BEIJING: China’s banking regulator has ordered an inspection of potentially risky loans to major Chinese companies that have invested heavily overseas, one of the firms under scrutiny said on Friday.

Dalian Wanda Group said other domestic companies caught up in the review include AC Milan owner Rossoneri Sport Investment Lux, Club Med’s Fosun Group and HNA Group.

The China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) ordered banks this month to carry out credit and risk analysis at the firms “that engaged in ferocious overseas investment and had relatively large bank exposure”, Wanda said, confirming an earlier report in Chinese business magazine Caixin.

“Regulatory departments will arrange on-site inspections of relevant enterprises,” Wanda said on its official Weibo account.

The Chinese conglomerate anticipates investigators will “check for possible risks” but added that authorities have not made any “risk judgements” yet.

Wanda’s statement came a day after shares in its film unit were suspended from trading in Shenzhen following a heavy fall sparked by rumours that banks would dump the company’s bonds, which it denounced as vicious speculation on the internet. Its shares resumed trading Friday.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2017