Dhaval Buch Archives

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Sebi Refuses To Disclose Instances When Madhabi Buch Recused…

20 September 2024
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New Delhi: The cases where SEBI chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch recused herself due to potential conflict of interest is not “readily” available and collating them would “disproportionately divert” its resources, the securities market regulator said in an RTI response on Friday.

What Did Sebi Say In RTI Response?

In the response furnished to transparency activist Commodore Lokesh Batra (retd), the regulator also refused to provide copies of Buch’s declarations to the government and SEBI Board on the financial assets and equities held by her and her family members on the grounds of these being “personal information” and that their disclosure may “endanger” personal safety. (Also Read: Congress’ Fresh Salvo At Buch)

It also denied to disclose the dates on which the disclosures were made. The SEBI Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) used the grounds of “personal information” and “safety” to deny copy of those declarations.

“Since the information sought do not pertain to you and the same relates to personal information, the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest and mat cause unwarranted invasion into the privacy of the individual and may also endanger the life or physical safety of the person(s). The same is, therefore exempt in terms of Section 8(1)(g) and 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act, 2005,” the RTI response said.

“Further the information on cases where Madhabi Puri Buch recused herself due to potential conflicts of interest during her tenure is not readily available and collating the same will lead to disproportionately diverting the resources of the public authority in terms of Section 7(9) of the RTI Act,” it said.

Section 8(1)(g) allows a public authority to withhold information the disclosure of which would endanger the life and physical safety of any person and section 8(1)(j) allows withholding information which relates to personal information the disclosure of which has no relationship to any public activity or interest.

A CPIO may still disclose information if public interest in disclosure outweighs the harm to the protected interests.

A press release from SEBI on August 11 had claimed that the chairperson has recused herself in matters involving potential conflict of interest.

“It is noted that relevant disclosures required in terms of holdings of securities and their transfers have been made by the Chairperson from time to time,” it had said.

The US-based short seller Hindenburg Research alleged that it suspects SEBI’s unwillingness to act against the Adani group may be because Buch had stakes in offshore funds linked to the conglomerate.

The short seller had alleged that Buch and her husband Dhaval had invested in one of the funds which was allegedly being used by Vinod Adani. It also flagged Dhaval’s association with private equity major Blackstone, a promoter of multiple real estate investment trusts (REITs) and Sebi’s continued pitch for the new investment avenue.

“The allegations made by Hindenburg Research, against the Adani Group, have been duly investigated by Sebi,” the capital markets regulator had said in the statement.

The Supreme Court had itself noted in an order in January that 24 out of 26 investigations against Adani had been completed, it said, adding that one more was completed in March and the last is nearing completion now.

Science & Environment

JPC Urgent To Unearth Full Extent Of Corruption In…

11 September 2024
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New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday reiterated its demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue, saying it is needed urgently to unearth the full extent of the corruption, monopolisation and glaring gaps in the country’s regulatory system.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh cited a media report and said the latest in the “Modani magic” is the rags-to-riches journey of a private power infrastructure firm.

“Diamond Power Infra Ltd was dragged to bankruptcy court in 2018. By 2022, it was taken over by Mr Gautam Adani’s brother-in-law, at the price of paying Rs 501 crore to the lenders, for a company with a market cap of Rs 1,000 crore,” Ramesh said in a post on X.

“The firm had zero business in 2022, but by 2023-24, it had revenue of Rs 344 crore — largely from orders placed by the Adani Group businesses. Thanks to Mr Adani’s business, Diamond Power Infra Ltd is now valued at Rs 7,626 crore, a seven-fold increase in valuation,” he added.

Transactions with a company owned by a brother-in-law do not fall under the category of related-party deals — the annual reports of the Adani Group’s 10 publicly-listed companies and Diamond Power, therefore, do not disclose the familial relationship between their proprietors, the Congress leader claimed.

“This is a gaping loophole in our regulatory infrastructure, coming just as the integrity and independence of India’s financial markets regulator SEBI is also under deep question,” he said.

“A JPC into the Modani mega-scam becomes more urgent every passing day, to unearth the full extent of the corruption, the monopolisation, and the glaring gaps in the country’s regulatory system,” Ramesh added.

The Congress has been persistent in its attack on the government since the Adani Group stocks took a beating on the bourses in the wake of US-based short-selling firm Hindenburg Research making a litany of allegations, including fraudulent transactions and share-price manipulation, on the conglomerate headed by industrialist Gautam Adani.

The Adani Group had dismissed the charges as lies, saying it complies with all laws and disclosure requirements.

