Monday, October 2, 2023
manilastandard.net
ADVERTISEMENT
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
    • Young Life
  • Special Pages
    • Pets
    • Tech
      • Gadgets
      • Computers
      • Business
      • Tech Plus
    • On the Road
      • Sedan
      • SUV
      • Truck
      • Bike
      • Accessories
      • Motoring Plus
      • Commuter’s Corner
    • Home & Design
      • Residential
      • Commercial
      • Construction
      • Interior
    • Spotlight
    • Cravings
    • Environment & Sustainability
    • Agriculture
    • Pop.Life
      • Newsmakers
      • Hangouts
      • A-Pop
      • Post Its
      • Performances
      • Malls & Bazaars
      • Hobbies & Collections
    • Events
      • Seminars
      • Exhibits
      • Community
    • Biyahero
      • Travel Features
      • Travel Reels
      • Travel Logs
    • Gallery
      • Photos
      • Videos
  • Advertise with Us
No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
    • Young Life
  • Special Pages
    • Pets
    • Tech
      • Gadgets
      • Computers
      • Business
      • Tech Plus
    • On the Road
      • Sedan
      • SUV
      • Truck
      • Bike
      • Accessories
      • Motoring Plus
      • Commuter’s Corner
    • Home & Design
      • Residential
      • Commercial
      • Construction
      • Interior
    • Spotlight
    • Cravings
    • Environment & Sustainability
    • Agriculture
    • Pop.Life
      • Newsmakers
      • Hangouts
      • A-Pop
      • Post Its
      • Performances
      • Malls & Bazaars
      • Hobbies & Collections
    • Events
      • Seminars
      • Exhibits
      • Community
    • Biyahero
      • Travel Features
      • Travel Reels
      • Travel Logs
    • Gallery
      • Photos
      • Videos
  • Advertise with Us
No Result
View All Result
manilastandard.net
No Result
View All Result
Home Business Biz Plus

Chinese real estate tycoon battles to save conglomerate

AFPbyAFP
September 12, 2021, 7:25 pm
in Biz Plus
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on Email

BEIJING, China—From rural poverty to real estate billions, the fortunes of Xu Jiayin tracked China’s runaway growth for much of the past two decades—but now he is battling to save his Evergrande conglomerate from a quagmire of debt.

The 62-year-old—also known as Hui Ka Yan in Cantonese—was at one point China’s richest man, with a taste for luxury labels, exclusive yachts and a nose for praising the Communist Party that steered the economy to a home ownership boom.

But Evergrande is sagging under hundreds of billions of dollars of debt as fears mount of an imminent collapse that could ricochet across the world’s second-biggest economy.

“China’s property developers-–and their creditors–-appear to be approaching a reckoning,” said analysts at Capital Economics in a note.

They warned Evergrande is “close to collapse” with large losses looming for banks, bondholders and home buyers.

Total liabilities had swelled to 1.97 trillion yuan (US$305 billion), the embattled group said last week, warning of the risk of default.

Evergrande started to falter under the new “three red lines” imposed on developers in a state crackdown in August 2020—forcing the group to offload properties at increasingly steep discounts.

Xu’s ascent mirrored China, rocketing from a largely rural and impoverished society to the gargantuan economy it is today.

The now-billionaire, whose mother died when he was a year old, recalled in a 2017 speech how he ate just sweet potato and steamed bread throughout his school years.

“The sheets I laid, the quilts I covered, and the clothes I wore were all covered with piles of patches,” Xu said.

“At that time, my greatest wish was to go out of the countryside, find a job and be able to eat better food.”

After leaving school in 1976—the end of the decade-long Cultural Revolution—he struggled to find work.

As colleges reopened, Xu studied metallurgy and was later assigned to a state-run steel factory.

He left in 1992 for Shenzhen, the buzzing heart of China’s reform and opening-up experiment in the 1990s, before founding Evergrande in 1996.

$60 million superyacht

All 323 apartments in the firm’s first completed project sold in half a day, and raked in 80 million yuan.

Evergrande threw itself into mass development, building in-demand apartments across China and capitalizing on its rapid wealth accumulation.

