In early 2023, as scrutiny mounted around India’s Adani Group, two close associates of the Adani family acknowledged to their bankers that they controlled billions of dollars in the conglomerate’s shares through hedge funds. The admission — found in records reviewed by OCCRP, who called them “secret investments” in a new investigative piece— came soon after Hindenburg Research accused the group of inflating its stock through “brazen” manipulation that included promoters and insiders holding more of the float than was publicly disclosed.  The allegations sparked international attention, amplified by the company’s perceived ties to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Although Adani shares initially fell, they later rebounded. The group dismissed the claims as an “attack on India,” and India’s market regulator, SEBI, eventually cleared the company on two specific issues, while other investigative strands have not been publicly detailed. The investors, Nasser Ali Shaban Ahli of the UAE and Taiwan’s Chang Chung-Ling, had long-standing business links to the Adani family. Previously reported holdings in the hundreds of millions now appear far larger: internal documents from Swiss …