Goldin Financial’s Kowloon HQ put back on the market for around US$1.27 billion as debt struggle continues
- Receivers for Goldin Financial Global Centre, a 28-storey office building in Kowloon Bay, have assigned Savills as the sole agent
- The sale comes as billionaire major shareholder Pan Sutong lost control of Goldin’s assets to creditors.
The old headquarters of Goldin Financial Holdings has been put back on the market at an estimated price of around US$1.27 billion, as the property development and investment company’s debt crisis rolls on.
The receivers for Goldin Financial Global Centre, a 28-storey office building in Kowloon Bay, have assigned real estate company Savills as the sole agent to help sell the property.
“We will have a roadshow to market the building for local and international funds later,” Godfrey Cheng, deputy senior director for the investment CEO office at Savills (Hong Kong) told the South China Morning Post.
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Market watchers estimate the property’s value at around HK$10 billion (US$1.27 billion) based on recent transactions of office space sold in the vicinity, ranging from HK$10,000 per square foot to HK$12,000 per square foot.
The sale comes as billionaire major shareholder Pan Sutong lost control of Goldin’s assets to creditors as the company struggles to service its massive debt pile.
Goldin recorded a loss of around HK$1.4 billion as liabilities reached HK$7.5 billion as of June 30, 2021. The Hong Kong-listed company postponed its annual results for 2021, citing disruptions caused by Covid-19 and related restrictions.
In 2020, receivers sold the building – located at 17 Kai Cheung Road, Kowloon Bay – for a reported HK$14 billion, but the deal failed to complete.
The Grade A tower has an area of 920,000 sq ft, spread across 28 floors above ground and three basement floors, according to a Savills press release on Tuesday. Each floor has a gross floor area of around 35,000 sq ft. The tender will close at noon on Saturday, said Savills.
Goldin, among the most aggressive asset acquirers in Hong Kong in recent years, has been embroiled in a legal fight with hostile creditors over loan disputes. Goldin bought Kai Tak Area 4B Site 4 for HK$8.91 billion in November 2018, and another commercial site there for HK$11.1 billion in May 2019.
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Goldin had to bear an estimated loss of HK$2.57 billion (US$331.56 million) in May 2020, re-selling a residential plot at Kai Tak, the city’s former airport, citing the gloomy outlook as Covid-19 ravaged the city’s economy.
Additional reporting by Sandy Li
