A precipitous share price fall has wiped more than $20bn off the market capitalisation of a Hong Kong horse breeding-to-wine conglomerate, one day after a similarly steep sell-off in Hanergy Thin Film.
Shares in Goldin’s two main business units fell as much as 60 per cent on Thursday, extending losses on Wednesday in a sell-off that has intensified questioning of how Hong Kong’s stock exchange is regulated.
The little-known Goldin Financial and Goldin Properties had previously enjoyed a meteoric rise on Hong Kong’s market. Goldin Financial rose 356 per cent in 2015 alone to a peak last Friday. Its peak market capitalisation was $30.8bn — or $258m for each of its 116 employees at the end of 2014.
The listed Goldin subsidiaries each issued “unusual price and trading volume” announcements to the Hong Kong stock exchange, but said it was not aware of any reason for the losses.
The Securities and Futures Commission declined to comment on Goldin, following its policy of not commenting on individual stocks. The Hong Kong Exchange also did not comment.
Hong Kong does not limit single-day share price moves unlike some other exchanges, meaning stocks can theoretically fall to zero — or double — in a day. But unlike most other big markets, stocks can also be suspended for months or even years, effectively trapping investors.
