The Shanghai Stock Exchange tried to facilitate the financing of quality Chinese developers by spearheading a call between five developers and investors on Friday, after state-backed Greenland Holdings’ proposal for a delay in debt payments unnerved investors. The developers, which included Longfor Group Holdings , Country Garden, Midea Real Estate Holding, CIFI Holdings and Seazen Group, presented their financial and business conditions during the call, a move aimed at enhancing investor confidence. The exchange was trying to facilitate information disclosure and financing of quality home builders, said Duan Dongxing, deputy director of the bourse’s bond operation department. “The exchange constantly pays attention to facilitating the reasonable financing needs of property companies. We also encourage and support private developers to actively disclose information … which is also the foundation for constant financing of the issuers,” he said during the meeting. Evergrande pitches to stagger payments for US$19 billion bonds The meeting offered a chance for some of the top players in China’s 18.2 trillion yuan (US$2.7 trillion) property market to voice their difficulties. Property developers continue to suffer because of Beijing’s campaign to deleverage the sector, as well as a slump in sales amid an economic slowdown and recent Covid-19 lockdowns that have spread from large Chinese cities such as Shanghai and Shenzhen to smaller towns. Greenland, in which the Shanghai government is a shareholder, on Friday sought an extension of payment for a US$488 million dollar bond due on June 25 with a coupon rate of 6.75 per cent, according to sources that declined to be named. Jinke seeks payment extension on 1.24 billion yuan of onshore bond The Shanghai-based company cited the big impact Covid-19 restrictions had on its business operations, financial performance and short-term liquidity, according to an exchange filing on Friday. “Around 50 per cent of the group’s sales offices across the PRC have suspended their businesses due to pandemic-related restrictions in their local areas. All of these have resulted in the amount of cash inflow staying below the group’s expectations,” it said. The signal from Friday’s meeting was “useful”, said Raymond Cheng, managing director at CGS-CIMB Securities. “But weaker developers are the ones more in need of financing, and the key is to boost sales,” he said. “People are very disappointed by Greenland’s payment delay, which caused market confidence to slump further. It also led to caution and concerns about other quasi state-owned developers,” Cheng added. Chinese developers’ onshore bond plans boost for stricken sector Although Beijing has tried to stimulate the market with policy loosening, such as lowering the five-year loan prime rate which is linked to home mortgages , developers still are bracing for sluggish sentiment. “The biggest pressure comes from cash receipts from sales, and there’s no pressure in getting loans for development,” said Lin Ge, chief finance officer of Midea Real Estate, said during the call. “The cash receipts depend on market confidence. If companies continue to miss debt payments, especially when quality companies continue to get into trouble, it will cause the collapse of confidence in the whole industry.” Overall, the benefits from policy loosening were “obvious”, CIFI said during the call. “But some cities are still transitioning [to looser restrictions on escrow accounts]. We still want that local regulations are restored to a more reasonable and scientific method.” Beijing cuts mortgage rates for first-time homebuyers to revive property market The developers have called for looser restrictions on escrow accounts, after local authorities stepped up scrutiny on developers’ banking accounts that received down payments for projects. Country Garden declined to comment, while Longfor Group and Seazen did not respondent to calls and emails from the Post . The offshore bond market, a major financing channel for developers in recent years, has been almost shut for the industry after its debt crisis began grabbing headlines starting in August last year. China Evergrande Group , once the country’s largest developer, still owes US$300 billion. China Sunac Holdings , another top developer, has missed coupons for at least two batches of dollar bonds, and firms such as Fantasia Holdings Group, Kaisa Group Holdings and Modern Land have also defaulted.