Real estate developer China Evergrande Group announced in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Monday evening that it and its liquidators are seeking to recover about $6 billion in dividends and remuneration paid to seven people and entities related to the group.
The seven people and entities are the company’s former chairman Xu Jiayin, former chief executive officer Xia Haijun, former chief financial officer Pan Darong, and Ding Yumei Xu’s spouse or reportedly ex-spouse, and three economic entities associated with Xu and Ding.
On March 22, 2024, the liquidators, acting on behalf of the company, initiated the legal proceedings against Xu, Xia and Pan in the Hong Kong High Court, which, since then, have expanded to the other four additional defendants, the filing said.
The company claimed the approximately $6 billion in dividends and remuneration it seeks to recover was paid to the seven based on the alleged misrepresentations of the company’s financial position between 2017 and 2020.
The liquidators, acting on behalf of the company, have obtained various injunctions in the lawsuit, restricting Xu, Ding and Xia from disposing, selling, or reducing the value of their global assets beyond certain specified limits.
These injunctions were first issued in Hong Kong against Xu and Xia on June 24, 2024, and have since been expanded to include Ding. The writs related to the lawsuit and the Hong Kong injunctions were previously subject to a confidentiality order issued by the Hong Kong High Court, which was lifted on Aug 2.
The legal proceedings are ongoing, and there is uncertainty about the likelihood of a successful claim and the amount the company may ultimately recover. The liquidator will issue further announcements regarding the aforementioned matters in accordance with the provisions of the listing rules, the company said in the statement. Trading of the company’s shares will remain suspended until further notice, it said.
liuzhihua@chinadaily.com.cn