More revelations are emerging at Zhongrong International Trust, this time with an official reportedly claiming that it had missed payments on dozens of products due to insufficient liquidity.
Zhongrong International Trust missed payments on a batch of products on August 8 alongside delays on at least 10 others since late July, according to a «Bloomberg» report citing an investor meeting with Wang Qiang, board secretary of part owner Zhongzhi Enterprise Group. In addition to overdue payments on at least 30 products, Zhongrong also halted redemptions on some short-term instruments.
According to the report, Wang said that Zhongrong doesn’t have immediate plans to cover the payments due to lacking short-term liquidity but nonetheless asked for patience. He also said that the number of products with missed payments has risen and the firm is facing numerous inquiries from investors and their own wealth managers.
Three Shanghai-listed firms recently reported missed payments on wealth management products they bought from Zhongrong. Thereafter, its part owner and second largest shareholder (33 percent), Zhongzhi, entered the spotlight. The Beijing-based shadow banking giant was founded in 1995 and manages around 1 trillion yuan ($138 billion) in assets.
