HNA bankruptcy reaches turning point, putting $170bn size on debt

Chinese conglomerate's restructuring expected to conclude in November

HNA Group -- a web of subsidiaries spun around a core airline business -- has finally recognized the overall size of its liabilities. © Reuters

KENJI KAWASE, Nikkei Asia chief business news correspondent

October 1, 2021 02:29 JST

HONG KONG -- China's embattled HNA Group revealed on Thursday that it owes $170 billion to creditors, marking a turning point in the government-led restructuring of one of China's highest-profile bankruptcy cases.

Gu Gang, head of HNA's court-appointed working group and secretary of the debt-laden conglomerate's most important Communist Party cell, reported to almost 2,000 party cadres and employees of subsidiaries in an internal meeting, according to HNA Group's official WeChat account.