The chairman of leading A-share film company Bona Film Group Co.,Ltd. (001330.SZ), Yu Dong, has been embroiled in controversy following reports of an unpaid debt. On the evening of March 9, Hong Kong media reported that Wynn Macau had filed a lawsuit with the Hong Kong High Court to recover a debt of 4.73 million Hong Kong dollars owed by Yu Dong, founder and chairman of Bona Film. The following day, Bona Film's investor hotline responded, calling it "false information" and stating they were reporting the related posts.
According to the Shanghai Securities News, on March 10, Yu Dong's personal lawyer verified with Wynn Macau that the amount involved in the lawsuit had been fully repaid and the corresponding legal proceedings had been terminated. The lawyer stated the debt resulted from Yu Dong providing a credit guarantee for a third party.
Notably, Yu Dong is also the husband of actress Jin Qiaoqiao, with whom he has a son and a daughter. Jin Qiaoqiao is known for her roles in television series such as "The Legend of the Pig" and "The Legend of Ji Gong," and gained wider recognition for her role as the "Peacock Princess" in the 1998 series "Journey to the West Continuation."
As one of the earlier private enterprises in China's film industry, Bona Film holds a significant position in film production. During this year's Spring Festival season, Bona Film's stock price saw strong performance due to its involvement in producing "Pegasus 3," even achieving three consecutive trading limit-ups and reaching an intraday high of 13.72 yuan per share, a more than three-year peak. However, the market soon cooled, and Bona's stock price declined, closing at 7.61 yuan per share on March 11, down 0.91%, with a total market capitalization of 10.46 billion yuan.
**566 Million Yuan Equity Freeze**
The controversy surrounding Yu Dong's debt originated from a writ of summons leaked from the Hong Kong High Court. According to the National Business Daily, citing the writ, Yu Dong was a client of Wynn Macau during the relevant period. Around May 1, 2024, Wynn Macau provided Yu Dong with a credit facility of 10 million Hong Kong dollars. Yu Dong signed two withdrawal confirmations totaling 10 million HKD and later repaid part of the amount. On January 28, 2026, Wynn Macau, based on the credit agreement, filled in the amount on a previously provided blank check intended as security and attempted to cash it for the remaining balance of approximately 5.73 million HKD, but the check was dishonored by the bank citing "refer to drawer."
Wynn Macau claimed that after the check was dishonored, Yu Dong repaid another 1 million HKD on February 1, 2026, but still owed approximately 4.73 million HKD in principal. Consequently, Wynn Macau decided to sue.
In response, Bona Film stated on March 10 that Yu Dong had recently been normally presiding over company work, that the company was aware of the matter and conducting verification, and that any follow-up results would be released through official channels. The company also stated that even if the verification proved true, the matter pertained to Yu Dong's personal affairs and would not affect company operations. Subsequently, Yu Dong's personal lawyer confirmed that the amount involved in the lawsuit had been fully repaid and the legal proceedings terminated.
Information from Tianyancha shows Yu Dong is associated with nearly 50 companies, including Bona Film Group Co., Ltd., Zhejiang Shengtian Culture Media Co., Ltd., Beijing Baichuan Film Distribution Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Tingdong Pictures Co., Ltd. His business interests span film production, distribution, investment management, and more, with Yu Dong holding positions such as chairman, general manager, and executive director in these companies.
According to the 2025 third-quarter report, Bona Film's top three shareholders are Yu Dong, Zhejiang Dongyang Alibaba Pictures Co., Ltd., and Linzhi Tencent Technology Co., Ltd., holding 20.53%, 5.19%, and 3.88% of shares respectively. Yu Dong is also the actual controller of Bona Film.
It is noteworthy that equity held by Yu Dong in several companies has been frozen, involving a total amount of 566 million yuan. Tianyancha data shows the frozen equity involves companies like Lhasa Bocheng Enterprise Management Consulting Co., Ltd. and Wuxi Huarong Yijiu Management Consulting Enterprise, all ultimately controlled by Yu Dong. The single largest frozen equity amount exceeds 278 million yuan, with some freezes dating back to April 2025.
On March 31, 2025, 137 million shares of Bona Film held by Yu Dong (representing 48.7% of his personal holding and 10% of the company's total shares) were frozen by the Beijing Second Intermediate Court for a period of three years. The company stated this freeze was related to Yu Dong's personal financing matters.
