Evergrande Liquidators Seek Receivers to Track $6B in Hui Ka Yan's Assets - Hong Kong Judge Sets Dec. 2 Decision
Liquidators for China Evergrande have requested a Hong Kong court to appoint receivers to locate and secure assets belonging to founder Hui Ka Yan, aiming to recover approximately $6 billion in undisclosed holdings. A decision on this application is set for December 2. Evergrande, which collapsed under $300 billion in liabilities, has faced significant legal challenges, with liquidators recovering only $255 million against $45 billion in creditor claims. The ongoing liquidation process is expected to last years, raising concerns about the potential for meaningful asset recovery.
Liquidators handling China Evergrande (HKG: 6666) have asked a Hong Kong court to appoint receivers to track down and safeguard assets tied to the developer's founder, Hui Ka Yan. The filing aims to identify property and holdings that Hui has not disclosed despite court orders.
The move is part of a broader push to claw back roughly $6 billion that liquidators say was paid out to Hui and other ex-executives in dividends and pay. Liquidators are already pursuing court orders to freeze offshore assets linked to Hui and his ex-wife, Ding Yumei - one of seven defendants named in the recovery actions.
Evergrande's collapse was seismic. The company began missing bond payments in 2021 and ultimately folded with liabilities topping $300 billion. A Hong Kong court ordered the group into liquidation in 2024, and the company was removed from the Hong Kong exchange last week in one of the largest delistings by market value and volume in recent memory.
At a hearing this week, Hong Kong High Court Judge Herbert Au-Yeung set a decision date of December 2 for the receivership application. Counsel for Hui resisted the bid, arguing the risk of asset flight is low because of Hui's "circumstance," which the judge noted refers to his imprisonment.
Hui has been out of public view since his detention in 2023. He was previously ordered by a Hong Kong court to disclose assets held both domestically and overseas but has not complied, according to the liquidators.
The liquidators say Hui received $4.2 billion in dividends between 2017 and 2020. They also allege Ding could move as much as $1 billion in assets registered in her name. So far, about $255 million has been recovered from sales of offshore items - everything from school bonds and club memberships to artwork and vehicles - compared with roughly $45 billion in creditor claims lodged against the liquidators.
Lawyers involved expect the liquidation to drag on for years - possibly a decade - with a low payoff for creditors. That grim timeline helps explain the persistent legal pressure to identify any remaining assets linked to the founder.
For market-watchers, the case is a reminder that corporate collapses can spawn long, legally congested asset hunts that ripple across creditors, bondholders and anyone exposed to the debtor's paper. Will the receivership turn up meaningful recoveries or just more paperwork? The December 2 ruling will be the next hard data point to pencil into the Evergrande saga.
