UOB says Shimao’s Hui Wing Mau has been taking liberties with borrowed cash
Distressed developers and troubled tech takeovers lead today’s collection of real estate headlines from around the region, as one of Singapore’s biggest banks sues Shimao Group in Hong Kong and Gaw Capital finds an opportunity to move into real estate websites after the collapse of a Singapore SPAC deal.
UOB Sues China’s Shimao Over Loan Breaches
Distressed Chinese developer Shimao Group Holdings and four units have been sued by UOB in Hong Kong, adding to broader signs of growing investor impatience amid the nation’s worsening property debt crisis.
UOB alleged that Shimao and the group entities breached terms of certain loan and security agreements by purportedly reallocating loans and allotting shares between the entities without the Singapore bank’s consent, according to a writ in the Hong Kong High Court dated July 12. Read more>>
Gaw Capital Leads $52M Investment in Singapore’s 99 Group
Carousell Pte Ltd’s bid to buy property portal 99 Group fell through after the online classifieds marketplace ended talks to go public via a merger with a blank-cheque company, according to a person familiar with the matter.
99 Group terminated the talks after Carousell failed to reach a merger agreement with L Catterton Asia Acquisition Corp., a key part of the deal, the person said, asking not to be named as the matter is private. Representatives for Carousell and 99 Group declined to comment. Read more>>
China Mulls Seizing Undeveloped Land From Distressed Developers
China is considering a plan to seize undeveloped land from distressed real estate companies, using it to help finance the completion of stalled housing projects that have sparked mortgage boycotts across the country, according to people familiar with the matter.
The proposal, which is still under discussion and could change, would take advantage of Chinese laws allowing local governments to wrest back control of land sold to real estate companies if it remains undeveloped after two years, without compensation. That would give authorities more leeway to direct funds toward uncompleted homes, potentially to the detriment of creditors who would lose claims on some of developers’ most valuable assets. Read more>>
MTR Tung Chung Project Tender Yields Five Bids in Hong Kong
MTR Corporation (0066) has received five bids for a large residential site in Tung Chung, which is estimated to be worth HK$5.5 billion, after rejecting five bids last year. The tenderers included Nan Fung Group, Sino Land (0083) and Henderson Land Development (0012).
The highest valuations for the site reached HK$5.5 billion, or HK$5,900 per sq ft. But it is still lower than last year’s maximum valuation of HK$7.52 billion, with about HK$8,000 per square foot. Read more>>
Country Garden’s Yang Huiyan Loses Title as Asia’s Wealthiest Woman
Asia’s wealthiest woman lost more than half her fortune over the past year as China’s real estate sector was rocked by a cash crunch, a billionaire index showed on Thursday.
Yang Huiyan, a majority shareholder in Chinese property giant Country Garden, saw her net worth plunge by over 52 per cent to US$11.3 billion from US$23.7 billion a year ago, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Read more>>
Potential 30% Drop in Hong Kong Home Prices Predicted
The worst is yet to come for Hong Kong home prices, with the market at the start of a decline amid interest rate rises and economic slowdown, the 2022 SCMP China Conference heard on Thursday.
With the market at the start of a downwards cycle, home prices will drop 5 to 10 per cent this year, said Joseph Tsang, chairman at JLL Hong Kong. Read more>>
BlackRock, KKR, Pimco Said Shopping for High Yield Debt Bargains
Big investors like BlackRock Inc. and KKR & Co. Inc. think junk bond and leveraged loan prices look cheap, and are slowly buying even if there’s a good chance that markets will oscillate wildly in the coming months.
High-yield companies still have relatively strong balance sheets, and defaults probably won’t surge even in a recession, said Mitchell Garfin, co-head of leveraged finance at BlackRock. Read more>>
CICT Boosts Distributions on Singapore’s Reopening
Capitaland Integrated Commercial Trust on Thursday posted a 0.8 per cent increase in distribution per unit to S$0.0522 for the first half ended June.
Distributable income rose 3.4 per cent to S$347.3 million for the period, from S$335.9 million a year ago, amid an income boost from Singapore’s reopening and the trust’s portfolio reconstitution efforts. Read more>>
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