Science & Environment

Congress Fires Fresh Salvo At Sebi Chief Madhabi Puri…

3 September 2024
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New Delhi: The opposition Congress on Tuesday launched fresh tirade against Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch over receiving regular income from private lender ICICI Bank and arm ICICI Prudential, while being the whole-time member and later Chairperson of the capital markets regulatory body.

Pawan Khera, Chairman, Media and Publicity Department, Congress, in a press conference said, “We asked three questions yesterday (which was directed towards ICICI bank, PN and Buch. Of the three, ICICI bank responded to our allegations, which has infact helped us in un-layering this expose further.” (Also Read: Trouble Mounts For Madhabi Puri Buch)

Khera further claimed that ICICI bank paid pensions to Buch which varied in various years and was not steady. He added that Buch availed ESOPs from ICICI even after superannuation from the Group. He questioned as to how retirement benefits or pensions be more than the annual average salary that Buch drew from ICICI.

Khera also raised questions on the TDS being paid by ICICI Bank on ESOPs to Buch. (Also read: Buch Responsible For ZEEL-Sony Deal Failure)

“Why did ICICI pay the TDS on ESOPs on behalf of Buch? Does the bank follow the same protocol for all its past and present employees? Why didi ICICI not offer this TDS amount as taxable income of Buch? Is this not a clear non-compliance of the Income Tax Act?,” questioned Khera.

Read Congress’ Latest Expose On Madhabi Puri Buch And ICICI Bank Via This Tweet Thread

Statement by Shri Pawan Khera, Chairman, Media & Publicity (Communication Deptt), AICC. pic.twitter.com/E3S96g3Zoy
— INC Sandesh (@INCSandesh) September 3, 2024

Response Of ICICI Bank On Congress’ Allegations

ICICI Bank in a stock exchanges in a filing, hours after the Congress party labeled office-for-profit charge against Buch yesterday said that the bank or its group of companies have not paid any salary or granted any employee stock ownership plan (ESOPs) to SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch after her retirement, other than her retiral benefits.

“During her employment with the ICICI Group, she received compensation in the form of salary, retiral benefits, bonus and ESOPs, in line with applicable policies,” the ICICI Bank exchange filing read.

Buch had opted for superannuation from the Group with effect from October 31, 2013. Under the bank’s ESOP rules, the ESOPs vest over the next few years from the date of allotment, the lender asserted in the filing. “As per rules existing at the time of her ESOP grant, employees including retired employees had the choice to exercise their ESOPs anytime up to a period of 10 years from the date of vesting.”

“As per Income Tax rules, the difference between the price of the stock on the day of exercise and the allotment price is treated as perquisite income and is reflected in Part B of the Form16 of employees, including retired employees. The Bank is required to deduct the perquisite tax on this income. In addition, Form -16 covers the payment made towards the retiral benefits of former employees,” the exchange filing added.

All the payments made to Buch post her retirement had accrued to her during her employment phase with the ICICI Group.

Those payments comprised ESOPs and retiral benefits, the lender’s exchange filing concludes.

With ANI Inputs

Science & Environment

Trouble Mounts For Madhabi Puri Buch: Congress Pawan Khera…

2 September 2024
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New Delhi: Fresh troubles seem to be brewing for Sebi Chairman Madhabi Puri Buch, with Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera levelling allegations that the chief of SEBI drew salary from ICICI Bank, and eased norms for it.

Congress leader Pawan Khera said, “The role of SEBI is to regulate the share market where we all invest our money. It has a very important role to play. Who appoints the chairperson of SEBI? This is the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, Prime Minister and Union HM Amit Shah. There are two members in this committee for appointing the chairperson of SEBI…She (SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch) between 2017 and 2014 was taking regular income of Rs 16 crore 80 lakhs from ICICI Bank. You are also a full-time SEBI member, then why were you taking a salary from ICICI?…”

Buch is already in the eye of the storm, following fresh rounds of allegations by Hindenburg. The Hindenburg report published last month, alleged that Madhabi Buch, and her husband had stakes in both obscure offshore funds used in the Adani money siphoning scandal, a claim outrightly rejected by Sebi, its Chief and the Adani group.

Following the release of the Hindenburg on August 10, Buchs and SEBI had released their response via a press release, their only response till date, rebutting all the claims made by the US-based short seller. Added to that, the silence from Sebi’s board of directors, Indian market regulator’s credibility has taken a nosedive.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi has demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the charges against Madhabi Puri Buch flowing the series of allegations levelled against the Sebi chief by Hindenburg report.

The ruling BJP has however dismissed the claims calling it a “sham” aimed at undermining the Indian economy.

