Adani family looks to raise $3.6 bn via sales of promoter stakes as shares of group firms skyrocket

This would be the biggest fundraise by the family that owns businesses from airports to edible oil. The share-sale plan is part of a strategy to rebalance the family’s wealth portfolio after Adani Group firms’ share prices shot up sharply over the past year, the person cited above said on condition of anonymity.

“This is not for repayment of any debts, as the family has none. This rebalancing will be carried out to deal with the volatility of the listed firms," the person said, adding that a 0.5-3% monetization of promoter stake can be expected in any given fiscal.

“But this time, since the stocks of most of the Adani Group firms have moved to their 52-week highs, the monetization will be at the upper end of the spectrum, that is, 3% of the value of the promoter portfolio, which is around ₹30,000 crore." The value of the family’s holdings in group listed companies is more than ₹10 trillion (about $126 billion), the person said.

The immediate plan is to sell stake worth ₹3,000-4000 crore in Ambuja Cements Ltd, in which the promoters hold 70.3%. Rajiv Jain-led US-based boutique investment firm GQG Partners LLC and at least four other entities, including three large bank-promoted firms, are likely to buy the stake soon in a private placement, the person added.

An Adani Group spokesperson declined to comment on the fund-raising plan by the promoter family.

Also read: Avoiding the patriarch trap: Lessons in succession planning for Adani and Ambani

As a part of the rebalancing strategy, the family will support strategic growth by continuously strengthening balance sheet; support transactions by those who come as long-term investors into group firms; and be in line with global best practices at par with large international groups.

The Adani spread

Two weeks ago, a report on India’s most valuable family businesses by Barclays-Hurun India said the Adani family has emerged as the most valued first-generation family business in India with a value of ₹15.44 trillion.

Apart from the ₹10 trillion value held in listed stocks, the rest of the wealth is held in unlisted businesses spanning real estate and infrastructure to solar energy, wind energy, data centres and defence equipment.

As share prices fell, the promoter family, along with global investors, accumulated shares of Adani Group firms.

Alongside, the promoters repaid about $2.55 billion to get a significant portion of their pledges released.

The move was attributed to Adani group’s efforts to allay investor concerns after Hindenburg Research alleged that the group is over-leveraged with total debts of ₹2.27 trillion then.

Apart from the promoters’ efforts, a clutch of global investors including GQG, QIA, IHC and Total Energies invested in the businesses of Adani Group.

On 5 December the 10 listed Adani firms alone contributed about 65% of the overall market gains. The stocks have been mostly rising since then, creating an opportunity for the promoters to monetize part of their stakes.

Also read: India’s Adani plans to cede control to family by early 2030s

Adani Group’s listed firms include the flagship Adani Enterprises Ltd., Adani Ports and SEZ Ltd., energy generation firm Adani Power Ltd., power distribution company Adani Energy Solutions Ltd., renewables firm Adani Green Energy Ltd., new energy company Adani Total Gas Ltd., fast-moving-consumer goods firm Adani Wilmar Ltd., and cement manufacturing firms Ambuja Cements and ACC Ltd.

The Adani family, as the promoters, holds 65-75% in most of the listed firms, leaving a wide headroom for the promoters to monetize their stakes if required.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (Sebi) norms require listed firms to have 25% or more stake held by the public.

The person cited above agreed that the rise in Adani Group stocks in the past few months is behind the family’s latest fund-raising plan.

On a net basis, since January, shares of Adani Ports have risen 46%, Adani Power 28.4%, Ambuja Cements 22%, Adani Green 18%, and Adani Enterprises 9%.

However, on Thursday, Adani Power’s shares fell 2.72% to ₹676 during the day, after some media reports said the promoters may offload stake. The company is trading almost 24% lower from its 52-week high of ₹896.75 on BSE, which it touched on 3 June.

Between April and July, the Adani family had increased its stake in Ambuja Cements (by at least 3%), Adani Enterprises (by 2.11%), Adani Power (1%), Adani Energy Solutions (1.72%) and Adani Green Energy (1.15%). This led to promoters infusing at least ₹23,000 crore into these five firms.

Also read: Adani in talks to buy Reliance Power's 600 MW thermal plant

The person said that the family bought into the equities of these companies to support their growth. “The prices of these firms (in which the promoters hiked stake) are now going up. They (the companies) have got the promoter support that was required at that time. So, a re-balancing the portfolio of the promoter holding can be done now."

Apart from raising funds by selling stakes in listed firms, the family may also sell stakes in some unlisted real estate and infrastructure firms, the person added.

However, this would be over and above the $3.6 billion fund-raising plan.

At the group level, the conglomerate is planning to invest up to ₹1.3 trillion in fiscal 2025, primarily with an aim to expand its capacities in the green energy, airports and infrastructure businesses.

Among its portfolio companies, Adani Green Energy alone plans to invest ₹34,000 crore to expand its facilities in Gujarat’s Khavda.

The group, which earned over ₹82,000 crore in cash in fiscal 2024, plans to invest $21 billion in the airports business and thereafter list it by FY27.