According to three sources, lawyers appointed by the liquidators are investigating some service providers of China Evergrande Group, including its former auditor PwC, in an effort to recover losses for creditors.
Evergrande, once China's largest property developer, was ordered to liquidate by a Hong Kong court in January of this year after failing to present a specific restructuring plan for its $23 billion offshore debt.
As part of the liquidation process, the Hong Kong-based law firm Karas So is working with two court-appointed liquidators of Evergrande, Tiffany Wong and Eddie Middleton from Alvarez and Marsal. According to the three well-informed sources, this move indicates the preliminary steps in the liquidation of the world's most indebted property developer, with total liabilities exceeding $300 billion.
A&M, Evergrande, and Karas So all declined to comment. PwC also refused to comment.
According to some offshore investors, Evergrande's liquidation could take more than a decade to complete and may become a model for the future liquidation of large Chinese enterprises.
Reuters reported in March, citing sources, that lawyers handling Evergrande's liquidation would look for evidence of wrongdoing and negligence by the company, its management, and external advisers that led to its debt default.
Focusing on liquidation-related legal matters, Karas So is investigating Evergrande's bankruptcy and whether some service providers played a role in the rapid deterioration of its financial situation.
