In a significant development in the China Evergrande liquidation case, Hong Kong's High Court has ordered liquidators to take control of founder Xu Jiayin's assets after more than two years of legal proceedings. The court has issued an injunction freezing Xu's global assets valued at approximately $7.7 billion USD, equivalent to around 54.7 billion RMB at current exchange rates.
The asset seizure encompasses both properties directly held under Xu Jiayin's name and companies under his control. This action comes as the former China Evergrande chairman has repeatedly refused court orders to disclose his complete asset portfolio during the ongoing liquidation process.
Combined with the previously frozen 60 billion HKD in assets belonging to his ex-wife Ding Yumei, the total frozen assets now exceed 100 billion RMB. However, legal experts suggest this may represent only a portion of the family's total wealth, as both Xu and Ding have consistently declined to provide full asset disclosures.
The China Evergrande liquidation, which has been ongoing for over a year, has yielded disappointing results for creditors. Despite overseas debts totaling $45 billion USD, liquidators have only recovered $167 million USD in distributable assets, representing less than a 1% recovery rate for international bondholders.
Liquidators had previously sought to recover approximately $6 billion USD in compensation, salaries, bonuses, and dividends paid to key executives including Xu Jiayin, Xia Haijun, and Pan Darong between 2017 and 2020. The asset takeover now provides a potential pathway for recovering these funds through asset disposal.
Among Xu's remaining assets, Evergrande Property Services stands out as a valuable holding. The company maintains a market capitalization of 12.2 billion HKD and reported revenue of 6.647 billion RMB in the first half of 2025, representing a 6.9% year-over-year increase, with net profits reaching 491 million RMB. Xu retains a 49.79% controlling stake in the property management subsidiary.
Market speculation about potential buyers for Evergrande Property Services has recently driven share price gains, highlighting its value as one of the few profitable assets remaining in the Evergrande portfolio.
The case has also highlighted the international scope of the wealth transfer, with former Evergrande executive Xia Haijun reportedly maintaining a low-profile but luxurious lifestyle in California, where he allegedly owns multiple properties and luxury vehicles.
While the asset seizure represents a significant step forward in the liquidation process, the pace of recovery remains slow given the scale of unfinished property projects and the broader impact on suppliers and stakeholders. The global pursuit of assets and accountability for the massive losses continues as legal proceedings advance across multiple jurisdictions.
The developments underscore the challenges facing one of China's largest corporate collapses, with creditors and regulators working to recover assets from what was once the country's second-largest property developer by sales.
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