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PwC Hong Kong to Pay Evergrande Shareholders HK$1 Billion in Compensation

  • by- Zaid
  • Apr 23, 2026
Hong Kong's securities watchdog has announced that PwC Hong Kong will set aside HK$1 billion ($127.7 million) to compensate independent minority shareholders of property developer China Evergrande, marking the first settlement of its kind in the city.
PwC Hong Kong to Pay Evergrande Shareholders HK$1 Billion in Compensation

April 23: The agreement was made after the Securities and Futures Commission's investigation showed PwC Hong Kong had made serious breaches of its professional duties, which led in part to Evergrande's falsified 2019 and 2020 financial statements.

Evergrande's Financial Misstatements

  • 2019 revenue overstatement: 45%

  • 2020 revenue overstatement: 69%

SFC Statement

Julia Leung, SFC's Chief Executive Officer, said: "This will send an unequivocal message to the audit profession and the investing public that the SFC is committed to maintaining market integrity and protect investors by holding listed companies and their auditors accountable for the accuracy and reliability of financial disclosures."

Under the agreement, the SFC will take no further action against PwC Hong Kong.

Additional Penalties

The Accounting and Financial Reporting Council (AFRC) also imposed:

  • HK$300 million fine and six-month practice limitation on PwC

  • HK$10 million in fines on its two former registered responsible persons in the Evergrande audits

PwC's Response

Hemione Hudson, Chair and CEO of PwC China, said: "The outcomes reached with the AFRC and SFC conclude regulatory matters related to the Evergrande audits from over five years ago with no impact for our existing clients. It is pleased to be able to put them behind us."

Background

In 2024, PwC's Chinese unit was penalized by Chinese regulators with a six-month suspension and a record fine of 441 million yuan ($64.52 million) over the firm's audit of Evergrande.