DUBAI: On May 7th, Dubai's third-largest traded real estate firm, Deyaar Development Co., announced that its agreement to develop projects with India’s Ansal Properties & Infrastructure has been canceled.
Nasser al-Sheikh stated, "The memorandum of understanding between Deyaar and Ansal Properties to develop a project in India has been terminated by mutual consent," as per a declaration on the Dubai bourse website.
This news comes in the wake of a financial investigation into alleged embezzlement within Deyaar, which has led to the detention of former chief executive Zack Shahin along with three additional individuals connected to this inquiry. Following the announcement, Deyaar's shares remained unchanged at 2.37 UAE dirhams ($0.64), although they dipped to 2.31 dirhams during intraday trading. Notably, the stock has seen nearly a twenty percent decline this year.
Meanwhile, shares of Ansal closed down by 0.7 percent, settling at Rs172.95 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The cancellation of the partnership took effect on May 7th, according to Deyaar’s statement.
Deyaar was poised to acquire up to a forty percent stake in a project intended for a township development that included both residential and commercial real estate in India, as previously disclosed by Ansal last year on the Bombay Stock Exchange website. Despite the cancellation, the company expressed its intention to still explore opportunities in India, signaling that discussions with other potential partners are ongoing.