A Supreme Court-appointed expert panel investigating India's regulatory mechanism regarding the Hindenburg allegations against the Adani Group said it appears there was no regulatory failure on the part of market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
The committee, comprising domain experts, also said there was no price manipulation on the part of the Adani Group and that the conglomerate had taken necessary steps to comfort retail investors. The mitigating measures taken by the group had helped in building confidence in the stock and the stocks are stable now, the panel said.
The interim report submitted by the committee before the top court also said that the SEBI has not been able to convert its suspicions into a firm case where any alleged violations can be prosecuted.
"At this stage, taking into account the explanations provided by SEBI, supported by empirical data, prima facie, it would not be possible for the committee to conclude that there has been a regulatory failure around the allegation of price manipulation," the panel said in the report submitted to the Supreme Court.
It also said there is a need for an effective enforcement policy that is "coherent and consistent" with the legislative position adopted by SEBI.
The Supreme Court had appointed the committee of domain experts alongside the investigation that SEBI was conducting into Hindenburg's allegations against the Adani Group.
The committee, which recently submitted its findings to the Supreme Court, said SEBI had found out some entities had taken a short position before the Hindenburg report and had profited after the price crashed following the report.
The committee found no pattern of artificial trading or wash trades among the same parties multiple times. No coherent pattern of abusive trading came to light either, said the committee.
