(Yicai) July 3 -- China Vanke has appointed Shenzhen local government finance veteran Huang Yu as the debt-stricken real estate giant's new president, filling a role left vacant for one and a half years.

Vanke's board of directors approved Huang’s appointment as company president, effective immediately, the Shenzhen-based homebuilder announced late yesterday.

Huang, 52, was deputy director of the Office of the Financial Affairs Committee of the Communist Party of China Shenzhen Municipal Committee and deputy director of the Finance Bureau of Shenzhen Municipality from February 2024 until last month. Before that he worked at state-owned investment vehicle Shenzhen Investment Holdings as chief accountant and deputy general manager from March 2017 to February 2024.

Huang's experience across both financial regulation and large state investment institutions could bolster Vanke's management team and improve the company's ability to resolve its debt risks as soon as possible, industry insiders told Yicai.

Vanke’s stock price [SHE: 000002] finished 1 percent higher at CNY3.09 (46 US cents) in Shenzhen today. It is still down 35 percent year to date.

State-owned Shenzhen Metro Group, Vanke’s biggest shareholder, took over the developer early last year after it became engulfed in a liquidity crisis. Xin Jie, then-chairman of Shenzhen Metro, was appointed chair of Vanke. Former Vanke President Zhu Jiusheng resigned from all his positions, and Chairman Yu Liang was transferred to another role before stepping down this January.

Last November, the new chairman of Shenzhen Metro -- Huang Liping -- succeeded Xin as Vanke's chairman.

Facing persistent cash-flow pressure and unable to fully meet maturing debt obligations on schedule, Vanke has unveiled a number of restructuring and maturity-extension proposals for its onshore public bonds since last November, seeking approval from creditors.

Shenzhen Metro, which runs the southern Chinese city's subway system, has long provided shareholder loans to Vanke and kept injecting additional funds. Its capital support helps the builder avert a formal debt default and sustain property delivery and daily business operations.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione