Adani Group under pressure due to charges, Starbucks explores strategic options in China

A new controversy is shaking the Adani empire: U.S. prosecutors have released allegations linking billionaire founder Gautam Adani to a $250 million bribery scandal. This charge once again throws the sprawling corporate group into turmoil and brings negative headlines, shortly after the company seemed to be slowly regaining market confidence following last year's sell-off triggered by a critical report from Hindenburg Research. The unrest was evident in the stock markets: shares of the flagship Adani Enterprises plummeted by over 20 percent, and an Adani unit halted a planned $600 million bond placement. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Adani's wealth shrank by more than $15 billion on Thursday. Investor GQG Partners emphasized that it would pay attention to the allegations after having the courage to make a contrarian investment of now $10 billion following the Hindenburg attack. At the same time, there are developments in the world of coffee: Starbucks is considering selling shares in its China business—a move likely to pique the interest of local private equity firms and conglomerates. These considerations occur in the context of increasing pressure from activist investor Elliott Investment Management, which advocates that Starbucks consider "strategic partnerships" in China in order to gain a foothold in the competitive market. Local competitors like Luckin Coffee, with creative beverages such as coconut milk coffee and brown sugar boba milk coffee, pose a particular challenge.