Additionally, in 2022, Yu Dong pledged 137 million shares of Bona Film to CITIC Trust to meet personal financing needs. From 2021 to 2025, Yu Dong himself was subject to enforcement actions totaling 153 million yuan.
In May 2025, Yu Dong and Bona Film director and vice president Qi Zhi received warnings from the Xinjiang Regulatory Bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission for improperly occupying 471 million yuan in non-operating funds from the company. According to the penalty information, in 2023, Bona Film and its subsidiaries provided approximately 210 million yuan to Qi Zhi and related parties via third parties, constituting non-operating fund occupation by other related parties. During the same period, approximately 261 million yuan was provided to Yu Dong and related parties via third parties, constituting non-operating fund occupation by the controlling shareholder.
Bona Film failed to disclose these non-operating fund transactions as required. However, by the end of December 2024, all the occupied funds had been repaid. On May 8, 2025, Bona Film announced it had received three administrative supervision decision letters from the Xinjiang bureau, which ordered corrective measures for the company, issued warning letters to Yu Dong and Qi Zhi, and recorded their cases in the capital market integrity file.
While Yu Dong faces personal financial pressure, Bona Film's own external guarantee situation is also under scrutiny. An announcement on February 3 revealed that the company and its controlling subsidiaries had total external guarantee quotas of 4.993 billion yuan. As of the announcement date, the total outstanding external guarantees were 2.602 billion yuan, accounting for 49.28% of the company's latest audited net assets attributable to parent company owners. The announcement clarified that the company and its controlling subsidiaries had not provided guarantees to entities outside the consolidated statements, and there were no overdue external guarantees, litigation-involved guarantees, or losses incurred from losing guarantee-related lawsuits.
**Accumulated Losses Exceeding 2.6 Billion Yuan from 2022-2025**
In reality, Bona Film's performance has been under pressure in recent years. The 2025 earnings forecast indicates an expected net loss of 1.261 billion to 1.477 billion yuan for the year. The company noted that the total box office of films it produced annually had decreased compared to the previous year, with significant losses from a single film. The number of movies and series produced by the company released in 2025 was insufficient, and many projects were still in various production stages, not yet generating direct economic benefits. Additionally, the company made impairment provisions for related assets where potential loss was identified.
Data shows that from 2022 to 2024, Bona Film's net profit attributable to parent company shareholders had seen three consecutive years of losses: 72.1069 million yuan, 553 million yuan, and 867 million yuan respectively, totaling 1.492 billion yuan in losses. Combined with the forecasted loss for 2025, Bona Film's accumulated losses exceed 2.6 billion yuan.
The 2025 third-quarter report shows that as of September 30, 2025, Bona Film had total assets of 11.952 billion yuan and total liabilities of 7.772 billion yuan, including current liabilities of 3.335 billion yuan and non-current liabilities of 4.437 billion yuan. The balance of cash and cash equivalents was 193.8 million yuan.
Furthermore, trust wealth management products purchased by Bona Film's subsidiaries face extension risks. Financial reports indicate that as of December 31, 2024, the principal balance of related trust products was 730 million yuan. These products have a three-year term, with funds directed towards the culture, sports, entertainment, leasing, and business services industries via trust loans, offering a benchmark yield of 4.20%.
In its 2024 annual report, Bona Film stated it was actively urging the borrower to formulate plans to dispose of underlying assets to repay principal and interest on time. However, due to the lengthy processes involved in asset valuation and legal documentation for the underlying assets, the company was simultaneously negotiating arrangements, including extensions, with AVIC Trust. As of the report approval date, the recovery cycle and method for these trust products remained somewhat uncertain.
To address operational pressures, Bona Film is making continuous efforts in the vertical AI application sector for film and television. On January 4, 2026, Bona Film disclosed on an interactive platform that its AI short drama "Sanxingdui: Future Revelation" had garnered a total of 160 million views online. The AI-native animated film "Sanxingdui: Past Future" was approved for filing by the National Film Administration on September 4, 2025, and is currently in the final stages of production with review work underway. AI tools "Bole One-Click AI Short Drama" and "Bole Roundtable" have been officially launched and are being promoted for co-creation within the industry, though they currently contribute a relatively low proportion of revenue.
