily held the second-richest position on the globe in September 2022.

The decline follows the release of the Hindenburg Report on January 24, which alleged stock manipulation and inappropriate use of tax havens by the Group. The charges in the study have been frequently refuted by Mr. Adani, who has also vowed to sue the short seller. However, due to worries about the strength of the economy's development and its capacity to finance debt, market confidence is still low. Since January 24, according to Bloomberg, the Adani Group's market capitalization has decreased by more than USD 135 billion.

Adani's main company, Adani Enterprises, saw a 10.4% drop in stocks in the BSE on February 22 as a result of allegations that an employee had changed facts regarding the Adani Group on Wikipedia.

Earlier this week, the value of the ten firms that make up the Adani Group, including Adani Ports, Adani Green Energy, and Power, dropped under the US USD 100 billion threshold.

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