Published May 15, 2026 | 10:47 AM ⚊ Updated May 15, 2026 | 11:41 AM
Gautam Adani
Synopsis: The United States Justice Department is close to dropping criminal fraud charges against Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, who has promised to invest $10 billion in the US economy. Adani had also resolved a related civil fraud lawsuit brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over an alleged scheme to bribe Indian government officials.
The United States Justice Department is close to dropping criminal fraud charges against Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, who has promised to invest $10 billion in the US economy, reported Reuters on Friday, 15 May.
On Thursday, Adani had also resolved a related civil fraud lawsuit brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over an alleged scheme to bribe Indian government officials, subject to court approval.
The SEC proposed civil monetary penalties of $18 million against Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani in a case concerning false and misleading statements made in connection with a 2021 bond offering by Adani Green Energy Limited.
The SEC has proposed a $6 million penalty against Gautam Adani and a $12 million penalty against Sagar Adani. These have been consented to by the Adanis without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC complaint.
Meanwhile, Adani Green Energy Limited wrote to the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) saying that the US SEC, Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani have filed their request for entry of the final judgment of the case.
It reiterated that the company is not a party to this proceeding, and no charges have been brought against it.
Also Read: SEC report in Adani case
A federal court in Brooklyn, the US, had indicted Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and seven others on charges of conspiring to commit financial fraud. It said they were involved in a multi-billion-dollar scheme to obtain funds from US investors and global financial institutions based on false and misleading statements.
Lisa H Miller, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said the indictment alleges schemes to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials, to lie to investors and banks to raise billions.
“As alleged in the indictment, between approximately 2020 and 2024, the defendants agreed to pay more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials to obtain lucrative solar energy supply contracts with the Indian government, which were projected to generate more than $2 billion in profits after tax over an approximately 20-year period,” the release added.
It further alleged that Adani personally met with an Indian government official to advance the bribery scheme, and the defendants held in-person meetings with each other to discuss aspects of its execution.
The report stated that co-conspirators of the alleged bribe schemes, including Gautam Adani and others, offered and/or paid officials of state-owned power companies in India to enter into contracts with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for an Adani-founded Indian renewable energy company, its subsidiary and a US company to obtain and retain businesses.
