(Bloomberg) -- Dalian Wanda Group Co. is close to bringing in new shareholders for its mall operating unit, according to people familiar with the subject.
The completion of the Chinese conglomerate’s plan, which has been months in the making, could be announced as soon as the coming weeks, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter.
Billionaire Wang Jianlin ceded control of Zhuhai Wanda Commercial Management Group Co. last year after several attempts to list the mall operator failed. The agreement meant investors including PAG, which put about $2.8 billion into the unit in 2021, and incoming parties such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Mubadala Investment Co. would see their combined stake in holding company Newland Commercial Management reach 60%, a statement in March showed.
Representatives for Wanda and ADIA didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. Representatives for Mubadala and PAG declined to comment.
Wanda, which manages almost 500 shopping malls across China through the unit, used to be regarded as one of the few high-quality Chinese issuers in the junk-bond market, before being squeezed by a crackdown on the property sector.
Last year, Wanda proposed a repayment schedule on a $600 million dollar bond, offering to pay 10% of the principal in January, 20% in May, 30% in September and 40% in December. The company has told some investors it has prepared funds to repay the September installment of 30%, the people said.
The bond was indicated at 97.7 cents on the dollar on Friday, compared with a low of 48 cents in December, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
--With assistance from Yuling Yang, Emma Dong and Nicolas Parasie.
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