Evergrande chairman’s stake drops to 59.8% on forced selling

Chairman Hui Ka Yan’s shareholding in embattled China Evergrande Group has dropped to 59.78 per cent from 61.88 per cent, Hong Kong stock exchange filings showed, in a forced selling by a third party with whom the shares were pledged.

The number of shares involved was 277.8 million, worth roughly HK$492 million ($63.08 million) based on the stock’s Friday closing price of HK$1.77.

The drop was the result of steps taken December 6-9 to enforce a “security interest” in the shares, the filing said.

Reuters could not immediately determine the identity of the entity which sold the pledged shares.

Ratings agency Fitch downgraded Evergrande, which has more than $300 billion in liabilities, to “restricted default” on Thursday, after the developer missed a deadline this week to pay coupon payments totalling $82.5 million.