Hindenburg alleges SEBI chair Madhabi Buch’s consulting firm earned many times more money than her salary

Hindenburg Research, in continuing allegations on SEBI chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch, said citing documents that she has 99 percent equity stake in an Indian consulting business Agora Advisory, which earned about Rs 2 crore -- many times more money than her then disclosed salary.

“Madhabi Buch currently has a 99% stake in an Indian consulting business called Agora Advisory, where her husband is a director,” said Hindenburg in the note released on 10 August.

“At the end of financial year 2022, Agora Advisory (99% owned by Madhabi Buch), generated INR 19.8 million (U.S. $261,000) revenue from consulting, per its annual report. This was 4.4 times Madhabi Buch’s previous disclosed salary as a Whole-Time member at SEBI,” said the note.

Also read | Hindenburg Research alleges SEBI chair Buch had stake in obscure offshore entities used in Adani scandal

Hindenburg, the short-seller behind a report on Adani group stocks back in January 2023, alleged in a fresh note today that SEBI chairperson Madhabi Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch had a stake in the obscure offshore entities used in the Adani money siphoning scandal.

It further said that it suspects that SEBI’s unwillingness to take meaningful action against suspect offshore shareholders in the Adani Group may stem from chairperson Madhabi Buch’s complicity in using the exact same funds used by Vinod Adani, brother of Gautam Adani.

Agora Advisory Private Limited was set up in India on 7 May, 2013, per its certificate of incorporation, said the new Hindenburg note, published on its website and X (Twitter). “It discloses consultancy as its main business activity. To date, Madhabi Buch remains a 99% owner of the business with her husband, Dhaval Buch as a director, per its shareholding list and corporate records,” read the note.

Also read | Madhabi Buch, Dhaval Buch invested in the same complex nested structure that was used by Vinod Adani, alleges Hindenburg

Further, from April 2017 to March 2022, Madhabi Buch was also a 100-percent owner in Singapore consulting firm Agora Partners, before transferring the ownership to husband Dhaval Buch, said Hindenburg citing company documents.

“While Madhabi Buch was a whole time member and chairperson at SEBI, she had a 100% interest in an offshore Singaporean consulting firm, called Agora Partners. On March 16th, 2022, two weeks after her appointment as SEBI chairperson, she quietly transferred the shares to her husband,” alleged the note.

Madhabi Buch joined SEBI as a whole time member in April 2017, and became SEBI Chairperson on March 1, 2022. “Buch remained a 100% shareholder of Agora Partners until March 16th, 2022, per Singaporean records,” Hindenburg said in the note.

Also read | Sebi regulations around REITs benefited Blackstone Private Equity where Madhabi Puri Buch’s husband Dhaval Buch was Senior Advisor, alleges Hindenburg

The research firm further alleged that she transferred her stake in Agora Partners to her husband, Dhaval Buch “likely realizing the political sensitivity of such a conflict of interest, were it ever revealed.”

On March 27th, 2013, Agora Partners Pte Ltd was registered in Singapore, describing itself as a “business and management consultancy”, said Hindenburg. “This offshore Singaporean entity is exempt from disclosing financial statements so it is unclear the amount of revenue it derives from its consulting business and from whom – crucial information for those assessing the probity of the Chairperson’s external businesses interests,” it added.

However, “unlike the opaque Singaporean consulting entity, we have more visibility into the Indian entity,” said the Hindenburg note.

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