Billionaire Gautam Adani and nephew agree to pay $18 million in SEC settlement over fraud allegations

Gautam Adani, chairman of Adani Group, during the inauguration ceremony for the Navi Mumbai International Airport in Navi Mumbai, India, on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. Indranil Aditya | Bloomberg | The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday sought court approval for a settlement in its civil lawsuit against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew, Sagar Adani, over allegations they misled investors. Under the settlement, Gautam Adani will pay a $6 million penalty, while Sagar Adani will pay $12 million. Both men have consented to "entry of the final judgment without admitting or denying the allegations made in the civil complaint," and payment of penalties, Indian renewable energy firm Adani Green said in a filing to the Indian stock exchanges. The company added that it is not part of these proceedings and "no charges have been brought against it." The SEC's civil complaint against Gautam and Sagar Adani, along with executives at Azure Power Global, centered on allegations of bribery tied to solar energy contracts awarded by India's government. The U.S. Justice Department will also likely drop the criminal fraud charges against Adani, according to multiple media reports. A New York federal court indicted Gautam Adani and seven others in November 2024 on criminal charges related to an alleged bribery and fraud scheme. …