Who Is Mark Kingdon — The Man Who Shorted Adani Enterprises

The recent tussle between India's capital market regulator and the US short-seller Hindenburg Research had taken another turn to bring new facets to the Adani-Hindenburg saga.

Among the key cast in one of the biggest short-selling attacks is Mark Elliot Kingdon, the founder and chief executive officer of Kingdon Capital Management LLC.

With a profit-sharing deal, Hindenburg shared its Adani research exclusively with the New York hedge fund before it was published, the Securities and Exchange Board of India said in its show cause notice. Kingdon's fund made three times more money on the short bets than Hindenburg itself.

SEBI said that FPI Kingdon has allegedly violated SEBI Act, SEBI’s Prevention of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices regulations, and SEBI’s Code of Conduct for Foreign Portfolio Investors.

Established in May 28, 1983, by Mark Kingdon, the investment firm Kingdon Capital Management offers portfolio management, financial planning, and investment advisory services. The firm was incorporated in 1998 and no other person or entity owns 25% or more of the investment firm.

Kingdon has over 50 years of experience in the asset management industry and has managed $623.21 million of client assets on a discretionary basis, as of Jan. 1, 2023, according to recent SEC filings.

Kingdon's firm offers two investment strategies—the 'Flagship Strategy', a global long/short equity strategy and 'Healthcare Strategy', a global long/short healthcare strategy.

Kingdon's career trajectory began with a stint at AT&T Inc. from 1973 to 1975, where he oversaw pension funds. Before this, Kingdon earned his academic credentials: a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Columbia College in 1971 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1973.

Before setting up the investment firm, the chief had an eight-year stint at Century Capital Associates as a portfolio manager and general partner. Kingdon has shown keen interest in philanthropic activities, having made donations to Harlem Children's Zone to aid impoverished children.

The hedge fund founder's achievements include being the 2003 recipient of the Institutional Investor/Alternative Investment News Lifetime Achievement Award, the 2005 recipient of the Columbia University John Jay Award for distinguished professional achievement, and the 2007 recipient of the Columbia University Alexander Hamilton Medal for distinguished accomplishment and service.

Kingdon also served as one of the trustees of Carnegie Hall and is currently on the board of multiple organisations.

In the shorting of the futures contracts of the Adani Group flagship, Adani Enterprises Ltd., Kingdon began subscribing to the shares of its fund, and in January transferred $40 million in two tranches to build short positions in Adani Enterprises.

These positions were eventually squared off after release of the report between January-March 2023, making a profit of around $9.2 million.