Evergrande sells $506m stake

Guangzhou-based property developer Evergrande has sold a 13% stake worth US$506 million in a private placement to a group that includes Hong Kong developer Henry Cheng, two investment banks and an investment fund from the Middle East, the South China Morning Post reported. Cheng, who runs New World Development, paid US$150 million for a 3.9% stake in Evergrande, while the Middle East fund acquired 3.8% for US$146 million, according to a person familiar with the situation. Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank, which had already held smaller stakes in the developer, paid US$210 million with three corporate investors for a combined 5.5% share. In March, Evergrande canceled plans for a listing in Hong Kong in which it hoped to raise US$2.12 billion.