Adani Group said to stress ample cash on 1st day of roadshow
By Suvashree Ghosh, Ameya Karve and Chanyaporn Chanjaroen
(Bloomberg) — Adani Group executives emphasized the company’s ability to honor its obligations in coming years and generate cash, according to investors attending the first day of an Asia roadshow.
The group’s officials told roadshow participants that it has enough money to repay debt maturing over the next three years and that it has an $800 million credit facility, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the meetings were private. A recent filing showed the conglomerate as having a cash pile of 317 billion rupees ($3.8 billion) as of the end of last year.
A spokesperson for Adani Group did not immediately comment when contacted by Bloomberg.
The Singapore event and meetings scheduled for this week in Hong Kong mark the latest effort by billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate to reassure investors after US short seller Hindenburg Research accused it of manipulating stock prices and other corporate governance lapses. About $154 billion has been wiped off its equity market value since the short seller’s investigation went public.
Adani Group has repeatedly denied the accusations. In recent weeks the ports-to-power conglomerate has adopted a series of rescue moves from cutting expenses to early debt repayment. Those steps have helped bring its key dollar bonds back from distressed levels but failed to ease the stock meltdown.
Monday’s meetings took place at a hotel in Singapore, with help from about a dozen global banks. Attendees were offered a more-than-10-page presentation on topics ranging from earnings to the debt maturity profile, according to documents obtained by Bloomberg. Some of those in attendance raised concerns over some of the debt and the recent volatility of bond prices, the investors said.
At least two of the investors in attendance told Bloomberg they’ve been buying Adani bonds, citing the group’s credit quality backed by cash-generating assets. Two others, however, said they were cautious about new debt investments in the group until corporate governance issues were resolved.
The roadshow will continue in Hong Kong on Tuesday and Wednesday, at the office of Barclays Plc.
—With assistance from P R Sanjai.
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.
