Short Seller That Targeted Noble Group Takes Aim at Another Trading House

Short seller previously published reports on trader Noble
The report increases scrutiny of Trafigura’s accounting

Employees work at the office of Trafigura India Private Ltd., a subsidiary of Trafigura Group Pte., in Mumbai, India.Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg

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By Andy Hoffman and Luca Casiraghi

June 19, 2019 at 10:51 AM UTC

Updated on

June 20, 2019 at 8:49 AM UTC

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Iceberg Research, the short seller that targeted commodities trader Noble Group Ltd., has another trading house in its sights: Trafigura Group Ltd.

Trafigura is overstating the value of debt securities related to its 49.5% stake in Porto Sudeste, an iron ore export terminal in Brazil, Iceberg, headed by Arnaud Vagner, said Wednesday in a report on its website. Iceberg estimates those securities may be worth only a 10th of the $490 million carrying value that Trafigura attributes to them.