HONG KONG: A key offshore creditor group of China Evergrande Group supports keeping the developer operating, the South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported ahead of a court hearing on Monday (Dec 4) that could decide to liquidate the indebted firm.

The group, which owns about US$2 billion in offshore notes guaranteed by Evergrande, issued a statement late on Friday urging that Hengda Real Estate, Evergrande’s flagship onshore unit, be allowed to maintain operations to ensure completion of homes and delivery of homes, the newspaper said.

“No stakeholders of Hengda, be it customers, suppliers, creditors, or the (Chinese) government, would benefit from forcing Hengda into a multi-year, value-destructive bankruptcy process,” it cited the statement as saying.

“Such a bankruptcy process would only detract from the common goals of ensuring the prompt completion of projects and the timely delivery of homes, as well as procuring the long-term sustainability of Hengda as a going concern.”

Evergrande, the world’s most indebted property developer, and the advisers to the creditor group did not immediately respond to requests for comment.