Regulator has reacted, govt has nothing further to add: Finance Ministry on Hindenburg report on Sebi

Seth, as the Department of Economic Affairs Secretary, holds the position of part-time member in the SEBI board. A detailed query sent by The Indian Express to the DEA Secretary did not elicit a response.

When asked about whether SEBI Chairperson will step aside from the case, Seth reiterated, “Both of them, the concerned person as well as the regulator, have made the statements and there is nothing further to be added by the government.”

After the US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research on Saturday made a series of allegations against SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch, Sebi on Sunday came out in Buch’s defence and said the regulator has adequate internal mechanisms to address issues related to conflict of interest, which include disclosure framework and provision for recusal.

Relevant disclosures required in terms of holdings of securities and their transfers have been made by the Chairperson from time to time, SEBI said on Sunday.

“Chairperson has also recused herself in matters involving potential conflicts of interest,” the regulator said.

On Saturday, the US-based Hindenburg Research, in a post on X (formerly Twitter) alleged that Buch and her husband had stakes in obscure offshore funds used in the Adani money siphoning scandal. The short-seller alleged that the couple invested in Global Dynamic Opportunities Fund (GDOF), in which Vinod Adani, brother of Gautam Adani, had invested.

This report by Hindenburg Research comes almost 18 months after it had first kicked up a political storm in January 2023, alleging the Adani Group of “brazen stock market manipulation” and “accounting fraud”. The port-to-energy conglomerate had denied all these allegations; the Supreme Court had rejected the demand for a CBI or court-monitored probe.