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Damas Announces Senior Management Changes

DUBAI — Damas International Limited said on Tuesday that its board of directors made several key management changes including appointment of its Chief Financial Officer, Sanjay Kalsi, as interim acting chief executive.

Sanjay Manchanda, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) which is advising Damas on its restructuring process, was appointed chief restructuring adviser, the company said in a statement to Nasdaq Dubai.

Dinish Dhanak was named interim acting chief financial officer and Namir El Aridi general counsel and company secretary.

The Dubai-based jeweller’s Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Tawhid Abdulla resigned in October after Damas reported “unauthorized transactions” of about $165 million.

“We welcome these gentlemen, and the expertise they bring, to the senior management team of Damas,” said Tawfique Abdullah, Chairman of Damas. “I am pleased to report that the company continues to trade well and is generating cash from its operations.”

The board expressed their thanks to Hisham Ashour for his contribution to Damas over the past few months. Ashour, a former executive of private equity firm Arabia Capital, came to the company under an interim contract to work with Damas through a transition period. He has now left the Company to pursue other interests.

The Board’s Nominations Committee is currently reviewing candidates for a permanent CEO, the statement said.

Last week it was reported that Damas may agree to a formal standstill agreement on Dh4.1 billion in debts with its creditors, which include some international banks, local entities and Indian lenders. The agreement was expected to start a formal restructuring process and culminate in another deal with in a few months.

Damas, which started business in Dubai some 50 years ago, expanded into Europe and Asia and in 2008 launched a $271 million initial public offering, has hired PwC to conduct a forensic audit of the unauthorised transactions, which are reported to have included property and share purchases during the period of Dubai’s meteoric expansion prior to the end of 2008.

In June of that year Damas had more than 467 retail outlets in 18 countries and had revenues of Dh2.4bn in the first half of the year.

Ashour had advised cutting the number of branches – including abandoning Italian outlets – and staff. He had aims to refocus on the core business of gold and diamond jewellery sales in the Middle East, India and Pakistan, which the company believes are holding up.

In its last financial results, last month, the company wrote off the unauthorised transactions and a disputed $80 million loan to a unit of a state-run investment firm that is at the centre of the PwC inquiry.
 — business@khaleejtimes.com