SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband, Dhaval Buch, responding to recent allegations from Hindenburg Research which claimed that Madhabi held a stake in an offshore fund connected to Adani, clarified that their investment in the IPE Plus Fund occurred in 2015, before Madhabi’s appointment to SEBI as a Whole Time Member in 2017. They stressed that this investment was made while they were private citizens residing in Singapore.
The Buchs explained that the decision to invest was influenced by Dhaval’s longtime friend, Anil Ahuja, who served as the Chief Investment Officer of the fund at the time. Their statement said Ahuja, with a distinguished career at Citibank, J.P. Morgan, and 3i Group plc, was cited as a key factor in their investment choice. The statement further stated that the investment was redeemed in 2018, after Ahuja's departure from the CIO role.
Further addressing the allegations, the Buchs stated that Ahuja confirmed the fund had never invested in any bonds, equities, or derivatives related to the Adani group.
The Buchs asserted that these claims by Hindenburg are unfounded and are intended to undermine their reputations and SEBI’s credibility.
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The press statement released by Madhabi Puri Buch and Dhaval Buch on August 11, in response to allegations regarding their stake in offshore funds, stated:
1.The investment in the fund referred to in the Hindenburg report was made in 2015 when they were both private citizens living in Singapore and almost 2 years before Madhabi joined SEBI, even as a Whole Time Member.
2.The decision to invest in this fund was because the Chief Investment Officer, Mr Anil Ahuja, is Dhaval’s childhood friend from school and IIT Delhi and, being an ex-employee of Citibank, J.P. Morgan and 3i Group plc, had many decades of a strong investing career. The fact that these were the drivers of the investment decision is borne out by the fact that when, in 2018, Mr. Ahuja, left his position as CIO of the fund, we redeemed the investment in that fund.
3.As confirmed by Mr. Ahuja, at no point in time did the fund invest in any bond, equity, or derivative of any Adani group company.
Also Read: Hindenburg Research alleges SEBI chair Madhabi Puri Buch had stake in obscure offshore entities used in Adani scandal
The response of the Buchs comes amid heightened scrutiny of SEBI’s regulatory practices and ongoing political debate surrounding the Hindenburg report’s claims.
360 ONE Asset Management has clarified that its IPE-Plus Fund 1, which operated from October 2013 to October 2019, did not invest in Adani Group shares, directly or indirectly.
360 ONE denies Adani Group investment in IPE-Plus Fund 1, confirms full compliance
360 ONE Asset Management has issued a formal clarification regarding its IPE-Plus Fund 1, which was operational from October 2013 to October 2019. The company denies any investment in Adani Group shares, either directly or indirectly through other funds, throughout the fund’s entire tenure.
In its press release on August 11, the asset management company says, "At its peak, IPE-Plus Fund 1 boasted Assets Under Management (AUM) of approximately $48 million. The fund was predominantly invested in bonds, with over 90% of its assets allocated to this category."
Notably, the fund was managed on a discretionary basis by the Investment Manager, and no investors had a role in its operational or investment decisions, the statement added.
Let’s take a deep dive into the structure of the supposed stake held by the SEBI chief:
First, IIFL, now known as 360 Wealth Online, set up an offshore fund named “Global Opportunities Fund” (“GOF”), which was based in Bermuda, a tax-haven.
Under the GOF, a sub-fund named “Global Dynamic Opportunities Fund” (“GDOF”) was registered. Hindenburg Research claimed that a company controlled by Gautam Adani’s brother, Vinod Adani, invested in this “GDOF”.
"GDOF" invested the Adani group's siphoned funds in a sub-fund IPE Plus Fund, which is a small and obscure offshore fund registered in Mauritius, another tax haven, which then pooled the money into the domestic stock market and traded in Indian equities.
The founder and Chief Investment Office of the IPE Plus Fund was Anil Ahuja, who was previously a director in both Adani Power and Adani Enterprises over the span of his career.
So where does Madhabi Puri Buch’s involvement come in?
According to whistleblower documents accessed by Hindenburg, “the current SEBI Chairperson and her husband, Dhaval Buch, had hidden stakes in the exact same obscure offshore Bermuda and Mauritius funds, found in the same complex nested structure, used by Vinod Adani.”
SEBI chair Madhabi Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch likely opened their account with IPE Plus Fund on June 5, 2015 in Singapore, per whistleblower documents.
Also Read: Adani Group denounces Hindenburg allegations as 'baseless,' stands firm on transparency
According to a declaration of funds, signed by a principal at IIFL, the source of the couple’s investment is their salary, and their net worth is estimated at around $10 million.
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