HNA secures aviation investors in key step of restructuring

China’s HNA Group secured strategic investors for its airline and airport businesses, a key step in the once high-flying conglomerate’s state-run reorganization and bid to move beyond its debt woes. The administrators of HNA’s debt restructuring program have decided to bring in Liaoning Fangda Group Industrial Co. as the strategic investor for the airline business and Hainan Development Holdings Co. for the airport unit, according to exchange filings Sunday. “The fact that HNA has finally found strategic investors months into its debt restructuring process is significant progress to creditors,” Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Dan Wang said. The restructuring aims to help Hainan Airlines Holding and HNA Infrastructure Investment Group reduce debt and improve profitability, the two companies said in their filings. There is still a risk of bankruptcy or delisting if their financial results don’t meet regulatory requirements, they said, without elaborating. Uncertainty about the companies’ recovery still remain as the latest statements didn’t disclose how much the assets were sold for. The valuation of the assets would be key to the restructuring, he said. The HNA Group has approved at least 406b yuan ($63b) in debt claims while facing 1.2t yuan of claims in total, people familiar with the matter said in June after the company’s first meeting with creditors.<br/>