- Hui Ka Yan, the founder of the property developer Evergrande, has been sentenced to life in prison and had all of his personal property confiscated after pleading guilty to eight charges including fraud and bribery.
- The Shenzhen intermediate people's court stated that Hui's actions had severely disrupted the order of the socialist market economy and caused exceptionally heavy economic losses.
- Evergrande Group was fined 8.8 billion yuan (approximately $1.2 billion) and its property arm was fined 7 billion yuan (approximately $950 million).
- In addition, more than 50 individuals linked to Evergrande received prison terms ranging from 20 months to 18 years.
Hui Ka Yan, the founder of Evergrande Group, has been sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to multiple charges, including fundraising fraud and bribery. The Shenzhen court ruled that between 2016 and 2021, Hui engaged in large-scale financial fraud, severely disrupting the socialist market economy.12
The court stated that Hui's actions led to exceptionally heavy economic losses and violated state laws by inflating assets and concealing liabilities. In addition to his life sentence, all of Hui's personal property has been confiscated. The court's decision reflects the severity of the financial crisis that Evergrande has faced, which has left many investors and homeowners in distress.34
Hui, once recognized as China's richest man with a net worth of $42.5 billion in 2017, was found guilty of eight charges, including misuse of funds and illegally taking public deposits. The company itself has faced significant penalties, with fines totaling 8.8 billion yuan (£950 million) for the group and 7 billion yuan for its property arm. More than 50 individuals linked to Evergrande were also sentenced, with prison terms ranging from 20 months to 18 years.56
“The Shenzhen court found Hui violated state laws from 2016 to 2021 through sustained, large-scale financial fraud to inflate assets and conceal liabilities. Evergrande Group was fined 8.8 billion yuan, and more than 50 linked individuals received prison terms ranging from 20 months to 18 years.”
The Guardian
The Times
