China Evergrande piled up $300B in debt — its collapse shook China's property market

China Evergrande Group, founded in 1996 by Xu Jiayin (Hui Ka Yan), grew into one of China's largest property developers by borrowing heavily and building aggressively. At its peak it was the most indebted property developer in the world, with liabilities exceeding $300 billion, and it had expanded far beyond property into electric vehicles, sports and more.

In 2021, as China tightened borrowing rules for developers, Evergrande's debt model collapsed. It began missing payments on its bonds and other obligations, defaulting on more than $300 billion in liabilities. The default sent shockwaves through China's property market and global markets, raising fears of a wider crisis in a sector that accounted for a large share of China's economy.

The human cost was stark: Evergrande had sold hundreds of thousands of homes before they were built, and many were left unfinished, leaving buyers who had paid in advance with nothing. Founder Xu Jiayin was later placed under police control. Evergrande became a symbol of the dangers of debt-fueled growth, and a landmark case in China's property crisis.