Hindenburg Research, the US-based short-selling firm known for targeting high-profile businesses, is shutting down, founder Nate Anderson announced in a letter posted on the firm’s website.
“I have made the decision to disband Hindenburg Research. The plan has been to wind up after we finished the pipeline of ideas we were working on,” Anderson wrote.
In January 2023, Hindenburg published a report alleging fraud and false accounting at Adani Group, leading to a significant drop in the share prices of seven listed group companies and the cancellation of a Rs 200 billion ($2.3 billion) follow-on public offering and a Rs 10 billion public bond issue. Adani Group denied the allegations.
In August 2023, Hindenburg accused India’s market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), of failing to thoroughly investigate Adani Enterprises due to an alleged conflict of interest. SEBI Chair Madhabi Buch denied the claims, stating that procedures were in place to handle potential conflicts.
Hindenburg also took on US billionaires Jack Dorsey and Carl Icahn. In March 2023, it alleged that Dorsey’s payments company, Block, overstated user numbers and understated acquisition costs. Block called the report “factually inaccurate and misleading.” In May 2023, the firm alleged that Icahn Enterprises misled investors about risky personal margin loans. In August 2024, the US Securities and Exchange Commission fined Icahn $2 million over allegations of misleading investors.
Anderson highlighted Hindenburg’s role in regulatory action against nearly 100 individuals, including billionaires and oligarchs. “We shook some empires that we felt needed shaking,” he wrote.
The firm, which grew to a team of 11, will see some members start their own research ventures. Anderson said the decision to disband was not driven by external threats or personal crises. “I now view Hindenburg as a chapter in my life, not a central thing that defines me,” he stated.