Science & Environment

Global Fintech Fest: SEBI Chief Declines To Comment On…

29 August 2024
by admin

Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch spoke at the Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai on Thursday, August 29.

Here are some highlights of what the Sebi chief said:

– Sebi has started working on a standard application programming interface (API) for exchanges and depositories

– The technology will also be used by performance validation agencies

– Sebi working on data benchmarking

– It is working on more than a dozen Artificial Intelligence-powered technologies

– The aim is to improve surveillance and processing using AI

– Sebi has received suggestions from around 6,000 people on the recent consultation paper on the derivatives (F&O) segment

– Technology has enabled faster processing of such enormous amounts of feedback

– The aim is to enhance compliance using technology

The Sebi Chairperson refused to take questions on the Hindenburg report.

On August 10, US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research released a report that alleged that the Sebi Chairperson and her husband Dhaval Buch previously held investments in offshore funds also used by the Adani group, charges categorically denied by the couple.

This story has been sourced from ZeeBiz https://www.zeebiz.com/market-news/news-global-fintech-fest-aug-29-2024-mumbai-sebi-chairperson-madhabi-puri-buch-speech-refuses-to-comment-on-hindenburg-report-311635

Science & Environment

New Revelation About SEBI Chief Madhabi Puri Buch: Same…

21 August 2024
by admin

New Delhi: American short-seller firm Hindenburg recently released a sensational report targeting SEBI Chief Madhabi Puri Buch. In its revelations, Hindenburg levelled serious allegations against Buch, accusing her of favouring Adani’s companies for personal gain. Now, another serious accusation has surfaced, raising significant questions about a potential conflict of interest involving SEBI Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch.

New Revelation About Madhabi Buch

According to a Reuters report, it was revealed that during her seven-year tenure, Madhabi Buch continued to receive income from a consultancy firm. Reuters published its report after reviewing public documents. It has now been claimed in a report that the address of the consultancy firm established by Buch is the same as that of the auditor firm responsible for auditing it.

In other words, the auditors who reviewed the firm’s finances are registered at the same address as Buch’s consultancy. This revelation comes from documents filed with the Registrar of Companies. According to the report, Buch’s firm’s audit was handled by Shah and Savla LLP, and the address is the same as that of Buch’s firm, both located in the Ghatkopar area of Mumbai.

SEBI Chief Under Scrutiny Again

The documents referenced in the report are registered with the Registrar of Companies. These include the 2023-2024 balance sheet for Agora Advisory Private Limited, which lists an address in the Ghatkopar area of Mumbai. Interestingly, when the address of the auditing firm, Shah and Savla LLP, was checked, it was found to be the same. Both addresses are in Ghatkopar and mention office number 201. The report also notes that other firms established by Madhabi Buch have the same address listed.

Husband Managing Firms After Buch’s SEBI Appointment

Before joining SEBI in 2017, Madhabi Buch had already distanced herself from these firms. Currently, her husband, Dhawal, holds director positions in these companies. However, recent financial disclosures related to these firms have raised serious questions. For context, Madhabi Buch joined SEBI in 2017 and became its chairperson in 2022.

Science & Environment

Hindenburg Vs Adani Saga: Does Sebi Chairpersons Role Hint…

17 August 2024
by admin

Hindenburg Vs Adani Saga: Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch continued to earn revenue from a consultancy firm during her seven-year tenure, potentially breaching rules for regulatory officials, according to public documents reviewed by Reuters. Buch’s holdings potentially violate a 2008 Sebi policy that prohibits officials from holding an office of profit or receiving salary or professional fees from other professional activities.

Allegations by US-Based Short Seller

The matter relates to allegations made by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research last week, claiming that Buch and her husband, Dhaval Buch, previously held investments in offshore funds also used by the Adani Group. These charges, suggesting a conflict of interest in her investigations surrounding the conglomerate, were categorically denied by the couple.

Buchs’ Response to Hindenburg’s Allegations

Immediate and Detailed Statements Deny Allegations

After denying the charges in an immediate response to Hindenburg’s report, the Buchs released a second, more detailed statement, categorically denying the allegations and sharing specific details, including their career history, education, and certain investments. They accused Hindenburg of attempting to attack Sebi’s credibility and indulging in character assassination.

Hindenburg’s Reaction to the Buchs’ Statement

In response to the Buchs’ 15-point statement, Hindenburg took to the microblogging site X (formerly Twitter) to claim that the Buchs’ responses included “several important admissions” and raised “numerous new critical questions.”

Market Reactions and Expert Opinions

Foreign Investors and Experts Express Concerns

Several foreign investors have raised concerns regarding the latest Hindenburg report. Eminent market expert Mark Matthews stated he would wait for the Supreme Court’s opinion, while veteran investor Marc Faber suggested that those involved should resign if the allegations are proven true.

