UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM
(Mark One)
REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |
OR | |
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |
For The Fiscal Year Ended | |
OR | |
TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |
OR | |
SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | |
Date of event requiring this shell company report
Commission file number:
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)
N/A
(Translation of Registrant’s name into English)
(Jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)
People’s Republic of
(Address of principal executive offices)
People’s Republic of
Tel: (
Fax: (86-10) 8588-9300
Email:
(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)
Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of Each Class |
| Trading Symbol(s) |
| Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered |
Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
None
(Title of Class)
Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:
None
(Title of Class)
Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the Issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
☐ Yes ☒
If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.
☐ Yes ☒
Note - Checking the box above will not relieve any registrant required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 from their obligations under those Sections.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.
☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).
☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer ☐ | Accelerated filer ☐ | |
Emerging growth company |
If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with
The term “new or revised financial accounting standard” refers to any update issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board to its Accounting Standards Codification after April 5, 2012.
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.
Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:
U.S. GAAP ☒ | International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board ☐ | Other ☐ |
If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow.
☐ Item 17 ☐ Item 18
If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).
☐ Yes
(APPLICABLE ONLY TO ISSUERS INVOLVED IN BANKRUPTCY PROCEEDINGS DURING THE PAST FIVE YEARS)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed all documents and reports required to be filed by Sections 12, 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 subsequent to the distribution of securities under a plan confirmed by a court.
☐ Yes ☐ No
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EXPLANATORY NOTE
Annual Report for 2020
The filing of the annual report for 2020 was delayed because we required additional time to review certain transactions that Xinyuan's former auditor Ernst & Young Hua Ming LLP, or EY, identified as potential related party transactions.
In order to develop this information, the Board of Directors directed the Audit Committee to review these transactions. The Audit Committee engaged the accounting firm, KPMG Advisory (China) Limited, or KPMG, and the law firm, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, or Quinn Emanuel, to assist the Audit Committee with an internal review of these transactions, or the Internal Review.
The Internal Review took approximately six months. As part of the Internal Review, KPMG and Quinn Emanuel: (i) reviewed the Company's policies and procedures regarding internal controls and related party transactions; (ii) reviewed relevant transactional records; (iii) independently obtained and reviewed bank account lists and bank transaction records for certain third parties and reconciled those records with the Company's books and records; (iv) conducted an e-mail and document review; (v) conducted site visits; (vi) conducted interviews with our employees and certain relevant third-parties; and (vii) tested additional sample bank transactions under a risk-based approach. In conducting the Internal Review, the Internal Review Team regularly received and incorporated input from EY and the Audit Committee.
The Internal Review was completed in September 2021. It concluded that there was no direct evidence that the Company engaged in improper related party transactions. EY, however, does not believe the matters have been fully resolved to its satisfaction. As a result, EY resigned as the Company's external auditors. Accordingly, the Company's financial statements as of and for the two years ended December 31, 2020 have been audited by Union Power HK CPA Limited, or Union Power, as further described in Item 16 herein.
The Internal Review did not identify any material weaknesses in the Company's internal controls. Nonetheless, following the Internal Review, the Audit Committee recommended that the Company engage in remedial efforts to enhance the Company's transactional review process.
We filed our annual report on Form 20-F for 2020 on March 8, 2022.
Annual Report for 2021
We were unable to timely file our Form 20-F annual report for 2021 because Union Power required additional time to complete the audited financial statements. Union Power had less time than it typically would have to complete the audit because of the delayed filing of our annual report for 2020.
Furthermore, Union Power's work was disrupted by the quarantine measures put in place by the Shanghai municipal government as a result of the COVID-19 resurgence in Shanghai in late March and early April 2022, which affected the majority of Union Power's workforce. The on-site audit of our significant investments and the procedures to obtain certain banks’ confirmation letters were delayed.
The quarantine measures in Shanghai were gradually lifted since early June 2022 and Union Power was able to resume in-person operation.
