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What Does The Evergrande Group Debt Crisis Mean?

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Evergrande is the second largest property developer in China by sales. As the COVID-19 virus spread across China in the early months of 2020, some expert commentators dubbed it as China’s “Chernobyl moment” – an event that would undermine the legitimacy and rule of the Communist Party.

A much more likely candidate for that title has emerged, though, in the form of the debt crisis enveloping Evergrande Real Estate Group.

China’s second largest property developer and the most indebted developer in the world with over $300bn of liabilities is out of money, and unable to meet interest payments due to both banks and foreign bondholders — though it was reported on Wednesday 22 September that some agreement has been reached to meet an interest payment to domestic bond holders.

Evergrande Real Estate Group is also a kind of metaphor for the wider debt crisis in the Chinese economy. Material consequences for both China and the global system are sure to follow in the coming months.

The immediate problem is the unravelling of Evergrande Real Estate Group, which owns more than 1300 properties in more than 280 cities across China. Until now, the Chinese government has refrained from stepping in, choosing instead to make an example of Evergrande’s “capitalist excesses” to banks and others as a way to encourage more conservative methods.

Yet some sort of state bailout or restructuring is inevitable for the developer, at least to buy time. Otherwise, the financial contagion, and economic and social instability consequences of a messy default, would be catastrophic for Xi Jinping, especially ahead of the important 20th party Congress in November 2022.

Consider that much of Evergrande Real Estate Group’s liabilities comprise pre-sale deposits by almost 1.5 million households, all of which would see their savings lost. Evergrande’s employees and others bought financial products that it issued to help fund itself, and they too would risk losing money in a worst case scenario.

The Chinese government will not want unhappy citizens to be on the hook. We expect that rather than a spectacular “Lehman-type” crisis, China will go through a period of financial distress, which will postpone growth.

New Laws Introduced in Dubai to Support Business

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New laws mean any law which becomes operative or effective subsequent to the Effective Date and shall include any City laws, ordinances, resolutions, rules or regulations. This is a key event set to take place in Dubai and will be a major focal point of the agenda of most corporations doing business in the emirate or looking to do business in it.

The emirate remains a main attraction for foreign investments especially the ones looking to benefit from its location, business, and legal environment and world-class infrastructure, to access the region. This was further validated by the United Arab Emirates’ ranking in the ease of doing business, where it was positioned 11th, according to the World Bank annual ratings in 2019.

This accomplishment is a reflection of the government’s ongoing work to promote a business environment that is diverse and sustainable.

A number of efforts have been made to diversify away from dependence on oil, creating a very strong services sector – one that fosters a competitive business environment. A major aspect of such an environment is a supportive and effective legal framework for businesses, on par with international standards, hence the recent changes and additions in UAE’s regulatory and corporate sector.

Among major changes that are expected to push the growth and progress of the local economy in Dubai are the implementation of UAE Federal Law No 19 of 2018 on foreign direct investment and the subsequent positive list of activities issued by the UAE Cabinet.

The FDI Law now allows up to 100% foreign ownership in more than 122 economic activities across 13 sectors including, transport and storage, agriculture, space, manufacturing industry, renewable energy, hospitality and food services, among others.

These sectors will offer new economic opportunities for international investors to explore in the UAE, particularly for projects involving e-commerce logistics, research laboratories, advancement in biotechnology, logistics and supply chain, production of solar panels, hybrid powerplants and green technology.

The refreshed list of privileges for companies established under the new FDI Law are extensive and includes treatment as local companies, as well as the removal of restrictions on repatriation of profits and any proceeds from liquidation or sale of a business.

Employees of FDI companies can now transfer their salaries, indemnities and entitlements outside the UAE. In addition, FDI companies are guaranteed the confidentiality of technical, economic, financial information, including investment initiatives. There are now no restrictions on the sale of a business, admission of new shareholders or change of legal form and structure.

In addition to the FDI Law, the UAE published two major laws in 2016 that will have a direct impact on the creation of a comprehensive legal and regulatory regime for the operations of corporations. These include the UAE Federal Law No. 9 of 2016 on bankruptcy and UAE Federal Law No. 20 of 2016 on the pledge of movable assets as a guarantee for debts.

The Bankruptcy Law deals mainly with the various structures for bankruptcy and liquidation of assets for distressed corporations, including restructuring and composition procedures.

Meanwhile, the Law on Pledge of Movable Assets allows the pledge of certain movable assets by corporations and the establishment of a special register to handle the registration of such pledges in favour of third parties. This law, in particular, is of extreme importance as it gives a lot of flexibility to corporations and allows them to secure proper funds while guaranteeing the financing parties’ rights.

Further and in November 2019, the UAE Cabinet passed a new Federal law No 19 of 2019 on Insolvency of Natural Persons that applies to debtors that are not subject to the Bankruptcy Law.

This new law applies to individuals who are in default of payment or facing difficulties in meeting their financial obligations. it is expected that the Insolvency Law will increase transparency in the dealings between financial institutions and individuals and address situations of defaults in a way that will enable all parties to safeguard their rights.

All of the above laws combined have created an overall framework to regulate the environment under which companies in the United Arab Emirates are operating and have considerably elevated the maturity and complexity of commercial transactions, as well as prospects of new and innovative investments.

This will also complement the efforts that are being pursued on other fronts, such as the development of world-class regulations for the protection of intellectual property rights, fighting cybercrime, promoting fintech initiatives and reinforcing the partnership between free zones and local authorities.