Adani Group’s Denial and SEBI’s Advisory

In its report, Hindenburg alleged that the Buchs held stakes in an offshore fund where substantial investments were made by associates of Vinod Adani. The Adani Group has denied these accusations. Capital market regulator Sebi has advised investors to remain calm and exercise due diligence before reacting to such reports.

AMFI Backs SEBI Chairperson

The Mutual Fund industry body, AMFI, has voiced support for the Sebi chairperson, stating that the US short-seller is trying to create a trust deficit in the market ecosystem. (Note: This story is sourced from ZeeBiz.com.)

Science & Environment

Hindenburg Report: Full statement of Sebi chief, her husband…

12 August 2024
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NEW DELHI: Sebi chief Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch on Sunday rejected the claims of the fresh Hindenburg Research report alleging that the market regulator body chairperson had stakes in “obscure offshore entities used in Adani money siphoning scandal”.
Issuing a point-by-point rebuttal, Madhabi Buch and her husband trashed allegations of impropriety levelled by Hindenburg and hit out at the US-based short-seller for “attacking” Sebi’s credibility and for attempted character assassination of the regulatory body’s chief, while not responding to a notice issued by the market watchdog.
Here’s the full statement:
In the context of allegations made by Hindenburg on 10th Aug 2024 against us, and in line with our commitment to complete transparency, we are issuing a detailed statement as below.
There are certain allegations made against SEBI which would be addressed by the institution independently. We would like to address the issues pertaining to us in our personal capacity.
We would like to state the following:

Madhabi is an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad and has had a corporate career of over two decades in banking and financial services, largely in the ICICI Group.
Dhaval Buch is an alumnus of IIT Delhi and has had a corporate career of 35 years in Hindustan Unilever Limited in India and then in Unilever globally as part of its senior management team. During this long period, Madhabi and Dhaval have accrued their savings through their salaries, bonuses and stock options. Insinuations about their net worth and investments referencing Madhabi’s current government salary is malicious and motivated.
From 2010 to 2019, Dhaval lived and worked in London and in Singapore – both with Unilever.
From 2011 to March 2017, Madhabi lived and worked from Singapore, initially as an employee of a Private Equity firm and subsequently as a consultant.
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, even as a Whole Time Member.
The decision to invest in this fund was because the Chief Investment Officer, Mr Anil Ahuja, is Dhaval’s childhood friend from school and IIT Delhi and, being an ex-employee of Citibank, J.P. Morgan and 3i Group plc, had many decades of a strong investing career. The fact that these were the drivers of the investment decision is borne out by the fact that when, in 2018, Mr. Ahuja, left his position as CIO of the fund, we redeemed the investment in that fund.
As confirmed by Mr. Ahuja, at no point in time did the fund invest in any bond, equity, or derivative of any Adani group company.
Dhaval’s appointment, in 2019, as Senior Advisor to Blackstone Private Equity was on account of his deep expertise in Supply Chain management. Thus his appointment pre-dates Madhabi’s appointment as SEBI Chairperson. This appointment has been in the public domain ever since. At no time has Dhaval been associated with the Real Estate side of Blackstone.
On his appointment, the Blackstone Group was immediately added to Madhabi’s recusal list maintained with SEBI.
Over the last two years, SEBI has issued more than 300 circulars (including “Ease of Doing Business” initiatives in line with the developmental mandate of SEBI) across the entire market eco-system. All regulations of SEBI are approved by its Board (and not by its Chairperson) after extensive public consultation. Insinuations that a handful of these matters related to the REIT industry were favours to any specific party are malicious and motivated.
The two consulting companies set up by Madhabi during her stay in Singapore, one in India and one in Singapore, became immediately dormant on her appointment with SEBI. These companies (and her shareholding in them) were explicitly part of her disclosures to SEBI.
After Dhaval retired from Unilever in 2019, he started his own consultancy practice through these companies. Dhaval’s deep expertise in Supply Chain allowed him to work with prominent clients in the Indian industry. Thus, linking accruals in these companies to Madhabi’s current government salary is malicious.
When the shareholding of the Singapore entity moved to Dhaval, this was once again disclosed, not just to SEBI, but also to the Singapore authorities and the Indian tax authorities.
SEBI has strong institutional mechanisms of disclosure and recusal norms as per the code of conduct applicable to its officers. Accordingly, all disclosures and recusals have been diligently followed, including disclosures of all securities held or subsequently transferred.
Hindenburg has been served a show cause notice for a variety of violations in India. It is unfortunate that instead of replying to the Show Cause Notice, they have chosen to attack the credibility of the SEBI and attempt character assassination of the SEBI Chairperson.

