After NDTV and BQ PRime, Adani Group Completes Takeover of IANS, Furthering Expansion into Media Sector

Key Points

Adani Enterprises Ltd. (AEL), on 22 January 2026, disclosed that AMG Media Networks Ltd. (AMNL) – media arm of the Adani Group – has entered into an agreement to fully acquire IANS India Private Ltd., a prominent multi-language, cross-platform Indian news agency. AEL, which already holds a majority stake in the company, now moves to establish IANS (Indo-Asian News Service) as a wholly owned step-down subsidiary of the Group.

In a regulatory filing – mandatory under Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) regulations – AEL announced that AMNL executed a share purchase agreement on January 21, 2026, to acquire the balance shareholding in IANS. The shares were purchased from existing shareholder Sandeep Bamzai and financial details of the deal have not been revealed.

AMG Media had already secured a majority holding in IANS in earlier phases: In December 2023, the Adani Group acquired a 50.50% stake in the news agency, making it a subsidiary of its media arm. This was followed by a further increase in January 2024, when AMG Media raised its ownership of voting shares to 76% and nearly all non-voting shares.

Prior to the latest agreement, AMG Media held 76% of Category I shares in IANS, which carry voting rights, and 99.26% of Category II shares, which do not carry voting rights. Under the current transaction, the company will acquire the remaining 24% of Category I shares and the residual 0.74% of Category II shares.

IANS supplies content across print, digital, and broadcast platforms. With the completion of the acquisition, the Adani Group will gain full ownership of a newswire that serves a wide range of publishers and broadcasters across the country, furthering its expansion into India’s media sector.

See Also: SEBI Alleges Insider Trading in Adani Group’s NDTV Open Offer; Initiates Proceedings Against Pranav Adani and Relatives

The group’s media foray began in 2022 with the setting up of AMG Media as its primary vehicle for media and publishing investments. Soon after, the company acquired a stake in Quintillion Business Media, which operates the business and financial news platform BQ Prime. Then, in December 2022, the group entered mainstream broadcast news by acquiring a controlling stake of around 65% in NDTV in a surprise takeover.

The initial acquisition of IANS in December 2023 added a newswire component to this portfolio, extending the group’s presence across the content supply chain. With the completion of the takeover, the media interests of the group led by Gautam Adani now span digital platforms, television broadcasting, and news agency services.

Meanwhile, AEL saw its shares fall by 10.8% on 23 January 2026, after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sought to serve summons to Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani over allegations of bribery and fraud. Subsequently, the Adani Group experienced a cumulative loss exceeding ₹1 lakh crore in market capitalization.

The move follows a year of coordination between US authorities and the Indian Ministry of Law and Justice over the issue, which the SEC called a dead-end due to non-cooperation by the Ministry. The US body proceeded to seek permission from a New York court to directly issue the summons through email rather than diplomatic channels.

The allegations, for which Gautam Adani and seven others were indicted in December 2024, detail a scheme to pay $265 million in bribes to Indian government officials for securing domestic power supply contracts.

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