US authorities plan to drop fraud charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani that were first revealed in 2024, according to a Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the matter.
In a major advance for the Adani Group, the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) could resolve charges related to Gautam Adani as soon as this week, nearly 18 months after they accused the Indian mogul of involvement in a bribery and fraud scheme.
A New York Times report added that Adani’s appointment of Robert Giuffra, one of US President Donald Trump’s personal lawyers, and his offer to invest $10 billion in the US economy played a major role in the US government’s decision.
In 2024, the US Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn, New York issued a criminal indictment that alleged that Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani, and other executives were involved in a scheme to bribe Indian government officials in an attempt to secure a multi-billion-dollar solar contract. Additionally, the indictment alleged that the Adani family then misled investors about the bribery scheme while trying to attract investments from America and international investors.
“As alleged in the indictment, between approximately 2020 and 2024, the defendants agreed to pay more than $250 million in bribes to Indian government officials to obtain lucrative solar energy supply contracts with the Indian government, which were expected to generate more than $2 billion in after-tax profits over a period of approximately 20 years (the bribery scheme),” reads the indictment, which alleges that Adani personally met with an Indian government official to discuss the matter. Bribery scheme.
The legal charges against the Adani Group represent a serious challenge to the company’s ability to do business in the United States. For its part, Adani Group denied the accusations, describing them as “baseless.”
“Despite all the hype, the facts are that no one from the Adani Group has been charged with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act or conspiring to obstruct justice,” Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani said at the company’s annual general meeting in June last year.
Even as legal action surrounding bribery and fraud charges continues in the US system, Adani Group has built a significant influence operation in Washington in an attempt to address the accusations with the Trump administration. Adani Green Energy Limited was the third biggest spender on lobbying in India in 2025, spending $50,000 on two firms – Kirkland and Ellis LLP and Quinn, Emanuel, Urquhart and Sullivan LLP. The two firms focused on “green energy issues and related criminal and civil matters.” Adani North America and its subsidiaries are also registered as a lobbying firm on behalf of the Adani Group.
According to the New York Times, Adani’s lawyer Robert Giuffra met with Justice Department officials last month in Washington and said US prosecutors did not have the evidence or jurisdiction to bring a case against Adani’s family.
In addition, Giuffra explained the group’s willingness to invest $10 billion in the American economy and create 15,000 jobs if the charges are dropped. The New York Times reported that this offer aroused the interest of senior officials in the Department of Justice.
