Collapse of Chinese developer Evergrande ends with life sentence for its founder

A court in China has sentenced Hui Ka Yan, founder of the bankrupt developer China Evergrande Group, also known as Xu Jiayin, to life imprisonment for a series of financial crimes. The court also ordered the confiscation of his personal property.

The verdict was announced on August 20 by the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court. Hui Ka Yan had previously pleaded guilty in a case that included fraudulent fundraising, illegal acceptance of deposits, embezzlement of assets, and bribery.

Large fines were also imposed on companies. Evergrande Group was fined 8.82 billion yuan, or about $1.3 billion, and its main mainland developer subsidiary Evergrande Real Estate was fined an additional 7 billion yuan.

According to the court's findings, from 2016 to 2021, Hui Ka Yan, together with Evergrande and its subsidiaries, systematically falsified financial statements, inflating assets and concealing liabilities. Illegal fundraising and fraudulent issuance of securities were also among the violations identified.

Hui Ka Yan was one of the main symbols of the rapid growth of the Chinese real estate market. In 2017, he became the richest person in China, and Evergrande turned into one of the country's largest developers. However, the company's business largely depended on debt financing.

In 2021, Evergrande defaulted on its international obligations. At that time, the group's total liabilities exceeded $300 billion, making it the world's most indebted developer and one of the main symbols of the crisis in the Chinese real estate sector.

Evergrande's problems became part of a broader wave of defaults by Chinese developers after the country's authorities tightened restrictions on excessive borrowing. The crisis in the sector has dragged on for years: new home prices continue to be under pressure, and investment in real estate is shrinking.

In January 2024, a Hong Kong court ordered the liquidation of China Evergrande Group after failed negotiations with creditors on debt restructuring. In 2025, the company's shares were finally delisted from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Hui Ka Yan himself had been under the control of Chinese law enforcement agencies since 2023. In April 2026, he pleaded guilty and expressed remorse, after which the court was to determine the punishment.

Based on materials from: Financial Times, South China Morning Post