On February 6, 2023, Coromandel Properties filed for creditor protection under the federal Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) while carrying over $700 million of debt across 16 active real estate projects.
Although Metro Vancouver (and beyond) has seen numerous others since then, the insolvency of Coromandel Properties was one of the earliest of the recent cycle and remains unmatched in terms of the amount of projects.
It's now been over two years since the company's filing, and although many of their lenders have secured some recovery through court-ordered sales, some still have not, including the company's original seed investors, who filed an application last month to place various entities of Coromandel under receivership. The application was granted by the Supreme Court on May 8 and published on May 26.
Because the applicants were the original seed investors in the company, their application includes numerous details about how Coromandel Properties was structured and how things played out behind the scenes after the company filed for creditor protection, some of which have been previously reported by STOREYS.
How Coromandel Properties Was Formed
Coromandel Properties was formed around 2016. The seed investor in the company was Junchao Mo and his two sons Zhao Ming "Robert" Mo and Zi Hao "Calvin" Mo. Through entities known as ZMM Family Trust (2020), ZHM Family Trust (2020), and Birch Family Trust (2020), the Mo family collectively owned 70% of Coromandel Properties and its various entities, and they were the applicants who filed the recent receivership application.
Leading the company's operations was Zhen Yu "Jerry" Zhong, who identified the projects the company would undertake and managed the company. Zhong was the sole director of the parent company, as well as the entities that held the properties, and also served as the company's CEO.
Another notable figure in the company was Raymond Louie, who served on Vancouver City Council from December 2002 to November 2018 before joining Coromandel Properties as its COO. Louie's LinkedIn profile indicates that he served in that role from January 2019 to September 2023.
As is common in real estate, new corporate entities were formed for investors and projects and the Coromandel group of companies ultimately came to include over 130 entities.
Two entities close to the top of the corporate structure are Coromandel Holdings Ltd. and Coromandel Holdings (II) Ltd., two entities that controlled the limited partnerships that were the beneficial owners of the real estate. Robert and Calvin Mo together held a 49.9982% interest in the former and a 70.0% stake in the latter. Another entity of note is Mulberry Capital Ltd., which was the entity that directly received funding from Mr. Mo. After receiving funding, this entity would then redirect the money to other entities as necessary.
The Collapse
As the calendar flipped to 2023, many of Coromandel Properties' debt obligations became due and the company had insufficient funds to satisfy them. At that time, the company had 16 projects under development or being held for development, a number that even Vancouver's largest and most experienced developers would be hesitant to reach.
On February 6, the company filed for CCAA creditor protection with its total outstanding debt at approximately $700 million. According to the recent receivership application, the Mo family was unaware of the company's financial difficulties and did not learn of the creditor protection application until February 11 — a few days after the first media reports.
In a surprising turn of events, however, Coromandel Properties opted to discontinue creditor protection on March 10, saying that it had reached forbearance agreements with some of its lenders.
At that time, Jerry Zhong had also been negotiating the potential sale of a portfolio of the company's assets for $280 million. Details of this proposed transaction were not included in court documents, but the existence of this proposed transaction was first reported by STOREYS in November 2023. According to draft transaction documents provided to STOREYS, the prospective purchaser was Peak Mortgage through an entity named 1410810 BC Ltd. and the portfolio consisted of Coromandel's Alberta 40, Ash & Manson, Cambie 59, Pacific Burrard, AC Nanaimo, and Nanaimo 22 projects.
The transaction had progressed to the point of contracts being signed on June 5, 2023, but collapsed shortly after when the $5 million deposit was not paid, despite extensions granted to the purchaser. This was reported by STOREYS in November 2023 and was confirmed in the recent receivership application filed by the Mo family, who said that they learned of the deal collapsing in a meeting with Zhong at Coromandel's head office on July 21, 2023.
"At the close of the July Meeting, given the collapse of the Proposed Portfolio Sale and the growing concerns regarding Coromandel Group generally, Mr. Mo, Calvin and Robert began taken [sic] steps to understand the state of the Coromandel Group's financial position," said the Mo family in its receivership application.
