Hong Kong-based property developer Hopson Development is planning to take over 51 percent in China Evergrande Group's property management unit Evergrande Property Services Group with over HK$40 billion ($5.14 billion), financial news agency cls.cn said in an exclusive report on Monday, citing sources.

Trading in shares of the involved parties was halted at 9 a.m. on Monday, according to notices by the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (SEHK). 

The sources said the deal won special approval from the SEHK for the transfer of the controlling rights, as Evergrande Property Services Group has been listed in Hong Kong for less than a year. 

The listing rules of the SEHK require that the controlling shareholder shall not dispose of the company's shares in any way within six months from the trading day, and shall not lose controlling rights of the company within another six months.

A filing by Hopson said the trading halt was "pending the release of announcement(s) in relation to a major transaction" related to its agreement to acquire the shares of a "target" company.

Later on Monday, China Evergrande Group and Evergrande Property Services Group filed with the SEHK, saying their trading halts were pending the release of an announcement containing inside information.

Having been expanding its businesses into new energy cars and healthcare, China's second-largest property giant, Evergrande Group, has recently been hit by a liquidity crisis, with its liabilities amounting to over 1.97 trillion yuan ($304 billion), according to its half-year financial report released in late August.

The group has been struggling to raise funds to repay its many lenders and suppliers. In its latest move, Evergrande Group said in a Wednesday exchange filing that it plans to sell a 9.99-billion yuan stake in its Shengjing Bank Co., Ltd. to a state-owned asset management company, which can help "stabilize the operations of Shengjing Bank," as Evergrande's liquidity issue has adversely affected Shengjing Bank in a material way.

Read more: 

China Evergrande expects plunging property sales in September to affect liquidity

Cash-strapped realty giant Evergrande starts repaying investors with property

Established in 1992, Hopson engages in developing medium- to high-end large-scale residential properties. It also operates property management and hotel operations. The company ranked 336th in the 2021 Fortune China 500, while Evergrande Group stood at 18th, in terms of total assets.