GQG Sees $2 Billion Adani Bet Delivering Returns Over 100%

Rajiv Jain, the GQG Partners Inc. chief investment officer who bought almost $2 billion worth of Adani Group stock last month, sees the bet on the Indian conglomerate delivering a return in excess of 100%.

"These could be multibaggers" over five years, Mr Jain said in an interview at Bloomberg's New York headquarters. The term comes from mutual fund manager Peter Lynch's book and describes an investment that could at least double.

Mr Jain has grown Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based GQG by going against the tide of what he calls "comfort investing" - making decisions by committee rather than taking risks on undervalued public shares.

His firm oversees more than $90 billion. Its most high-profile bet this year was backing billionaire Gautam Adani by acquiring shares in four of his firms from a family trust after a short-seller attack wiped out as much as $153 billion in market value.

A January 24 report from Hindenburg Research said Mr Adani was "pulling the largest con in corporate history." The report read like a "10-year-old newspaper," Mr Jain said.

One of Hindenburg's allegations is that by using a labyrinth of offshore accounts connected to the family, the group skirted Securities and Exchange Board of India requirements that public shareholders own at least 25% of a stock. Mr Adani has denied the claims.

"One of the issues raised was that he owns more than 75% of the company, right? And let me ask you in real simple English, is that fraud?" Mr Jain said. "Is it not disclosed properly? Yeah, it's some of that, you could argue that, but is it fraud?"

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