London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

Embattled tycoon Pan taps Great Eagle to bail him out in Ho Man Tin

Embattled tycoon Pan taps Great Eagle to bail him out in Ho Man Tin

The emergence of Great Eagle is the latest twist in the dramatic rise and fall of Pan, whose Hong Kong-listed Goldin Financial Holdings made headlines in June 2019 when it forfeited HK$25 million in deposit after walking away from its HK$11.1 billion bid for a harbourfront plot of commercial land at the former Kai Tak airport site.

Pan Sutong, the embattled real estate tycoon facing a breach of contract law suit, has been replaced in a venture in Hong Kong’s Ho Man Tin residential district, the latest twist in the financial struggles of one of the city’s high-flying developers.

Pan’s Goldin Properties Holdings reached a novation agreement to transfer its right to develop Ho Man Tin Station Package One parcel to Great Eagle Group of the Lo family, said MTR Corporation. Great Eagle paid a HK$1 billion (US$129 million) refundable deposit to MTR, according to a separate filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange by the developer.

“[MTR] will work together with Great Eagle to bring this project to completion,” according a statement by the subway operator, which owns land around the city that can be developed into residential, commercial and retail property.

The emergence of Great Eagle is the latest twist in the dramatic rise and fall of Pan, whose Hong Kong-listed Goldin Financial Holdings made headlines in June 2019 when it forfeited HK$25 million in deposit after walking away from its HK$11.1 billion bid for a harbourfront plot of commercial land at the former Kai Tak airport site. Less than a year later, the developer sold a separate plot of residential land at Kai Tak for a record HK$2.57 billion loss.

Goldin Financial Holdings’ chairman Pan Sutong at the Sha Tin racecourse on March 16, 2017.


The Ho Man Tin land parcel, which could yield 69,000 square metres (742,716 square feet) of gross floor area capable of housing as many as 1,000 apartment units, could cost HK$10 billion to develop, according to analysts’ estimates.

The development right was awarded in December 2016 by MTR to Gold Brilliant Investment, a consortium led by Goldin Financial.

Goldin sold 50.1 per cent of the stake in the project to the company’s chairman Pan for HK$6 billion in April 2018. Goldin, with HK$7.6 billion in total liabilities as of December, reported HK$993.13 million in interim loss in the second half of 2020.

Pan, 57, was estimated to be worth US$27 billion in 2015 by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. With the shares of Goldin and most of his property portfolio locked up as collateral for loans, the tycoon has fallen out of the list of the world’s 500 wealthiest people.

A view of the residential site at Kai Tak called Area 4B, Site 4 as of March 12, 2018.


Goldin Financial received a bailout last year after it sold its second Kai Tak land parcel called Area 4B Site 4 at a discount in exchange for cash and loans. The buyer, a private company incorporated in the British Virgin Islands known as Sino Shield, was believed to be linked to Hong Kong’s most famous business tycoon Li Ka-shing.

On February 9, Pan and his Gold Brilliant unit signed a tentative agreement to transfer their development rights in Ho Man Tin to Great Eagle, chaired by tycoon Lo Ka-shui. Ten days later, CK Asset’s unit Cheung Kong Property (Business Development) filed a writ in the Hong Kong High Court, suing Pan and Gold Brilliant for breaching a September 1, 2020 agreement that granted the right of first refusal to build in Ho Man Tin to Hong Kong’s second-largest developer.

MTR and Great Eagle said they would not comment on the agreements reached by the other parties. CK Asset was unavailable for comment.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×