Mystery Bond Buyer Clears China Developer’s Debt at 90% Discount
- A little-known company is scooping up China Fortune Land bonds
- Canceling some bonds could help property firms cut debt load
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The source of the money is shrouded in mystery. But a major Chinese real estate developer appears to be trying a novel approach to resolving its debt: it is working with a buyer to purchase bonds at deeply discounted prices, and then canceling the securities.
The moves by China Fortune Land Development Co., whose default in 2021 marked the beginning of the country’s property crisis, are the latest twist in a debt debacle that has left more than $140 billion of real estate bonds in default and become a massive drag on the world’s second-largest economy.