(Reuters) -Hong Kong-based New World Development faced renewed speculation on Thursday as Bloomberg reported on a potential bond default, after the property developer clarified earlier in the day that it continues to operate normally.
Bloomberg News reported PJT Partners Inc., a global advisory-focused investment bank, has discussed with New World’s dollar bondholders the possibilities of a potential bond default, set off by the developer’s ongoing loan talks.
The company said earlier today it continues business as usual despite “media rumours” surrounding its operations and financial obligations.
This followed a clarification earlier this week that it has not initiated discussions with creditors regarding a proposal to restructure its existing debt, addressing market speculations.
PJT Partners, which is also working with developers like Country Garden Holdings, Kaisa Group Holdings, and Logan Group, warned that insolvency clauses in New World’s dollar bonds could be triggered if the company engages with its bank lenders, according to Bloomberg.
New World Development, which has the highest debt among its Hong Kong peers, said it refinanced about HK$17.76 billion ($2.28 billion) of its bank loans since July 2024.
However, this is only a fraction of the HK$199 billion debt it held, as per JPMorgan data from July 2024.
The property developer has also been facing executive governance issues, with its former CEO Adrian Cheng of the group’s founding Cheng family stepping down in September.
Cheng was replaced by Eric Ma, who in turn was replaced just two months later by Echo Huang – an executive director of the company and CEO of New World China Land since 2020.
($1 = 7.7898 Hong Kong dollars)
(Reporting by Sneha Kumar and Roshan Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K and Vijay Kishore)
