Adanis seek final judgment in US SEC case, agree to pay $18 million penalty: Report

Indian billionaires Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani have moved the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, seeking final judgment. They have reportedly agreed to pay a combined civil penalty of $18 million to settle a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) complaint linked to alleged bribery charges exceeding $250 million, as per reports.

The proposed settlement does not include any admission of guilt by the two executives.

In a filing to stock exchanges, Adani Green Energy reportedly said Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani had consented to the entry of final judgment “without admitting or denying the allegations made in the civil complaint”.

“Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani have consented to, inter alia, entry of the final judgment without admitting or denying the allegations made in the civil complaint and payment of a civil penalty of $6 million and $12 million, respectively, by Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani,” the filing stated.

This move comes after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) reportedly considered dropping criminal charges against Adani in an alleged overseas bribery case. 

As per The New York Times, this move comes months after federal prosecutors accused Adani and his associates of orchestrating a $265 million bribery scheme involving Indian government officials to secure solar energy contracts, while allegedly misleading American investors.

According to the report, Adani recently hired a new legal team led by Robert J Giuffra Jr, a personal lawyer of US President Donald Trump and co-chairman of law firm Sullivan & Cromwell.

The report said Giuffra held a meeting last month at the Justice Department headquarters in Washington, where he reportedly presented arguments claiming prosecutors lacked sufficient evidence and jurisdiction to pursue the case.

During the meeting, Adani’s legal team is also said to have indicated that the businessman would be willing to invest $10 billion in the US economy and create around 15,000 jobs if the criminal charges were dropped.

People familiar with the discussions told the publication that prosecutors later informed Giuffra that the proposed investment would not influence the criminal proceedings. However, the offer reportedly received a favourable response from at least one senior Justice Department official.

The report further stated that the Justice Department could move to dismiss the charges within days, although discussions were still ongoing and no final decision had been announced.

A spokesperson for Adani did not respond to requests for comment, according to the report.

The criminal indictment, filed in late 2024 by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, accused Adani, his nephew and six associates of securities fraud conspiracy and wire fraud conspiracy linked to alleged bribes paid to Indian officials.

The defendants were also accused of concealing details of the alleged scheme while raising funds from American investors.

None of the accused are currently in US custody, as they were residing outside the United States when the charges were announced.

The report noted that the possible dismissal may reflect the Trump administration’s broader shift away from aggressively pursuing foreign bribery cases under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

Earlier this year, the Trump administration paused enforcement of the FCPA through an executive order, arguing that the law penalised routine international business practices and undermined American economic competitiveness.

Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, is one of India’s wealthiest businessmen with interests spanning ports, airports, highways, energy and media. According to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, his net worth is estimated at around $104 billion.