Embattled Chinese real estate giant China Evergrande has been let off lightly after failing to pay the wages of 64 employees.
Documents seen by Asia Markets show the company was fined 50,000 yuan, which amounts to only US$7,404.23 at the time of publication.
The sanction was handed down by the Shenzhen Luohu District Human Resources Bureau, after Evergrande failed to pay the workers their full salary between September 2021 and March 2022, as its well-documented debt problems began to escalate.
The company will also need to pay the employees the money they’re owed.
‘Growing mess’
The development comes as Evergrande faces what Reuters has described as a “growing financial mess”.
The company’s CEO resigned last week after a probe found he helped divert funds from a subsidiary and there are fears a restructuring plan for $19 billion of offshore bonds at risk.
Earlier this month, Asia Markets exclusively revealed that major suppliers of Evergrande had announced they will suspend loans and stop work.
The suppliers said they have spent all of their capital purchasing materials to supply various Evergrande projects, which are unfinished.
“Suppliers are heavily indebted, their lives are shattered, and they are no longer able to continue,” the notice said.