<p>Hindenburg Research said on Thursday it held short positions in Block Inc, alleging that the Jack Dorsey-led payments firm overstated its user counts and understated its customer acquisition costs.</p>.<p>"Our 2-year investigation has concluded that Block has systematically taken advantage of the demographics it claims to be helping," the short seller said in a note published on its website.</p>.<p>Shares of Block fell 18 per cent in premarket trading after the report.</p>.<p>Block did not immediately respond to a <em>Reuters </em>request for comment.</p>.<p>The US short-seller, behind a market rout of over $100 billion in India's Adani Group, said in its latest report that former Block employees estimated that 40 per cent-75 per cent of accounts they reviewed were fake, involved in fraud, or were additional accounts tied to a single individual.</p>.<p>Reuters could not verify the claims raised by Hindenburg against Block.</p>.<p>About 5.2 per cent of Block's free float shares were in short position as of March 22, according to Ortex data.</p>.<p>Founded in 2017 by Nathan Anderson, Hindenburg Research is a forensic financial research firm that analyses equity, credit and derivatives. It has a track-record of finding corporate wrongdoings and placing bets against the companies.</p>
<p>Hindenburg Research said on Thursday it held short positions in Block Inc, alleging that the Jack Dorsey-led payments firm overstated its user counts and understated its customer acquisition costs.</p>.<p>"Our 2-year investigation has concluded that Block has systematically taken advantage of the demographics it claims to be helping," the short seller said in a note published on its website.</p>.<p>Shares of Block fell 18 per cent in premarket trading after the report.</p>.<p>Block did not immediately respond to a <em>Reuters </em>request for comment.</p>.<p>The US short-seller, behind a market rout of over $100 billion in India's Adani Group, said in its latest report that former Block employees estimated that 40 per cent-75 per cent of accounts they reviewed were fake, involved in fraud, or were additional accounts tied to a single individual.</p>.<p>Reuters could not verify the claims raised by Hindenburg against Block.</p>.<p>About 5.2 per cent of Block's free float shares were in short position as of March 22, according to Ortex data.</p>.<p>Founded in 2017 by Nathan Anderson, Hindenburg Research is a forensic financial research firm that analyses equity, credit and derivatives. It has a track-record of finding corporate wrongdoings and placing bets against the companies.</p>