Chinese court sentences founder of troubled property developer Evergrande to life in prison

Chinese court sentences founder of troubled property developer Evergrande to life in prison The Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court convicted Hui, 67, and Evergrande of engaging in large-scale financial fraud in inflating the group's assets and concealing its liabilities.

Key points

• Evergrande Group was fined 8.82 billion yuan ($1.31 billion), and Evergrande Real Estate Group was fined 7 billion yuan ($1.04 billion), the court remarked in the statement.
• Born in 1958 into a rural family in central China's Henan province, he worked in the steel industry in the 1980s before establishing Evergrande.
• A photo of Hui's courtroom appearance published by the Shenzhen court on Thursday (August 20, 2026) demonstrated an aged Hui.
• Revenues were overstated by roughly $80 billion over 2019 and 2020, they remarked.
• The Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court convicted Hui, 67, and Evergrande of engaging in large-scale financial fraud in inflating the group's assets and concealing its liabilities.

Hui Ka Yan, the founder of China's Evergrande Group stands in court at the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court, in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China in this handout image release by Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court. Photo Credit: Reuters.

Chinese property developer Hui Ka Yan, founder of the Evergrande real estate group, has been sentenced to life in prison and the firms were fined a total of more than $2 billion, a court in the southern city of Shenzhen stated Thursday (August 20, 2026).

Meanwhile, the decision marks a milestone in Evergrande's saga after it collapsed with more than $300 billion in liabilities when Chinese authorities cracked down on excessive borrowing in the real estate industry in 2020. That triggered a crunch among plenty of developers and brought on a downturn in the property market that has weighed on the broader economy ever since.

In practice, the Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court convicted Hui, 67, and Evergrande of engaging in large-scale financial fraud in inflating the group's assets and concealing its liabilities.

In an official note, the court additionally stated Hui, additionally known as Xu Jiayin, abused his position in orchestrating fraud and misappropriating business assets.

"The amount involved is exceptionally large, the circumstances are particularly egregious, and extraordinarily heavy economic losses have been caused, " the court's statement remarked. "The harm to society is extremely serious. Therefore, severe punishment should be given in accordance with the law." Hui's sons, Xu Tenghe and Xu Zhijian, were additionally sentenced alongside senior Evergrande executives and others linked to the group on charges including illegally taking public deposits, fundraising fraud and the illegal apply of funds, China's official Xinhua News Agency noted.

Although a breakdown of sentencing details was not provided, a total of more than 50 individuals were sentenced to imprisonment of between 22 months and 18 years, Xinhua remarked.

In practice, a photo of Hui's courtroom appearance published by the Shenzhen court on Thursday (August 20, 2026) demonstrated an aged Hui. This person applied to be a high-profile figure but had long been out of public view, wearing a navy blue shirt and standing between two uniformed officers behind a sign that read "defendant".

After he was detained in China, hui pleaded guilty in April to various charges, including illegal absorption of public deposits, fraud and bribery.

China Evergrande, founded in 1996, defaulted on its debts in 2021. It was the world's most heavily indebted real estate developer before it was ordered to liquidate its assets. After Evergrande's downfall triggered the broader downturn in China's massive property sector, home rates have fallen by roughly 20% or more since 2021.

Authorities in Hong Kong and mainland China earlier remarked their investigations identified Evergrande had manipulated its financial data by tactics that included prematurely booking revenue from property sales before completion and delivery of the apartments to buyers. Revenues were overstated by roughly $80 billion over 2019 and 2020, they remarked.

Hui was fined 47 million yuan ($6.5 million) in 2024 and banned from China's securities markets for life by the China Securities Regulatory Commission over inflating firm financial results, among other matters.

Once documented to be China's richest man, Hui employed to own the football club Guangzhou Evergrande. At one point, he and his firms were involved in investing in and building theme parks and electric vehicles.

His story was one of rags-to-riches. Born in 1958 into a rural family in central China's Henan province, he worked in the steel industry in the 1980s before establishing Evergrande. It then prospered during China's housing market boom. He was one of plenty of businessmen who have additionally gained political influence by joining a major advisory organisation, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Congress.

For now, chinese court sentences founder of troubled property developer Evergrande to life in remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.