Swiss authorities freeze $311 million of alleged Adani proxy; Adani Group denies any link

Swiss authorities freeze $311 million in Taiwanese resident's Swiss bank accounts amid Adani group money laundering probe

Swiss authorities have frozen $311 million (₹2,610 crore) held by a Taiwanese resident in multiple Swiss bank accounts as part of money laundering probe, suspecting he may be a frontman from the Adani group - a charge the conglomerate vehemently denied saying it was neither involved in any Swiss court proceedings nor any of its accounts are subject to sequestration.

The U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research, which had last year targeted the Adani group in a damning report that led to wiping away of $150 billion in market value of listed firms of the conglomerate in the following weeks, in a post on ‘X’ cited “newly released Swiss criminal records reported by Swiss media outlet” to state that “Swiss authorities have frozen more than $310 million in funds across multiple Swiss bank accounts as part of a money laundering and securities forgery investigation into Adani, dating back as early as 2021.”

"Prosecutors detailed how an Adani frontman invested in opaque BVI/Mauritius & Bermuda funds that almost exclusively owned Adani stocks," it said citing the report.

The Adani group rejected the allegations as baseless saying it had no involvement in any Swiss court proceedings.

"We unequivocally reject and deny the baseless allegations presented. The Adani Group has no involvement in any Swiss court proceedings, nor have any of our company accounts been subject to sequestration by any authority," it said.

The Swiss media outlet Gotham City in its report stated that a ruling by the Federal Criminal Court (FCC) reveals that the Geneva Public Prosecutor's Office was investigating alleged wrongdoing and more than $310 million belonging to an alleged frontman for billionaire Gautam Adani have been sequestered in five Swiss banks over the last three years.

The Swiss investigators suspect that the associate, Chang Chung-Ling, is not the ultimate beneficial owner (UBO) of the company under investigation, but a mere front.