The group listed in Hong Kong in 2009, raising HK$70.5 billion (US$9 billion) in its initial public offering, making it China’s largest private real estate company and making Xu the mainland’s richest man with a net worth of 42.2 billion yuan.

In 2010, Xu bought the then-embattled Guangzhou football team, renaming it Guangzhou Evergrande and pouring money into world-class players and coaches.

A football novice when he bought the club, Xu helped the team win eight league championships.

He also cracked down on bad behavior, reportedly fining a player who challenged the referee and introducing the “Five Musts”—including “Players must obey the referee’s judgement unconditionally.”

The group also invested in electric vehicles, tourism and bottled water.

According to   the SuperYachtFan website, Xu is the owner of a $60-million yacht.

He also has a private jet, which Australian media reported he used for scouting out Sydney development opportunities in 2014.

Xu also became known for a love of luxury labels, particularly French brand Hermes—earning the nickname “Belt Xu” after wearing a Hermes belt for the national political congress in 2012.

Some have speculated his success has come from useful close relationships, including with the brother of former premier Wen Jiabao.

But Xu has attributed his success to education—and the Communist Party.

“Without the resumption of the national college entrance examination, I am still in the countryside.   Without a state grant of 14 yuan, I couldn’t go to university.  Without the country’s reform and opening up, Evergrande is not what it is today,” he said.

“Everything of Evergrande is given by the Party, the state and the society.”

But Xu is now facing a government crackdown on extreme wealth, with President Xi Jinping leading a drive for “common prosperity” against vast wealth.

In 2017, his wealth was estimated at $43 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

But that is now down to less than $9 billion, having lost an eye-watering $14.5 billion since the start of the year alone as the value of Evergrande has collapsed.

Tags: ChinaChineseHui Ka Yanreal estate tycoonXu Jiayin
ADVERTISEMENT
AFP

AFP

Related Posts

NDC agrees to help fund power market platform

byOthel V. Campos
October 1, 2023, 9:05 pm
0
8
Banaag assumes post as Bright Kindle director

The National Development Company (NDC) expects to sign the co-investment agreement for SolX Technologies, the country’s first power marketplace platform,...

Read more

Solar-powered vessel raises awareness on marine conservation

byManila Standard
September 30, 2023, 8:10 pm
0
8
P&A Foundation, accounting industry groups set the stage for the 25th SOASP

The Circular Explorer continues to make progress in its mission as an ambassador vessel for circular living and to support...

Read more

P&A Foundation, accounting industry groups set the stage for the 25th SOASP

byManila Standard
September 30, 2023, 8:00 pm
0
8
P&A Foundation, accounting industry groups set the stage for the 25th SOASP

P&A Foundation Inc., (P&A Foundation), the Philippine Institute of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA), and the Association of Certified Public Accountants...

Read more

SM Investments named one of Asia’s outstanding firms

byManila Standard
September 29, 2023, 9:20 pm
0
8
SMIC plans to raise P15 billion from the sale of fixed-rate bonds

SM Investments Corp., one of the leading conglomerates in the Philippines, was named one of Asia’s Outstanding Companies for ESG...

Read more

Bloombery plans to raise P5.6b from share offering

byJenniffer B. Austria
September 29, 2023, 9:15 pm
0
8
Bloombery plans to raise P5.6b from share offering

Bloomberry Resorts Corp., the operator of Solaire Resorts & Casino, is raising up to P5.6 billion from its share sale....

Read more

Producer price index grew faster in August—PSA

byJulito G. Rada
September 29, 2023, 8:55 pm
0
8
2022 trade deficit hit record $58.3b, imports surged 17%

The producer price index (PPI), which measures the average change over time in selling prices received by domestic producers of...

Read more

Print Edition

View More

Recent Posts

  • Ukraine says working with US after Congress drops aid
  • 850,000 Meralco customers lose power as 500-kilovolt line trips
  • Rice price cap seen lifted soon
  • Speaker says House, DSWD set to give out cash aid to 3m poor
  • Importation hurting local poultry industry, says DA
  • Protect us from Chinese ships, fishers ask Navy, PCG
  • Over 1k nabbed for election gun ban; Cops monitor 38 private armed groups
  • ‘Jenny’ becomes typhoon, Signal No. 1 over Batanes

Advertisement

Latest News

Protect us from Chinese ships, fishers ask Navy, PCG

byManila Standard
October 2, 2023, 12:45 am
0
8
China coast guard chases Pinoy fisherman in disputed waters

Fishermen appealed to the government on Sunday to increase coast guard and naval patrols to protect them from the Chinese...

