DUBAI: The new executive chairman of hospital operator NMC Health vowed on Saturday to work with authorities in Britain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to recover misused funds and called on the company’s creditors for a debt standstill.
Faisal Belhoul said in a statement that keeping NMC Health operating was a “national priority,” particularly as the country and the world battle the coronavirus pandemic.
Belhoul said putting the hospital operator into administration would “cause instability to the operating businesses of the NMC Group, creating additional pressure on the group’s liquidity and reducing value for all creditors.”
A temporary debt standstill, by contrast, would allow the firm to prepare and activate a recovery plan.
London-listed NMC recently revised its debt position to $6.6 billion, much higher than earlier estimated.
NMC’s stock has more than halved in value since December and trading in its shares was suspended in February. The decline was triggered by a report by short seller Muddy Waters that questioned the company’s financial statement.
Belhoul’s appointment was made after the company’s non-executive directors uncovered alleged theft and excess undisclosed borrowings by former directors of the company, the statement said.
Belhoul is a founder and chairman of Ithmar Capital Partners, which owns a 9% stake in NMC.
“We are working in full cooperation and in close dialogue with authorities in the UAE and UK, including the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), and will vigorously chase down the perpetrators for return of these funds,” he said.
Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, one of more than 80 local, regional and international creditors, said last week it had over $981 million exposure to NMC Health.
NMC Health claims to be the largest private health care company in the UAE, operating more than 200 facilities, which includes hospitals, clinics and pharmacies.
“The NMC Group is currently treating hundreds of people suspected of having COVID-19 and in the UAE has screened more than 10,000 workers for the virus in partnership with the Ministry of Health and Prevention and the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratization,” the statement said.
NMC Health’s new executive chair vows to recover misused funds
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NMC Health’s new executive chair vows to recover misused funds
- London-listed NMC recently revised its debt position to $6.6 billion, much higher than earlier estimated
- NMC’s stock has more than halved in value since December and trading in its shares was suspended in February
Saudi Arabia’s cultural sector is a new economic engine between Riyadh and Paris, says ambassador
RIYADH: Culture has become a fundamental pillar in bilateral relations between France and Saudi Arabia, according to the French Ambassador to the Kingdom, Patrick Maisonnave.
Maisonnave noted its connection to the entertainment and tourism sectors, which makes it a new engine for economic cooperation between Riyadh and Paris.
He told Al-Eqtisadiah during the opening ceremony of La Fabrique in the Jax district of Diriyah that cultural cooperation with Saudi Arabia is an important element for its attractiveness in the coming decades.
La Fabrique is a space dedicated to artistic creativity and cultural exchange, launched as part of a partnership between the Riyadh Art program and the French Institute in Riyadh.
Running from Jan. 22 until Feb 14, the initiative will provide an open workspace that allows artists to develop and work on their ideas within a collaborative framework.
Launching La Fabrique as a space dedicated to artistic creativity
The ambassador highlighted that the transformation journey in the Kingdom under Vision 2030 has contributed to the emergence of a new generation of young artists and creators, alongside a growing desire in Saudi society to connect with culture and to embrace what is happening globally.
He affirmed that the relationship between the two countries is “profound, even cultural par excellence,” with interest from the Saudi side in French culture, matched by increasing interest from the French public and cultural institutions unfolding in the Kingdom.
Latest estimates indicate that the culture-based economy represents about 2.3 percent of France’s gross domestic product, equivalent to more than 90 billion euros ($106.4 billion) in annual revenues, according to government data. The sector directly employs more than 600,000 people, making it one of the largest job-creating sectors in the fields of creativity, publishing, cinema, and visual arts.
Saudi Arabia benefiting from French experience in the cultural field
Maisonnave explained that France possesses established cultural institutions, while Saudi Arabia is building a strong cultural sector, which opens the door for cooperation opportunities.
This comes as an extension of the signing of 10 major cultural agreements a year ago between French and Saudi institutions, aiming to enhance cooperation and transfer French expertise and knowledge to contribute to the development of the cultural system in the Kingdom.
He added that experiences like La Fabrique provide an opportunity to meet the new generation of Saudi creators, who have expressed interest in connecting with French institutions and artists in Paris and France.
La Fabrique encompasses a space for multiple contemporary artistic practices, including performance arts, digital and interactive arts, photography, music, and cinema, while providing the public with an opportunity to witness the stages of producing artistic works and interact with the creative process.
