Anika Begay
(Reuters) – Liquidators of troubled Chinese real estate giant Evergreat (HK:) The group has launched legal action against PricewaterhouseCoopers, accusing it of “negligence” and “misrepresentation” in its work for the group, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.
According to the report, which cites court documents obtained by the FT, the liquidators’ lawyers launched the legal proceedings against PwC Hong Kong and PwC Zhong Tian in March.
The liquidators have also initiated legal proceedings against the commercial real estate services company CBRE Group (NYSE:) and investment banking advisory firm Avista (NYSE:) Advisory Group for the valuation reports they prepared for Evergrande and its subsidiaries in 2018, the report said.
Evergrande, PwC, CBRE and Avista did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
In January, a Hong Kong court ordered the liquidation of Evergrande, once China’s largest real estate developer, after it failed to submit a concrete restructuring plan for its $23 billion offshore debt that it deemed to be in default.
PwC, Evergrande’s auditor for nearly 14 years until its resignation in early 2023, has recently come under intense pressure over its work for the company, and Chinese authorities have been investigating PwC’s role in Evergrande’s audit.
