Xu Jiayin Gets Life as Evergrande Fined RMB15.82bn
AM730 · 3 SOURCESabout 3 hours ago4 MIN
Summary
A court in Shenzhen has handed down a first-instance verdict in the Evergrande case, sentencing founder Xu Jiayin (許家印) to life imprisonment, lifelong deprivation of political rights and confiscation of all personal property. Evergrande Group and Evergrande Real Estate were fined RMB8.82 billion and RMB7 billion respectively, taking the combined corporate penalties to more than RMB15.82 billion.
Key Points
- The Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court publicly delivered its first-instance judgment on Thursday, August 20, covering Evergrande Group, Evergrande Real Estate and Xu Jiayin.
- The court found Xu was Evergrande's actual controller and oversaw operations across Evergrande Real Estate, Evergrande Wealth, Evergrande Nanchang and other businesses.
- From 2016 to 2021, the defendants used sustained, large-scale financial falsification to inflate assets and conceal liabilities, according to the court.
- The offences cited included illegal absorption of public deposits, fundraising fraud, fraudulent securities issuance, illegal loan issuance and improper disclosure of material information.
- Separate rulings on the same day sentenced 56 related defendants to prison terms ranging from 18 years to one year and 10 months, with fines or asset confiscation.
Why It Matters
For Hong Kong readers, the ruling sharpens attention on legal accountability tied to one of the mainland property sector's biggest corporate collapses, especially given Evergrande's reach across property and finance. The court also said recovery of losses will take priority over fines and confiscation, underscoring the focus on compensation in the aftermath of the case.