Evergrande Group Photo: CFP

Debt-wracked property giant China Evergrande Group has reportedly moved out of its headquarters building in Shenzhen and back to Guangzhou, at a time when the company is struggling to repay billions in liabilities. 

The company has terminated a lease contract signed with the building back in December 2021, and its logo on the building has also been removed, according to a report by thepaper.cn.

The move marks Evergrande’s return to Guangzhou in South China's Guangdong Province five years after it moved to Shenzhen. 

Evergrande purchased a plot of land in Shenzhen with a size of about 10,376 square meters in 2017 with land usage duration of 30 years. In June 2017, it changed its registered location to a building in Shenzhen's Nanshan district with registered capital of 3.38 billion yuan. 

The Shenzhen headquarters building was also the site of chaotic protests last September, when investors crowded into its lobby demanding repayment of loans and financial products from the company, according to media reports.

The Chinese real estate giant has fallen into severe financial difficulties. It is struggling to repay more than $300 billion in liabilities, and it missed payments on nearly $20 billion of offshore bonds last month. 

According to a Reuters report, the company's Guangzhou office also saw a recent gathering of protestors who expressed worries about getting their money back. 

Evergrande said it has moved out of Shenzhen's Excellence Centre, which is owned by another company, to a building that Evergrande owns in the city. The company’s registration address has not changed.