INTRODUCTION
Unless otherwise indicated and except where the context otherwise requires, references in this annual report on Form 20-F to:
| ● | “we,” “us,” “our company,” “the Company” “our,” “the Group” or “Xinyuan” refers to Xinyuan Real Estate Co., Ltd., its predecessor entities and its subsidiaries; |
| ● | “shares” or “common shares” refers to our common shares, par value US$0.0001 per share; |
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| ● | “ADSs” refers to our American depositary shares, each of which represents two common shares, and “ADRs” refers to the American depositary receipts that evidence our ADSs; |
| ● | “China” or “PRC” refers to the People’s Republic of China, excluding, for the purposes of this Form 20-F only, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau; |
| ● | “U.S.” or “United States” refers to the United States of America; |
| ● | “GFA” refers to gross floor area. The amounts for “total GFA” in this annual report are the amounts of total saleable residential and commercial GFA and are derived on the following basis: |
| ● | for properties that are sold, the stated GFA is based on the sales contracts relating to such property; GFA may be adjusted based on final examination upon delivery of the property; |
| ● | for unsold properties that are completed or under construction, the stated GFA is calculated based on the detailed construction blueprint and the calculation method approved by the PRC government for saleable GFA, after necessary adjustments; and |
| ● | for properties that are under planning, the stated GFA is based on the land grant contract and our internal projection; |
| ● | “RMB” or “Renminbi” refers to the legal currency of China and “US$” or “U.S. dollars” refers to the legal currency of the United States; and |
| ● | “sq.m” refers to square meters used as unit of area. |
At present, there is no uniform standard to categorize the different types and sizes of cities in China. In this annual report, we refer to certain larger and more developed cities as tier I, tier II and tier III cities based on the categorization developed by China Business Network Co., Ltd., a financial media group. Their ranking system relies on commercial data from over 170 brands, customer behavior data from 19 internet companies, as well as big data from relevant statistics institutions.
Facts and statistics in this annual report relating to China, the Chinese economy and the China property development industry are sourced from various publicly available government and official sources, as indicated herein and may include projections based on a number of assumptions. We believe that the sources of this information are appropriate sources for such information. However, we cannot independently verify such information. Further, if one or more of the assumptions underlying the market data turn out to be incorrect, the actual results may differ from the projections based on these assumptions.
This annual report includes our audited consolidated financial statements for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021. Our financial statements and other financial data included in this annual report are presented in U.S. dollars. Our business and operations are primarily conducted in China through our PRC subsidiaries. The functional currency of our PRC subsidiaries is RMB. The functional currency of our U.S. subsidiaries is the U.S. dollar. The financial statements of our PRC subsidiaries are translated into U.S. dollars, using published exchange rates in China, based on (i) year-end exchange rates for assets and liabilities and (ii) average yearly exchange rates for revenues and expenses. Capital accounts are translated at historical exchange rates when the transactions occurred. The effects of foreign currency translation adjustments are included as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income in our shareholders’ equity. We make no representation that any RMB or U.S. dollar amounts could have been, or could be, converted into U.S. dollar or RMB, as the case may be, at any particular rate or at all.
The RMB is not freely convertible into foreign currency. The PRC government imposes control over its foreign currency reserves in part through direct regulation of the conversion of the RMB into foreign exchange and through restrictions on foreign trade. Since 2005, the People's Bank of China, or the PBOC, has allowed the RMB to fluctuate within a narrow and managed band against a basket of foreign currencies, according to market demand and supply conditions.
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Our common shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange, or the NYSE, in the form of ADSs under the symbol “XIN.” Each ADS represents two common shares. The closing price of our ADSs on the NYSE as of July 27, 2022 was US$0.72 per ADS.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This annual report contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical facts are forward-looking statements. These statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements.