Read more

Over 1k nabbed for election gun ban; Cops monitor 38 private armed groups

byVince Lopez
October 2, 2023, 12:40 am
0
8
Comelec junks nuisance case vs. Marcos Jr.

Over a thousand people have been arrested for violating the gun ban imposed for the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan...

Read more

‘Jenny’ becomes typhoon, Signal No. 1 over Batanes

byRio N. Araja
October 2, 2023, 12:35 am
0
8
Owner, driver of SUV in viral fight summoned

Tropical Cyclone “Jenny” (international name: Koinu) has intensified and was expected to reach typhoon strength last night as Signal No....

Read more

‘Be hard to reach to avoid scams’

byManila Standard
October 2, 2023, 12:30 am
0
8
CICC taps consumer group to address fraud

The public should ignore calls requesting personal information or PIN (personal identification number) codes, and being more difficult to reach...

Read more

Owner, driver of SUV in viral fight summoned

byRio N. Araja
October 2, 2023, 12:25 am
0
8
Southwoods nails Seniors’ Fil golf crown

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) has served show-cause orders (SCOs) against the driver and the owner of a sports utility...

Read more

Advertisement

ADVERTISEMENT
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube

ABOUT US

Manila Standard

Manila Standard website (manilastandard.net), launched in August 2002, extends the newspaper’s reach beyond its traditional readers and makes its brand of Philippine news and opinion available to a much wider and geographically diverse readership here and overseas.

Digital Edition

In tone and content, the online edition mirrors the editorial thrust of the newspaper. While hewing to the traditional precepts of fairness and objectivity, MS believes the news of the day need not be staid, overly long or dry. Stories are succinct, readable and written in a lively style that has become a hallmark of the newspaper.

Download – Today’s Paper

Search

No Result
View All Result

6th Floor Universal Re Bldg., 106 Paseo De Roxas cor. Perea Street, Legaspi Village, 1226 Makati City Philippines

Trunklines: 832-5554, 832-5556, 832-5558

© 2021 Manila Standard - Designed and Developed by Neitiviti Studios.

No Result
View All Result
  • About
  • News
    • Top Stories
    • National
    • World News
    • Pinoy Abroad
    • Features
  • Opinion
    • Editorial
    • Columns
    • Soundbytes
  • LGUs
    • NCR
    • Luzon
    • Visayas
    • Mindanao
  • Business
    • Corporate
    • Economy & Trade
    • Stocks
    • Money
    • Agri & Mining
    • Power & Tech
    • IT & Telecom
  • Sports
    • Basketball
    • Volleyball
    • Fightsports
    • Active
    • Sports Plus
    • One Championship
    • Columns
  • Entertainment
    • TV & Movies
    • Celebrity Profiles
    • Music & Concerts
    • Digital Media
    • Columns
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Culture & Media
    • Fashion
    • Health and Home
    • Leisure
    • Shopping
    • Columns
    • Young Life
  • Pets
  • Tech
    • Gadgets
    • Computers
    • Business
    • Tech Plus
  • ON THE ROAD
    • Sedan
    • SUV
    • Truck
    • Bike
    • Accessories
    • Motoring Plus
    • Commuter’s Corner
  • Home & Design
    • Residential
    • Commercial
    • Construction
    • Interior
  • Spotlight
  • Cravings
  • Environment & Sustainability
  • Agriculture
  • Pop.Life
    • Newsmakers
    • Hangouts
    • A-Pop
    • Post Its
    • Performances
    • Malls & Bazaars
    • Hobbies & Collections
  • Events
    • Seminars
    • Exhibits
    • Community
  • Biyahero
    • Travel Features
    • Travel Reels
    • Travel Logs
  • Gallery
    • Photos
    • Videos
  • Advertise with Us

© 2021 Manila Standard - Designed and Developed by Neitiviti Studios.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Install Manila Standard Web App

Install App