360-One WAM, an asset and wealth management company formerly known as IIFL Wealth Management, on Sunday, August 11, denied the allegations made by Hindenburg Research against SEBI chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch.
Throughout the fund’s tenure, IPE-Plus Fund 1 made zero investments in any shares of the Adani Group either directly through any fund, the wealth management firm said in an exchange filing.
The US-based short-seller claimed on August 10 that Madhabi Puri and Dhaval Buch had opened an account on June 5, 2015, with Mauritius-based IPE Plus Fund 1 which was allegedly involved in fund siphoning.
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“The fund was managed as a discretionary fund by the investment manager. No investor had any involvement in the fund's operations or investment decisions. Mrs Madhabi Buch and Mr Dhaval Buch's holdings in the fund were less than 1.5 per cent of the total inflow into the fund,” 360-One stated.
According to the statement, the fund’s asset under management (AUM) reached around $48 million at its peak, with over 90 per cent of the fund consistently invested in bonds.
360-One WAM added that IPE-Plus Fund 1 was fully compliant and regulated fund and operated until October 2019. “We adhere to the highest standards of corporate governance,” it said. The fund was launched in October 2013.
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In its latest report, Hindenburg cited documents and communications with IIFL attributed to a whistleblower and accused Buch and her husband of having held stakes in offshore funds that were invested in the Adani Group.
The short-seller further claimed that Buch had a 99 per cent equity stake in the Indian consulting firm, Agora Advisory, which reported earned more than her then-disclosed salary.
Hindenburg also claimed that SEBI chief favoured reforms on real estate investment trusts (REITs) to help her husband’s current employer, Blackstone.
In a joint statement on Sunday, the husband-wife duo strongly rejected the allegations calling them “baseless” and “devoid of any truth”.
"It is unfortunate that Hindenburg Research, against whom SEBI has taken enforcement action and issued a show cause notice, has chosen to attempt character assassination in response to the same," their statement read.