Science & Environment

Madhabi’s response raises new critical questions: Hindenburg Research –…

11 August 2024
by admin

Mumbai: Late Sunday night, Hindenburg Research put up its response to a release by Sebi chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch and husband Dhaval that had called out the US short-seller’s Saturday report as an attempt of “character assassination” of the regulatory chief.
Posting on its X account, Hindenburg said that the response from Puri Buch “includes several important admissions and raises numerous new critical questions”.
In its release — the second one on Sunday — they had detailed their investments through the offshore investment vehicles. They also said that Hindenburg was served a show cause notice for violations of various laws in India.
In its reply, Hindenburg, among several follow up queries and comments, pointed towards an email by Puri Buch that she sent on behalf of her husband on Feb 25, 2018. “This is especially important given whistleblower documents showing that Buch used her personal email to do business using her husband’s name while serving as a whole-time member (WTM) of Sebi,” Hindenburg said.
“In 2017, weeks ahead of her appointment as Sebi (WTM), she ensured the accounts with ties to Adani “be registered solely in the name of Dhaval Buch,” her husband, per whistleblower documents. “Despite disclaiming control, a private email she sent a year into her Sebi term shows she redeemed stakes in the funds through her husband’s name,” Hindenburg said.
“This raises the question: What other investments or business has the Sebi chairperson engaged in through her husband’s name while serving in an official capacity?”
The response from Hindenburg also noted that Buch’s response now publicly confirmed her investment in an obscure Bermuda/Mauritius fund structure, alongside money allegedly siphoned by Vinod Adani (elder brother of Gautam Adani). “She also confirmed the fund was run by a childhood friend of her husband, who at the time was an Adani director,” it said.
While attaching a screenshot, the short-seller also said that one of the two advisory firms was still generating revenue, despite claims that they were dormant.

Science & Environment

Hindenburgs Allegations: Sebi Issues Statement For Investors, Check What…

11 August 2024
by admin

New Delhi: Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), has issued a statement for investors amidst the recent research report released by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research. Sebi has asked the Investors to remain calm and exercise due diligence before reacting to such reports.

“SEBI takes note of the report published by Hindenburg Research on August 10, 2024. Investors should remain calm and exercise due diligence before reacting to such reports. Investors may also like to take note of the disclaimer in the report that states that readers should assume that Hindenburg Research may have short positions in the securities covered in the report,” said the market regulator. (Read More: Check Direct Link Of The Research Report)

Responding to the charges levelled against Sebi on not taking ‘ action against the Adani Group’, the regulator said, the allegations made by Hindenburg Research, against the Adani Group, have been duly investigated by SEBI. (Read More: Sebi Chief Madhabi Puri Buch Gives Point-By-Point Rebuttal)

“Hon’ble Supreme Court in its Order of January 3, 2024 noted that SEBI had completed twenty–two out of twenty–four investigations into the Adani group. Subsequently, one more investigation was completed in March 2024, and one remaining investigation is close to completion. During the ongoing investigation in this matter, more than 100 summons, around 1,100 letters and emails have been issued to seek information. Further, more than 100 communications have been made seeking assistance from domestic/foreign regulators and external agencies. Also more than 300 documents containing around 12,000 pages have been examined,” added Sebi.

Sebi reiterated that as a matter of policy, it refrains from commenting on any investigation/ ongoing enforcement matter.

“It may be noted that pursuant to the completion of investigations, SEBI initiates enforcement proceedings which are quasi–judicial in nature. This comprises issuing of show cause notice and giving of opportunity of hearing which culminates in the passing of a speaking order. Such order is then made available in the public domain. Where investigations have been completed, enforcement proceedings initiated are ongoing and appropriate actions are being taken in accordance with the applicable securities laws,” the Sebi statement said.

SEBI, said that over the years, it has built a robust regulatory framework that not only aligns with best global practices but also ensures protection of investors, adding that the regulator remains committed to ensuring the integrity of India’s Capital markets and its orderly growth and development.

Sebi Chief Madhabi Puri Buch and her husband Dhaval Buch have been named in the latest Hindenburg report (published 10 August 2024) in which the US-based short seller has alleged that the couple had stakes in in offshore funds linked to the Adani Group.

The Hindenburg latest report, citing Whistleblower Documents, said that it showed “Madhabi Buch, The Current Chairperson of SEBI, And Her Husband Had Stakes In Both Obscure Offshore Funds Used In The Adani Money Siphoning Scandal.”