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You can identify these forward-looking statements by words or phrases such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “is expected to,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “potential,” “continue,” “is/are likely to” or other similar expressions or negatives of such expressions. These forward-looking statements include, among others, statements about:
| ● | our anticipated growth strategies; |
| ● | our future business development, results of operations and financial condition; |
| ● | our expectations with respect to our ability to acquire adequate suitable land use rights for future development; and |
| ● | our belief with respect to market opportunities in, and growth prospects of, our target markets. |
We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy and financial needs. However, a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could affect the accuracy of these statements. Among the important factors to consider in evaluating our forward-looking statements are:
| ● | our ability to continue to implement our business model successfully; |
| ● | our ability to secure adequate financing for our project developments; |
| ● | our ability to successfully sell or complete our property projects under construction and planning; |
| ● | our ability to enter into new geographic markets or new lines of business and expand our operations; |
| ● | the marketing and sales ability of our third-party sales agents; |
| ● | the performance of our third party contractors; |
| ● | laws, regulations and policies relating to real estate developers and the real estate industry in the markets in which we operate; |
| ● | our ability to obtain permits and licenses to carry on our business in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; |
| ● | competition from other real estate developers; |
| ● | the growth of the real estate industry in the markets in which we operate; |
| ● | fluctuations in general economic and business conditions in the markets in which we operate, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and future pandemics; and |
| ● | volatility of the trading price of our ADSs and risks associated with our ADSs if the trading price remains below US$1.00 for 30 consecutive trading days or more. |
You should read thoroughly this annual report and the documents that we refer to herein with the understanding that our actual future results may be materially different from and/or worse than what we expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements. Other sections of this annual report include additional factors which could adversely impact our business and financial performance, including the risks outlined under “Item 3. Key Information — D. Risk Factors.” Moreover, we operate in an evolving environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible for our management to predict all risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement.
You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. The forward-looking statements made in this annual report relate only to events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this annual report. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as otherwise required by applicable securities laws.
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PART I
ITEM 1IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS
Not Applicable.
ITEM 2OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE
Not Applicable.
ITEM 3KEY INFORMATION
A.[Reserved]
B.Capitalization and Indebtedness
Not Applicable.
C.Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds
Not Applicable.
D.Risk Factors
Risks Related to Our Business
We are a holding company that depends on dividend payments from our subsidiaries for funding.
We are a holding company established in the Cayman Islands and operate most of our business and operations through our subsidiaries in China. Our ability to pay dividends to our shareholders and to service our indebtedness outside of China depends significantly upon dividends that we receive from our subsidiaries in China. To the extent our U.S., Malaysia and UK operations continue to grow, we may in the future also depend on dividends from our U.S., Malaysia and UK subsidiaries. If our subsidiaries incur indebtedness or losses, such indebtedness or losses may impair their ability to pay dividends or other distributions to us. As a result, our ability to pay dividends and to service our indebtedness will be restricted. Regulations in China currently permit payment of dividends only out of accumulated after-tax profits upon satisfaction of relevant statutory conditions and procedures, if any, determined in accordance with Chinese accounting standards and regulations. Each of our PRC subsidiaries, including wholly foreign-owned enterprises and domestic companies, is required to set aside at least 10.0% of its after-tax profits each year, if any, to fund certain reserve funds until the cumulative amount of such reserves reaches 50.0% of its respective registered capital and, with the approval of a shareholder meeting or general shareholder meeting, a PRC subsidiary may set aside a certain amount of after-tax profits to its discretionary general reserves. As of December 31, 2021, our statutory reserves amounted to US$178.5 million. Our statutory reserves are not distributable as cash dividends. Dividends paid by the PRC subsidiaries may also be subject to PRC withholding tax. In addition, restrictive covenants in bank credit facilities, bonds, other long-term debt agreements, joint venture agreements or other agreements that we or our subsidiaries currently have or may enter into in the future may also restrict the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends or make other distributions to us and our ability to receive distributions. Therefore, these restrictions on the availability and usage of our major source of funding may impact our ability to pay dividends to our shareholders and to service our indebtedness.
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Our business and prospects are heavily dependent on and may be adversely affected by the performance of the PRC property markets, particularly in Zhengzhou.
