(Yicai) April 16 -- Shares of Times China Holdings plunged after Hang Seng Bank filed a winding-up petition against the Chinese real estate developer.

Times China [HKG: 1233] was trading down 44 percent at 13 Hong Kong cents (2 US cents) as of 2.20 p.m. today. The stock of Hang Seng Bank [HKG: 0011] fell 2.6 percent to HKD94.90 (USD12.12).

Hang Seng Bank filed a winding-up petition against Times China to the High Court of Hong Kong on April 15, the Guangzhou-based builder said in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The court hearing was confirmed for July 3.

Any transfer of the company’s shares completed on or after April 15 will be void if it does not obtain the High Court’s recognition order, Times China noted.

Times China had USD173.2 million and HKD731.4 million (USD93.5 million) in debts, Hang Seng Bank said when filing the petition to the court.

As of Dec. 31, Times China’s interest-bearing bank loans and other borrowings totaled about CNY46.1 billion (USD6.4 billion), of which nearly CNY27.5 billion were due within one year. Cash and bank balances slumped 41 percent to less than CNY4 billion (USD552.6 million) from a year earlier.

Times China’s operating income fell 14 percent to CNY21 billion last year from the previous one, while net loss shrank 55 percent to CNY4.3 billion. The company’s contracted sales plunged 72 percent to CNY1.5 billion in the first quarter of this year from a year earlier.

Editor: Futura Costaglione