Linklaters, Harneys, Allen & Overy, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges have advised on property developer China Aoyuan Group’s USD7.3 billion overseas debt restructuring, which secured court approval in Hong Kong, the Cayman Islands and the British Virgin Islands.
The New York court also issued a protection order for China Aoyuan under chapter 15 of the US Bankruptcy Code. This means the local court acknowledges the restructuring plan and enables the debtor to avoid lawsuits.
Linklaters acted as international lead counsel for China Aoyuan, led by Asia regional managing partner William Liu, restructuring partners Andrew Payne and Christopher Hunker, litigation, arbitration & investigations partner Denise Fung, capital markets partner Taiki Ki, and banking partner Maggie Ng.
Harneys counselled China Aoyuan on Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands law, with partners Chai Ridgers, Claire Goldstein and Ben Hobden leading the team.
Allen & Overy partner Viola Jing led the team advising the co-ordination committee of syndicated lenders. Partner Ian Chapman provided support, while partners Felipe Duque and Agnes Tsang advised on debt capital markets matters.
Weil acted as counsel to the ad hoc group of bondholders, with Hong Kong restructuring partner Kathleen Aka leading the team.
Under a dual and parallel restructuring plan, China Aoyuan and subsidiary Add Hero Schemes, will issue bonds. China Aoyuan will issue USD500 million worth of eight-year notes, USD1.6 billion in perpetual bonds, USD143 million in interest-free mandatory convertible bonds and 1.4 billion new shares. Add Hero plans to issue three tranches of notes totalling USD1.8 billion.
Including the 12 domestic bonds that were approved for extension in September 2023, China Aoyuan has gained official approval of the restructuring for all of its current domestic and offshore debts.
According to the 2023 interim report, Aoyuan is insolvent. As of 30 June 2023, the company’s total assets were valued at RMB221.82 billion yuan, while total liabilities stood at RMB242.35 billion yuan.
