HONG KONG: China Evergrande GroupEvergrande Group, the world's most indebted property developer, said it will vigorously oppose a lawsuit filed against it, and that the petition won't affect its restructuring plan or timetable.
Evergrande was notified by Investment Holdings Top Shine Global in Hong Kong for not fulfilling a financial obligation of HK $862.5 million US $109.91 million. The developer has $300 billion in liabilities and defaulted on its offshore debt last year. It expects to announce a preliminary restructuring plan by the end of July.
Any disposition of assets and shares that are directly held, including assets and shares, will be void if the court grants a validation order, according to a stock exchange filing on Tuesday.
It said any transfer of shares by shareholders or potential investors would be void on or after Jun 24, when the petition was filed.
Evergrande shares trading was suspended since Mar 21 because the firm was unable to publish financial results on time, and because Evergrande Property Services Group said it was investigating how banks seized 13.4 billion yuan US $2.00 billion in deposits that had been pledged as security for third-party guarantees.
On Monday, a Top Shine executive told Reuters that Evergrande had not honoured an agreement to repurchase shares it bought in Fangchebao FCB Evergrande's online real estate and automobile marketplace.