Investigation of the properties of carbene complexes is one of the most important fields of modern coordination chemistry. In this paper, we propose the convenient synthesis of NHC–nickel compounds. The 9-nickelafluorenyllithium complex reacts with imidazolium or imidazolinium salts to afford 9-nickelafluorenyl–NHC salts via ionic metathesis with very good yields (66–92%). These compounds can be isomerised at elevated temperatures to give Ni–NHC complexes with excellent yields (88–91%), probably via nickel mediated hydrogen transfer to the biphenyl moiety. In this reaction, the nickelacyclic ring itself serves as a base in the deprotonation of the carbene precursor. DFT calculations show the thermodynamic instability of the synthesized salts, with Gibbs free energy differences for 1 of −84 kJ mol−1 at 298 K and −167 kJ mol−1 at 374 K. The obtained salts and carbene complexes are relatively air and moisture stable in the solid state.
