Damas Signs ‘Standstill’ Accord on Debt With Lenders

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Damas International Ltd. reached a “standstill” accord with most of its creditors to defer payments as the jewelry retailer seeks to restructure its business after it was fined by the market regulator for unauthorized deals.

“A restructuring plan is currently being developed by the company, which will be implemented at the end of the standstill period,” the Dubai-based company said in an e-mailed statement today. Damas didn’t give details of its lenders or the amount involved in the standstill agreement.

The retailer had 3.25 billion dirhams ($885 million) in liabilities at the end of September, according to its financial statement on the Nasdaq Dubai bourse Web site. The company posted a six-month loss of 714.8 million dirhams for the period ended Sept. 30 after reporting a profit of 91.1 million dirhams in the year-earlier period.