Mingtiandi

Asia real estate and outbound investment news

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Sign Up / Login Logout

Lost your password?
Register
Forgotten Password
Cancel

Register For This Site

A password will be e-mailed to you.

  • Capital Markets
  • Events
    • Mingtiandi 2022 Event Calendar
    • APAC Residential Forum 2022
    • Asia Logistics Forum 2022
    • Asia REIT Forum 2022
    • APAC Data Centre Forum 2022
    • Singapore Focus Forum 2022
    • Office Strategies Forum 2022
    • More Events
  • MTD TV
  • People
  • Logistics
  • Data Centres
  • Asia Outbound
  • Retail
  • Research & Policy
  • Advertise

Evergrande Founder Steps Down as Chairman of Primary Mainland Unit

2021/08/17 by Christopher Caillavet Leave a Comment

Evergrande Shenzhen

Evergrande’s Shenzhen headquarters has been a busy place recently

Hong Kong-listed China Evergrande’s share price fell 4.3 percent Tuesday on news that the embattled developer’s chairman, Xu Jiayin, had stepped down from the chairmanship of Hengda Real Estate, the Shenzhen-based group’s main property unit in China.

Xu is no longer listed as chairman of Hengda on the website of the state-run National Enterprise Credit Information Publicity System, the billionaire’s name having been replaced with that of Zhao Changlong, a former chairman of Evergrande Property Services and long-time company executive.

Altus - AE Free Trial In-story Banner

No announcement or explanation of the personnel move had appeared on the Hong Kong stock exchange’s website as of late Tuesday.

The latest twist in the Evergrande saga comes as speculation swirls that the world’s most indebted developer may be headed for a restructuring as asset sell-offs and unpaid creditors mount.

Back Door Slammed Shut

While Xu’s departure from Hengda has fuelled speculation of broader changes at Evergrande Group, a report on the Sina news website quoted a person close to Evergrande as saying the reshuffle was normal because an effort to secure a mainland stock-market presence for the company had ended and the action did not involve changes in the specific management structure or equity.

Xu Jiayin NPC

Evergrande founder Xu Jiayin has a right to feel discouraged these days

Hengda had been the focus of a four-year-long attempt at a back-door listing in Shenzhen, a plan that eventually fizzled last November after the company failed to acquire necessary approvals. Most of the company’s strategic investors agreed not to demand repayment despite the failure.

Later that November, Evergrande Property Services managed to raise $1.8 billion in a Hong Kong IPO of its own, albeit downsized from the $3 billion haul originally envisioned.

This month, Moody’s Investors Service cut the corporate family ratings for Hengda and the parent group by two notches, to Caa1 from B2, citing Evergrande’s heightened refinancing risk in light of its weakened funding access and liquidity position.

Scramble for Cash

With overdue bills piling up, Evergrande has launched a frenzy of asset sales. The group continues to reduce its shareholding in its Hong Kong-listed internet division, HengTen Networks Group, as it announced plans earlier this month to offload a HK$3.25 billion ($420 million) stake.

That news came less than two months after the company sold a $570 million stake in HengTen, a mainland joint venture formed by Evergrande and internet giant Tencent in 2015.

Data centre forum 2022 Web banner

Aside from the HengTen stake sales, Evergrande in June sold a nearly $400 million interest in smaller developer Calxon.

The group is also in talks to sell stakes in Evergrande Property Services and the Evergrande NEV electric car unit. Mainland media reported last week that developers China Vanke and Country Garden were walking away from discussions regarding the acquisition of stakes in the property services unit.

Evergrande may have received a respite from its debt woes recently, with Bloomberg reporting last Thursday that three major creditors — China Minsheng Banking Corp, China Zheshang Bank and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank — had given the cash-strapped firm more time to repay maturing loans.

Share this now

  • LinkedIn
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email

Filed Under: Finance Tagged With: China Evergrande Group, daily-sp, Featured, Xu Jiayin

Mingtiandi Membership 780x439 v2

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get Mingtiandi Delivered

MTD TV

value-add forum 2021-03-30
Link REIT CEO George Hongchoy Says Sustainability Key to Boosting Returns
mtd tv dc forum north asia panel thumbnail
Hyperscalers Shaping Data Centre Demand in North Asia: MTD TV

More MTD TV Videos>>

People in the News

Bryan Southergill
Ares Hires Bryan Southergill to Run Asia Real Estate Business
Wu Bingqi CR Land
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2022-08-01
Jennifer Weitzel GLP
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2022-07-25
Bruce PANG JLL
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2022-07-18

More Industry Professionals>>

People in the News

Ares Hires Bryan Southergill to Run Asia Real Estate Business

Bryan Southergill

After more than eight years leading real estate investments for KKR in Asia, Bryan Southergill has taken on a new role … Read More>>

Asia Real Estate People in the News 2022-08-01

Wu Bingqi CR Land

Leadership changes at mainland real estate firms lead this week’s collection of personnel moves from around the region, … Read More>>

Asia Real Estate People in the News 2022-07-25

Jennifer Weitzel GLP

A pair of senior level hires in the data centre sector lead this week’s collection of personnel moves from around the … Read More>>

Asia Real Estate People in the News 2022-07-18

Bruce PANG JLL

A pair of Hong Kong property consultancy moves leads our roundup of personnel updates from across the region this week, … Read More>>

More Industry Professionals>>

Latest Stories

Li Sze-lim R&F
Guangzhou R&F 2021 Net Loss Doubles to $2.4B After Write-Down
kei hoi pang Logan
Logan Halts Payments on Offshore Bonds, Appoints Advisors for ‘Holistic’ Restructuring
stars of kovan - fortune reit, ck asset
Fortune REIT to Buy CK Asset Singapore Project and More Asia Real Estate Headlines

Sponsored Features

For Hong Kong’s Office Market, Border Reopening Holds Key to Unlocking Demand
Top 3 Trends Driving a Connected Experience in Commercial Real Estate
Malaysia Industrial Park Offers Opportunities to Heavy Industry Enterprises

More Sponsored Features>>

MTD-QR-Code-320

Connect with Mingtiandi

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Real Estate News

  • Capital Markets
  • 2022 Event Calendar
  • MTD TV Archives
  • People
  • Logistics
  • Data Centres
  • Asia Outbound
  • Retail

More Mingtiandi

  • About Mingtiandi
  • Contact Mingtiandi
  • Mingtiandi Membership
  • Newsletter Subscription
  • Advertise
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • Join the Mingtiandi Team


© 2007-2022 China Advertising Media Ltd (Samoa). All rights reserved.