China Starts Bankruptcy Liquidation of Shadow Bank Zhongzhi

A Beijing court has ordered the liquidation of Zhongzhi Enterprise Group Co. and its more than 300 affiliated companies, in a major step toward winding down one of China’s largest shadow banking conglomerates.

The Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People’s Court said it accepted the case on Friday and creditors have until June 10 to submit their claims to the administrator, Beijing Dacheng Law Offices LLP, according to a court notice.

The move signals regulators’ determination to draw a line under years of opaque shadow banking practices, as courts and administrators seek to untangle complex inter-company guarantees and recover assets amid ...