Shortly afterwards, employees including Raymound Louie began leaving the company and those who remained stopped receiving salary payments.
The Receivership
By this time, various lenders had begun initiating foreclosure or receivership proceedings against individual projects. In November 2023, the Mo family then filed an application seeking to place 57 of the company's entities under receivership. Many of the other lenders on individual projects opposed the application and the application was ultimately dismissed by the Supreme Court on December 12, 2023, with the presiding judge saying that the Mo family's financial interest in the entities were not outlined clearly enough and that the receivership could interfere with the other existing insolvency proceedings.
The door was left open for reapplications, however, and the Mo family submitted a new receivership application on April 14, 2025 — with many of the individual insolvency proceedings now concluded — focused on 26 entities. The new application also addressed some of the previous concerns and took a different form than traditional receiverships. Instead of having the power to operate the business of the debtors and sell assets, the Mo family sought what is known as an "investigative" receiver that would be focused on obtaining an accurate picture of Coromandel's operations and preserving the value of its remaining assets.
"The Coromandel Group is still lacking any management, which continues to erode value in the assets of the Coromandel Group to the deteriment of stakeholders," said the Mo family. "The current management of the Coromandel Group, in particular Mr. Zhong, is failing to prudently operate the Coromandel Group."
According to the Mo family, Zhong is "not attending to corporate matters" and has failed to pay outstanding fees to accountants, failed to respond to the landlord of its head office, failed to respond to the Canada Revenue Agency, and failed to respond in the insolvency proceedings for individual projects. Instead, Zhong has directed lenders and stakeholders to Robert Mo, but Mo cannot respond in legal proceedings because he is not a director, officer, or employee of Coromandel Properties.
"Despite the Applicants' significant shareholdings in the Coromandel Group, they are not directors of the entities within the Coromandel Group and do not control the day-to-day operations of the Coromandel Group," the application notes. "The Applicants have lost all confidence in Mr. Zhong's management of the Coromandel Group. Management have failed to respond to numerous important matters, which is exposing the Coromandel Group to further losses and risks."
Although the applicants sought an "investigative" receivership, the receivership order that's now in effect appears to be a traditional one that grants the Receiver full control of the 26 entities, most of which are the higher-order corporate entities rather than the lower-order entities that hold the real estate — although some of the latter were included as well.
Coromandel Properties' Projects, Two Years Later
As of their CCAA creditor protection application dated February 6, 2023, Coromandel Properties and its affiliated entities were involved in a grand total of 16 real estate development projects, all in Vancouver.
Those projects and their current status are as follows.
1. Alberta 40
Address: 5666, 5676, and 5686 Alberta Street / 5576, 5592, and 5638 Alberta Street
Lender: Lanyard Investments Inc. (as GP of LFC Alberta21 Limited Partnership) / Hossein Sobjani and 1211192 BC Ltd.
Details: Coromandel Properties purchased the land assembly between 2017 and 2022 for a total of $35.16 million and was planning atwo 18-storey buildings with a total of 349 rental units. No application was submitted, however.
Status: Under individual receivership. Listed by Michael Buchan, Carey Buntain, and Megan Low of Avison Young. (More Details)
2. Ash & Manson
Address: 5250 and 5270 Ash Street, 595 W 37th Avenue, 5434, 5472, 5448, 5408, 5392 Manson Street
Lender: Unknown
Details: This was one of three joint ventures between Coromandel Properties (40%) and Peterson Group (60%). The two partners acquired the land assembly between 2018 and 2021 for a total of approximately $57 million and was planning two 18-storey towers with a total of 248 strata units.
Status:Peterson Group bought out Coromandel's stake. (More Details)
3. Cambie 43
Address: 5910, 5936, and 5976 Cambie Street (now known as 5988 Cambie Street)
Lender: Unknown
Details: This was also a joint venture between Coromandel Properties (50%) and Peterson Group (50%). The two partners acquired the land assembly for $76 million and received rezoning approval for a 29-storey strata tower and 15-storey hotel in March 2021.
