NMC says review of books to first focus on cash position | Business – Gulf News

NMC says review of books to first focus on cash position | Business – Gulf News:

NMC Health said on Monday a review of its books, prompted by a recent short-seller attack, will initially focus on its cash balances as of December 15.

NMC has been embroiled in a bitter battle with US short seller Muddy Waters, after the latter produced a report on Dec. 11 questioning the company’s accounting practices. The research firm highlighted “red flags” in the company’s reported cash balances, suggesting margins were “too good to be true.”

Abu Dhabi-based NMC, which has been has been undergoing a review of its accounts since then, saw its London-listed shares more than halve in mid-December after the activist hedge fund led by Carson Block announced that it had a bet against the stock.

NMC formed a board comprising of independent non-executive directors that will oversee the third-party review. The board will be chaired by Jonathan Bomford, an Ernst & Young veteran who has been advising the firm on matters of corporate governance and has held positions in NMC’s audit and remuneration committees, the company said on Monday.