Multiple current and former executives of China Evergrande Group and its subsidiaries have been swept up in investigations as authorities look into whether the embattled conglomerate has violated rules over the use of funds, according to sources with knowledge of the matter, reports Caixin. Pan Darong, a previous chief financial officer of the group, has recently been detained by Chinese mainland authorities, who also imposed restrictions on ex-CEO Xia Haijun after he returned to the mainland around mid-2022, according to the sources. Both were in charge of the property giant’s financial operations and resigned in July last year for their alleged involvement in a bank deposit scandal.
One of the world’s most-indebted developers, Hong Kong-listed Evergrande is battling trouble on multiple fronts, including an investigation into its wealth management subsidiary, Evergrande Financial Wealth Management (Shenzhen).
As its financial trouble intensifies, pressure has been building for the developer to repay wealth management products sold by the subsidiary to retail investors while trying to complete housing projects across the country. The subsidiary said in an August statement that it had failed to make payments for the month, fueling public outcry.
