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HNA Group, the vast Chinese conglomerate that threw tens of billions of dollars at trophy businesses around the world, is nearing the biggest corporate collapse in recent Chinese history. "
Its dismantling is an extraordinary turn of events for the company that began as a regional airline in China’s southern province of Hainan and grew to own large stakes in Hilton Hotels, Deutsche Bank, Virgin Australia and others. "
At its height, HNA employed 400,000 people around the world."
"Xi urged officials to make plans to deal with “gray rhinoceros” events, referring to large and evident problems in the economy that are ignored until they become urgent threats. Chinese media had often referred to HNA as a gray rhino before its decline."
HNA was once the face of modern corporate China, a leader in the first wave of private Chinese companies with political backing to make large global acquisitions. "
Its propensity to load up on borrowed money to buy stakes in global household names was expensive and risky, seemingly daring regulators in Beijing and around the world to bring it to heel. "
As HNA’s creditors wait for a Chinese court to approve their request for bankruptcy and restructuring, questions are being raised about the scale of the conglomerate’s problems. It has $200 billion of debts it cannot pay off"
The fate of Chen Feng, HNA’s chairman and co-founder, has been in question since he was removed from a list of members of HNA’s Communist Party committee, "
The authorities seized control of Anbang, a troubled insurance conglomerate that owned the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York, and sentenced its founder, Wu Xiaohui, to prison for 18 years for fraud. "
Wanda, the one-time owner of AMC Entertainment, and Fosun, which owns Club Med and the luxury fashion house Lanvin, quickly sold off some of their overseas acquisitions."