Our business and prospects depend on the performance of the PRC property market. As of December 31, 2021, we had a total of 102 property projects covering 20 cities in China at various stages of development. We intend to continue to enhance our presence in targeted high growth cities in China. These property markets may be affected by local, regional, national and global factors, including economic and financial conditions, speculative activities in local markets, demand for and supply of properties, investor confidence, availability of alternative investment choices for property buyers, inflation, government policies, interest rates and availability of capital. Any market downturn in China generally or in cities in which we have or expect to have operations may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, any oversupply of properties or potential decline in demand for or prices of properties in these cities could also have a material adverse impact on us. In particular, the PRC property market is affected by the recent slowdown of China’s economic growth. There have been increasing concerns over the sustainability of the real estate market growth in China. Any slowdown in the PRC’s economic development could lead to tighter credit markets, increased market volatility, sudden drops in business and consumer confidence and dramatic changes in business and consumer behaviors. In response to their perceived uncertainty in economic conditions, consumers might delay, reduce or cancel purchases of homes, and our homebuyers may also defer, reduce or cancel purchases of our units. We have experienced volatilities in demand from time to time in the recent years due to the strict mortgage policy and other measures taken by the PRC government to slow down the rapid increase in housing prices. To the extent any fluctuations in the Chinese economy significantly affect homebuyers’ demand for our units or change their spending habits, our results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. The PRC economy also faces challenges in the short to medium term. Continued turbulence in the international markets and prolonged declines in consumer spending, including home purchases, as well as any slowdown of economic growth in China, may adversely affect our liquidity and financial condition.
We experienced net losses of US$67.5 million and US$413.3 million in 2020 and 2021, respectively. We may continue to incur losses in the future. The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that we will continue as a going concern. Our ability to continue as a going concern depends on our ability to generate cash flows from operations and to arrange adequate financing arrangements to support our working capital requirements. There is material uncertainty associated with our ability to continue as a going concern. See "Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects - B. Liquidity and Capital Resources."
Our business requires access to substantial financing. Our failure to obtain adequate financing in a timely manner could severely adversely restrict our ability to complete existing projects, expand our business, or repay our obligations and affect our financial performance and condition.
Our property development business is capital intensive. To date, we have funded our operations primarily through bank borrowings, proceeds from sales and pre-sale of our properties and proceeds from issuance of equity and debt securities. We obtain commercial bank financing for our projects through credit lines extended on a case-by-case basis. Our ability to secure sufficient financing for land use rights acquisition and property development and repayment of our existing onshore and offshore debt obligations depends on a number of factors that are beyond our control, including lenders’ perceptions of our creditworthiness, sufficiency of collateral, if any, market conditions in the capital markets, investors’ perception of our securities, the PRC economy and PRC government regulations that affect the availability and cost of financing for real estate companies or property purchasers.
Since 2003, PRC commercial banks have been prohibited, under the guidelines of the PBOC, from advancing loans to fund the payment of land use rights. We generate significant cash flow through pre-sale, which are subject to government restrictions. In particular, PRC regulations on the pre-sale of properties generally provide that the proceeds from the pre-sale of a real estate project may only be used for the construction of such project. Any additional potential government restrictions on pre-sale could significantly increase our financing needs. Moreover, our ability to move cash through inter-company transfers or transfer funds from onshore subsidiaries to our offshore parent company is limited by PRC government regulations, which limits our ability to use excess cash resources in one subsidiary to fund the obligations of another subsidiary or our offshore parent company. In addition, reserve requirement applicable to PRC commercial banks generally limit, and any increases in such reserve requirements could further limit, the amount of commercial bank credit available to businesses in China, including us.
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Furthermore, various other PRC regulations restrict our ability to raise capital through external financing and other methods, including, without limitation, the following:
| ● | we cannot borrow from a PRC bank for a particular project if we do not have the land use rights certificate for that project; |
| ● | we cannot pre-sell uncompleted residential units in a project prior to achieving certain development milestones specified in related regulations; |
| ● | we cannot borrow from a PRC bank for a particular project unless we fund at least 35% of the total investment amount of that project from our own capital; |
| ● | property developers are strictly restricted from using the proceeds from a loan obtained from a local bank to fund property developments outside the region where that bank is located; and |
| ● | PRC banks are prohibited from accepting properties that have been vacant for more than three years as collateral for loans. |
On February 13, 2017, the Asset Management Association of China issued the Administrative Rules for the Filing of Private Equity and Asset Management Plans by Securities and Futures Institut