Chen Feng, a founder of the defunct Chinese conglomerate HNA Group, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison and is subject to a penalty of 221 million yuan (US$30.8 million), nearly four years after he was detained by police.
The 72-year-old businessman was charged with harming the interests of a listed company, fraudulently obtaining loans and a breach of duty through misappropriation, according to a court document. The government said 40 million yuan in personal assets were ordered to be confiscated.
Also sentenced were Sun Mingyu, former chairman of HNA Group’s supervisory board, and Bao Qifa, former chairman of Hainan Airlines Group, which was previously controlled by HNA. Both received prison terms of three and a half years. Sun was fined 9 million yuan and Bao was fined 4.5 million yuan.
Chen Feng, who founded Hainan Airlines in 1989 in Haikou and grew it into the sprawling conglomerate known as HNA Group, was detained for suspected crimes in 2021. The detention came a few months after the group declared bankruptcy following struggles to pay off debts that once totalled more than US$100 billion.
In the mid-2010s, HNA Group went on an acquisition spree, fuelled by bank loans and profits from its aviation business. Initially focused on airlines, the group expanded into areas including tourism, hospitality and financial services, amassing stakes in companies like Hilton Hotels and Resorts, Deutsche Bank and Ingram Micro.
HNA Group was the biggest buyer of land in Hong Kong in 2016, spending HK$27.2 billion (US$3.5 billion) over four months to acquire four plots in Kai Tak, oftentimes paying 50 per cent above valuations amid efforts to snatch land and pricing power from the city’s real estate bigwigs, Chen said in an exclusive interview with the Post nine years ago.
