Evergrande liquidators enter exclusive talks to sell majority stake in property services arm

Chinese property developer Evergrande Group's liquidators have entered an exclusivity agreement with a selected bidder to sell its majority stake in its property management unit, an exchange filing showed on Tuesday.

The parties have now agreed to conduct exclusive sale negotiations for a period of 30 business days, with discussions ongoing, according to the statement.

No further details about the identity of the bidder or the estimated deal amount were disclosed.

The liquidators of the embattled developer own a 51.016 percent stake in the services unit, as per Tuesday's announcement.

The announcement comes on the heels of the group's founder, Hui Ka Yan, pleading guilty to eight charges including misuse of funds, earlier in the day.

China Evergrande Group once embodied its name, rising to become the country's premier property developer and floating in Hong Kong in 2009 in the largest listing by a Chinese private developer. But it later amassed the biggest debt pile in the global property industry.

Evergrande has defaulted since 2021 on most of its US$300 billion (HK$2.3 trillion) in liabilities, in troubles emblematic of China's property sector woes that have long dragged on economic growth.

The property services unit was valued at more than HK$94 billion at its 2020 debut and peaked at around HK$200 billion in 2021. Its market capitalisation stands at HK$13.19 billion as of April 14.

Evergrande Property Services did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for further details on the bidder and the estimated deal amount.

Reuters