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Sale of US government’s Shouson Hill Road property in Hong Kong proceeds after Beijing approves transaction
- ‘With the consent from the Central People’s Government of China, the transaction will proceed’: Hang Lung Properties
- Approval for sale comes amid less contentious relations between Washington and Beijing under Joe Biden
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Hong Kong has approved the sale of one of the United States government’s most valuable assets in the city to local developer Hang Lung Properties, after the US state department obtained permission from Beijing.
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The transaction, a multimillion-dollar thorn in the side of US-China relations, was confirmed by Hang Lung on Thursday, which said the seller had fulfilled diplomatic protocols and “now with the consent from the Central People’s Government of China, the transaction will proceed”.
A US Consulate General spokesperson said on Thursday that the State Department was not at liberty to comment on the specific terms of ongoing contractual transactions.
The HK$2.6 billion (US$330 million) sale of six multistorey villas at 37 Shouson Hill Road has been registered by the Land Registry. It has been acquired by Delta Bridge Limited at a 20 per cent discount on its valuation. Ronnie Chan, Hang Lung’s chairman, is a director at Delta Bridge.
Approval for the sale comes at a time of what are being viewed as less contentious relations between Washington and Beijing, under the administration of President Joe Biden, who took office last month. On Tuesday, Biden said he had a two-hour phone conversation with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, recently. It was the first phone call between the two world leaders.
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China blocks US consulate sale of Hong Kong property
China blocks US consulate sale of Hong Kong property
The six mansions, each with as many as 10 bedrooms, measure about 47,382 sq ft (4,400 square metres) in total, according to a tender document seen by the South China Morning Post . Hang Lung paid HK$257 million as a 10 per cent deposit for the villas, and another HK$770 million to Hong Kong’s government as stamp duty, according to its financial results filed with the Hong Kong stock exchange.
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