The public bond issue, the first since short seller Hindenburg Research raised several allegations against the Adani Group in January last year, will be managed by the Trust Group, AK Capital and Nuvama Wealth Management.
The company is yet to file a draft prospectus for the bond sale with the Securities and Exchange Board of India and the Registrar or Companies, said a person in the know.
“The company has appointed bankers and upped the issue size after withdrawing the previous issue. The issue will open for investors on September 4,” the person said.The issue has a base size of ₹400 crore and an option to keep another ₹400 crore in case of oversubscription under the green shoe option.The bonds are expected to be rated A+. While NBFCs rated A+ are raising funds at 9.5-10.0%, market experts are expecting a yield around 8.5% for Adani as it is into the infrastructure sector.The proceeds are likely to be used for general corporate purposes.
Spokespersons of Adani, Trust, AK Capital and Nuvama did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The company withdrew the previous draft prospectus dated July 25 citing “commercial and strategic considerations”, it said in a stock exchange filing on August 16.
On August 10, Hindenburg issued a new report, raising questions about Sebi’s investigation into the allegations it had raised last year against the Adani Group, causing a temporary dip in the group’s market value.
As per the withdrawn prospectus, it was looking to raise a minimum of ₹300 crore with an additional ₹300 crore under the green shoe option. CareEdge had assigned an A+ rating to the bonds.
Adani Group’s promoters also have plans to sell shares worth ₹30,000 crore over the next nine months to rebalance their $126 billion portfolio in listed companies. They will reduce stakes in firms like Ambuja Cement and Adani Power while increasing their holding in Adani Green Energy, targeting a 64-68% stake across their companies, ET reported on August 23.