The urgency to find cash for salaries adds to the pressure on NMC, which has asked its

bankers for a standstill in debt repayment while it tries to renegotiate

around $2 billion of liabilities.

Coming in the middle of the global coronavirus outbreak, the need to keep medical facilities

fully open and functioning is urgent.

The UAE authorities are known to be concerned with the NMC situation, and are believed to

be considering financial intervention to help the company keep going. Creditor banks are also

being encouraged to be understanding in their discussions of new

repayment terms.

NMC’s current financial problems began in December when a report from US activist

investor Muddy Waters highlighted problems at the company.

Its shares lost 70 per cent in value before they were suspended on the LSE, wiping billions of

dollars of value off the company and its shareholders.

In a related development, the LSE said it would be removing NMC from the FTSE 100 list of

leading companies when trading in the shares eventually resumes because it had fallen below

the minimum value required.

NMC was regarded as one of the great success stories from the UAE, having been founded in

1973 by entrepreneur BR Shetty, who is believed to have recently traveled on urgent family

business to his family home in India.

Its problems were compounded when Shetty and two Emirati backers — Khaleefa Butti

Omair Al-Muhairi and Saeed Mohammed Butti Mohamed Khalfan Al-Qebaisi — were found

to have pledged shares against bank loans.

Drawbacks of NMC

A. Staff not getting their salaries on time, plus CEO