The investment in the fund referred to in the Hindenburg report was made in 2015 when they were both private citizens living in Singapore and almost 2 years before Madhabi joined SEBI as a Whole Time Member.
Amid the controversy surrounding the Hindenburg report, which alleges investments by SEBI chief Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch in funds related to Gautam Adani, the couple has released a statement.
In a report released late Saturday, it was alleged that Madhabi Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch first opened their account with IPE Plus Fund 1 on June 5, 2015, in Singapore, according to whistleblower documents.
A declaration of funds signed by a principal at IIFL states that the source of the investment is “salary”, and the couple’s net worth is estimated at $10 million, the report added.
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The joint statement released by the Buchs said, “The investment in the fund referred to in the Hindenburg report was made in 2015 when they were both private citizens living in Singapore and almost 2 years before Madhabi joined SEBI as a Whole Time Member. The decision to invest in this fund was because the Chief Investment Officer, Anil Ahuja, is Dhaval’s childhood friend from school and IIT Delhi and, being an ex-employee of Citibank, JP Morgan and 3i Group plc, had many decades of strong investing career.”
“As confirmed by Anil Ahuja, at no point in time did the fund invest in any bond, equity, or derivative of any Adani group company…” the statement reads.
“When Mr Ahuja left his position as CIO of the fund in 2018, we redeemed the investment in that fund,” the release stated. They also confirmed, with Ahuja’s affirmation, that at no point did the fund invest in any bonds, equities, or derivatives of any Adani group company.
The release also addressed Dhaval’s appointment as Senior Adviser to Blackstone Private Equity in 2019. The couple clarified that this role was due to Dhaval’s expertise in supply chain management and was publicly known long before Madhabi became SEBI Chairperson.
“On his appointment, the Blackstone Group was immediately added to Madhabi’s recusal list maintained with SEBI,” the statement said.
The release also touched on two consulting companies Madhabi had set up during her time in Singapore. “These companies became immediately dormant on her appointment with SEBI, and all relevant disclosures were made to SEBI,” the statement read.
The release further explained that from 2010 to 2019, Dhaval lived and worked in London and Singapore with Unilever. Madhabi also lived and worked in Singapore from 2011 to March 2017, first as an employee of a private equity firm and later as a consultant.
It is to be noted that, launching a scathing attack on the SEBI chief, Hindenburg said, “We had previously noted Adani’s total confidence in continuing to operate without the risk of serious regulatory intervention, suggesting that this may be explained through Adani’s relationship with SEBI Chairperson, Madhabi Buch.”
“What we hadn’t realised: the current SEBI Chairperson and her husband, Dhaval Buch, had hidden stakes in the exact same obscure offshore Bermuda and Mauritius funds, found in the same complex nested structure, used by Vinod Adani,” it added.
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