BRIEF: Lancang Ancient Tea shareholder pledges stake amid trading halt
Tea merchant Pu’er Lancang Ancient Tea Co. Ltd. (6911.HK) said on Tuesday that controlling shareholders Wang Juan and Guangzhou Tiansu Information have pledged nearly 20 million shares as collateral for a loan, representing 15.83% of the company’s total issued shares.
The company has faced mounting challenges since its December 2023 listing. While its initial post-IPO earnings showed its profit rose 11% in 2023, its midyear report last year revealed the profit plunged 80% to 5.09 million yuan in the first half of 2024. PwC resigned as Pu’er Lancang’s auditor last July, and it later reallocated 26 million yuan from its IPO proceeds to repay loans.
In March of this year, the company warned that it lost between 96.5 million yuan and 120 million yuan in 2024, compared with an 80.08 million yuan profit in 2023. Trading in the company’s shares has been suspended since April 1 after it missed a deadline for releasing its annual financial results for 2024.
Pu’er Lancang’s shares were down 72% from their IPO price of HK$10.70 at HK$3.05 before the suspension.
By Lau Chi Hang
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