Hong Kong court adjourns winding-up trial of HNA Group by 6 weeks
- Two separate lawsuits were filed earlier this year against the investment arm of HNA Group, which defaulted on a US$200 million bond in 2021
HNA Group (International), an investment arm of Chinese conglomerate HNA Group, on Wednesday was granted a reprieve against two winding-up petitions in Hong Kong after a judge adjourned the hearing by six weeks.
Justice Hui Ka-ho pushed the court hearing to August 14, giving the Hong Kong-based company time to clean up its house and negotiate with creditors. It was the first time a case was brought against HNA Group (International) after it defaulted on a US$200 million bond in 2021.
Golden Morning Hong Kong, a private company registered in February this year, filed the winding-up petition against the company in April. Law firm Ashurst Hong Kong later filed a similar petition.
A hearing on Ashurst’s lawsuit was previously scheduled for July 17, but was later combined with Golden Morning’s hearing on Wednesday.
Justice Hui dismissed a request from the lawyers representing both plaintiffs, who asked for the case to be adjourned for up to 12 weeks to negotiate with the defendant.
A lawyer representing Ashurst said they did not rule out withdrawing the case.
Privately owned HNA Group (International), formerly named HNA Hong Kong Holdings, invests on behalf of its parent in industries covering aviation, tourism, logistics and technology.
The parent HNA Group completed its restructuring two years ago after it collapsed under billions of dollars in debt. It was seized by China’s southern Hainan provincial government in 2020, after it became one of the country’s biggest debt-laden entities.
HNA Group, founded by former Chinese civil aviation bureaucrat Chen Feng around the business of Hainan Airlines, grew into one of China’s largest private conglomerates and most profligate offshore asset buyers over the past two decades.
Separately, Justice Hui on Wednesday adjourned a winding-up hearing against mainland Chinese developer Times China Holdings to July 31, after the company reached an agreement with creditors on its debt proposal.
The liquidation lawsuit was filed by Hang Seng Bank for non-payment of financial obligations of about US$266 million, according to Times China’s statement in April.
Times China said in a filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange on Friday that it had reached an agreement with an ad hoc group of offshore creditors holding more than 25 per cent of notes on a restructuring proposal.
The latest restructuring scheme offers different options for bondholders, including a combination of upfront payment, short-term notes and new ordinary shares, or mandatory convertible bonds and medium-term notes. They can also choose an option that provides long-term notes with interest to be paid in cash or payment in kind.
