Chinese developer Greentown China Holdings expects 2017 to be a window for land acquisitions
Chief executive Cao Zhounan says focus is to stay profitable and avoid past mistakes
The wheel has turned a full circle for Greentown China Holdings. The company, which was veering towards bankruptcy in 2014 and had even sold a majority stake to state-owned China Communications Construction Group in 2015, has not only emerged unscathed and is now China’s ninth largest developer in terms of sales. Not surprisingly, the Hangzhou-based developer edged towards another milestone when its contract sales crossed the “100 billion yuan” (US$14.5 billion) mark for the first time last year.
Cao Zhounan, who replaced Shou Bonian as chief executive officer of Greentown in 2015 has not only been an integral part of the turnaround, but was also responsible for steering the developer onto the rapid growth track. The 47-year-old Cao, who joined Greentown in 2009, admits that he is continuing founder and co-chairman Song Weiping’s legacy of high quality, even as he strives to run the business in a cost-effective manner and avoid previous mistakes.
It was this cautionary approach that saw Greentown almost suspending land purchase in the second half of 2016 as China’s property market sizzled with record land prices. “We thought it was risky to dip our toes. Being conservative was worthwhile,” Cao said.
That said, Cao, says that the company’s current land bank is not sufficient. He also expects land prices to fall this year as Chinese authorities have rolled out a series of home-purchase curbs. According to Cao, Greentown will speed up land acquisitions this year to accumulate inventory on dips.
