Evergrande, Kaisa Cut by Fitch to ‘Default’ After Missed Payment Deadlines

A sign of the Kaisa Group Holdings is seen at the Shanghai Kaisa Financial Center, in Shanghai, China, on Dec. 7, 2021. Aly Song/Reuters

HONG KONG/LONDON—Ratings agency Fitch downgraded property developers China Evergrande Group and Kaisa Group on Thursday, saying they had defaulted on offshore bonds, while a source said Kaisa had started to work on restructuring its $12 billion offshore debt.

The downgrades to so-called “restricted default” status come even though Evergrande and Kaisa have not officially announced defaults that could result in drawn-out debt restructuring processes.