In the sweltering heat of 1973 Abu Dhabi, a young pharmacist named Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty stepped off the plane with just eight dollars in his pocket, his heart pounding with a mix of fear and excitement. Born on August 1, 1942, in the coastal town of Udupi, Karnataka, India, into a modest Tulu-speaking Bunt family, Shetty had grown up in a world of simple dreams. 10 His early education in a Kannada-medium school and pharmaceutical studies at Manipal had equipped him with knowledge, but not fortune. Back home, he hustled as a medical representative, peddling drugs door-to-door, but the pull of opportunity abroad was irresistible.

“I can’t stay here scraping by,” Shetty confided to his wife, Chandrakumari, one evening in their tiny Indian home. “The Gulf is booming—oil money, new cities rising from the sand. If I go, we can build something real.” She nodded, her eyes steady. “Then go, Raghu. But promise you’ll send for me soon.” With that pact, he boarded the flight, landing in a UAE that was still a fledgling federation, its deserts dotted with promise.

Shetty’s first gig was as the country’s inaugural medical representative, charming doctors and hospitals with samples and smiles. 8 But he saw gaps everywhere—no affordable clinics for the exploding expatriate workforce. In 1975, with sheer grit, he opened the New Medical Centre (NMC) as a humble outpatient spot in Abu Dhabi. Chandrakumari joined him, becoming the clinic’s sole doctor, tending to patients from dawn till dusk. “This isn’t just a business,” Shetty would tell his small team, clapping a hand on a nurse’s shoulder. “We’re saving lives here, one fever at a time.”

What started as a single clinic ballooned into an empire. By the 1980s, NMC had sprouted hospitals across the UAE, then branched into Saudi Arabia, Oman, Europe, and even Latin America. 10 Spotting another need—expatriates wiring money home—Shetty launched UAE Exchange in 1980, which became a remittance giant. “Why should workers lose half their earnings to fees?” he’d challenge his advisors during late-night strategy sessions. “Let’s make it fast, cheap, and trustworthy.” In 2003, he added Neopharma, a state-of-the-art pharmaceutical plant in Abu Dhabi, churning out affordable generics.

The pinnacle came in 2012 when NMC Health listed on the London Stock Exchange, the first UAE healthcare firm to do so, valued at over $1 billion and soaring to more than $10 billion at its peak. 8 Shetty’s net worth ballooned to $3.5-4 billion, landing him on Forbes’ billionaire list. 9 He diversified further, acquiring Travelex in 2014 under his Finablr holding company, blending healthcare, finance, and travel into a global juggernaut. Honors poured in: the Padma Shri from India in 2009, accolades from the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce, and philanthropy that funded schools and clinics back home. 10 His life screamed success—a private jet, floors in the Burj Khalifa, a fleet of Rolls-Royces and Maybachs, and estates on Palm Jumeirah. 9 “We’ve made it,” he’d toast with friends at lavish dinners, his voice thick with pride. “From Udupi to the world—who would’ve thought?”

But empires built on sand can shift. In December 2019, a bombshell report from U.S. short-seller Muddy Waters accused NMC of inflating cash balances and hiding massive debts. 8 The stock plummeted, wiping out billions. “This can’t be right,” Shetty muttered in a frantic boardroom call, his face paling as executives scrambled. “I’ve trusted you all—how did this happen?” By early 2020, the truth emerged: over $4 billion in undisclosed debt, forged documents, and unauthorized loans. 10 Shetty resigned in February, insisting he was in the dark, betrayed by trusted aides.

The fallout was brutal. NMC entered UK administration in April 2020, delisted from the exchange. 9 Banks like Abu Dhabi Commercial swooped in with lawsuits for billions; assets froze in India and the UAE. 8 Shetty fled to India amid investigations, his once-glamorous life reduced to courtrooms. “I’ve been stabbed in the back,” he told reporters, his voice cracking. “I built this with integrity—truth will out.”

By 2025, the saga dragged on. A Dubai DIFC Court ordered him to pay $46 million to India’s State Bank for unpaid guarantees, dismissing his denials as “an incredible parade of lies.” 10 His sprawling empire, once worth Rs 12,478 crore, sold for a pittance—symbolically, some assets fetched just Rs 74. 9 Yet, from India, where he’s cooperated with probes, Shetty clings to hope. “I believe truth will prevail,” he said recently, eyeing a return to the UAE. 8 His story—a rollercoaster of ambition, triumph, and treachery—reminds us that fortunes, like desert mirages, can vanish in an instant. NMC thrives under new owners, a testament to his vision, even as the man himself fights to reclaim his name.