The 2025 earnings forecast mentioned that beyond the Spring Festival season, Bona Film has multiple film and series projects scheduled for 2026, covering diverse genres like comedy, history, and action. Anticipated films include major productions like the mainstream blockbusters "Four Crossings" and "Kashmir Princess," while diverse films such as "She Kills," "Village Super League," and "Forbidden Wildlands" are also highly awaited. For series, period historical dramas like "Imperial Commissioner Lin Zexu" and the anti-war epic "Dongjiang Column" are in various stages of development.
**A Twisting Path Back to the A-Share Market**
Public information shows Bona Film was founded in August 2003 as a fully integrated film group. Its main businesses include film investment, distribution, cinema chain, and theater management, covering operations like copyright management, IP derivatives, advertising marketing, and artist agency.
Bona Film has produced and distributed over 300 films with a total box office exceeding 60 billion yuan and operates over a hundred multiplex cinemas across China. From "The Taking of Tiger Mountain" to "Operation Mekong" and "Operation Red Sea," and then to the new Hong Kong-style films "Chasing the Dragon" and "Project Gutenberg," Bona's recent successful and critically acclaimed films have repeatedly achieved remarkable comebacks through high standards and positive word-of-mouth, standing out among strong competitors.
Simultaneously, Bona Film has garnered support from institutional giants like Sequoia Capital, Fosun International, and Alibaba Pictures, as well as major film stars like Zhang Ziyi and Huang Xiaoming.
However, in stark contrast to its product success and illustrious shareholder lineup is Bona Film's曲折 capital market journey. It listed on NASDAQ in 2010, underwent a privatization delisting in 2016, faced a stalled IPO in 2017, and after several twists and turns, finally successfully listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange's A-share main board on August 18, 2022.
In fact, starting with its investment in "The Foliage" in 2003, Bona had already begun to make a name for itself through its distribution business. In September 2010, Bona listed on the NASDAQ Stock Market, becoming the first Chinese film company to list in the US. Stars like Gong Li and Yuan Li joined Bona's helmsman, Chairman Yu Dong, in ringing the opening bell onsite, with cameras capturing the moment Yu Dong shed tears.
However, despite being the "first Chinese mainland film stock," Bona received little attention from Wall Street for nearly 60 months thereafter—raising only $92.5 million in five years post-listing, with its stock price remaining weak and its market cap peaking at around 6 billion yuan.
In contrast, in the domestic film market, competitors like Huayi Brothers Media Corporation (300027.SZ) and Beijing Enlight Media Co.,Ltd. (300251.SZ), which listed around the same time as Bona, were highly sought after. Huayi Brothers' market cap reached nearly 90 billion yuan, while Enlight Media's peaked around 57 billion yuan.
Yu Dong had repeatedly expressed in public that Bona's value was severely underestimated. For instance, during the industry's boom year of 2014, when capital flooded in and film companies became highly desirable, Wind data statistics showed 169 mergers and acquisitions in the cultural media sector, with A-share company stock prices rising in turn. That year, Bona's film "The Taking of Tiger Mountain" earned 880 million yuan at the box office and received widespread critical acclaim domestically, a success in both reputation and revenue. Yet, what disheartened Yu Dong was that Bona's stock price on NASDAQ continued to fall.
"This made me very sad," Yu Dong once stated publicly, noting this was the real reason he decided to return to the A-share market. In June 2015, Yu Dong ultimately decided to privatize, joining Alibaba, Tencent, CITIC Securities, Fosun International, Sequoia Capital, and SAIF Partners as buyers of Bona.
Within two years of delisting, Bona conducted multiple capital increases to prepare for its A-share listing. In May and December 2016, Bona increased capital by approximately 93 million yuan and 29 million yuan respectively. Subscribers included film studios, Jinshi Investment, Alibaba Pictures, Linzhi Tencent, Zhejiang Zhongtai, CMB Win-win, and over twenty other institutions.
By March 2017, after a share issuance, Bona's registered capital changed to 1.099 billion yuan, and it introduced celebrity shareholders including Zhang Ziyi, Huang Xiaoming, Han Han, and Zhang Hanyu.
It took Bona five years from its US listing to announcing privatization, and another two years from announcing privatization to submitting its A-share IPO application. After many twists and turns, Bona Film finally listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in 2022. Analysis suggests the core of Bona Film's crisis is governance failure. Only through rebuilding internal controls, transforming its content strategy, and optimizing its capital structure can it rebuild market trust and complete the transition to an independent market entity.
Against a backdrop of intensifying industry competition and cash flow pressures, how Yu Dong will lead Bona Film to resolve its debt crisis and restore market confidence remains a key focus of external attention.
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