Status: Peterson Group bought out Coromandel's stake. (More Details)
4. Cambie 45
Address: 6012, 6036, 6062, 6068, and 6088 Cambie Street
Lender: Forgestone Mortgage Fund LP
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the land assembly in 2021 for $94.5 million and was planning a 21-storey strata tower and an 11-storey hotel that generally mirrored their Cambie 43 project (located immediately north). Coromandel was getting close to submitting a rezoning application, but was unable to do so before their CCAA filing. Forgestone initiated a foreclosure in March 2023, but there has been no updates in the case since then.
Status:Unclear. A rezoning application was submitted in October 2024 and was published by the City on April 25, 2025. The property remains owned by Coromandel Properties, according to the Land Owner Transparency Registry, and is not the subject of any other insolvency proceedings. STOREYS reached out to several parties affiliated with the property and project in April, but has not received a response.
5. Cambie 59
Address: 7510 Cambie Street
Lender:Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company (First Mortgage) and Jin-Ocean Mortgage lnvestment Corporation (Second Mortgage)
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the property in 2018 for $44 million. The property was beneficially owned under Coromandel Cambie 59 Limited Partnership, with ownership split between Coromandel (35%%), Ansen Langara Investments Ltd. (52.5%), and 1167389 BC Ltd. (12.5%). Two six-storey buildings were approved for the site before the developers acquired it, but the developers were considering whether to revise the project after the Vancouver Plan was approved.
Status:As part of foreclosure proceedings, a bid of $25.8 million by 1469664 BC Ltd. was accepted in March 2024 (more Details). After that, however, a $32 million bid by a party related to Jin-Ocean was submitted and that bid is currently serving as the stalking horse bid in a new sales process that has yet to be completed.
6. Coromandel Ash
Address: 5188 Ash Street and 5210 Ash Street
Lender:Gulf and Fraser Fishermen's Credit Union (Beem Credit Union)
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the two parcels for $10.95 million and was planning a four-storey condo project.
Status:Sold to 1452085 BC Ltd. for $11.2 million via foreclosure. (More Details)
7. Georgia Court
Address: 282-298 Georgia Street, 721, 729, and 735 Gore Avenue
Lender: Unknown
Details: The property consists of a low-rise building in Chinatown with 25 strata units. Beginning in 2017, Coromandel Properties started acquiring the units and they eventually acquired 24 of the 25 units for a total of approximately $25 million, but could not close on the final unit (735 Gore Avenue) in January 2023 due to their financial trouble.
Status: Foreclosure proceedings initiated by Amber Financial in November 2023 remain ongoing.
8. Kingsway Frame
Address: 2725-2751 Kingsway (now 5189 Earles Street)
Lender: Unknown
Details: This was the third of three joint ventures between Coromandel Properties (35%) and Peterson Group (65%). The partners acquired the land assembly in 2016 for approximately $40.16 million and were planning a 10-storey building with 219 strata units.
Status: Peterson Group bought out Coromandel's stake. (More Details) The project is currently under construction.
9. Laurel 57
Address: 955 and 935 W 57th Avenue; 7255, 7235, and 7225 Laurel Street
Lender: Gardenful Ventures Limited
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the land assembly between 2016 and 2019 for a total of $67.148 million and were holding the property until they could secure higher density.
Status: Unclear. Foreclosure proceedings were initiated against the property by Gardenful Ventures Limited in February 2023 and the land assembly was listed for sale by Colliers, but the listing has since expired and does not appear to have been re-listed anywhere else.
10. Oak West 52
Address: 6768, 6778, 6788 Oak Street (formerly 675 W 52nd Avenue)
Lender: Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company
Details: At the time of the CCAA application, Coromandel Properties was developing a 23-unit townhouse project. Of the 23 units, 22 had been pre-sold and construction was approximately 66% complete, but there were cost overruns that the company could not finance.
Status:Completed
11. Pacific Burrard
Address: 1380 Burrard Street
Lender: Peterson Investment Group
Details: Also known as the Kilborn Building, Coromandel Properties acquired the seven-storey office building at the corner of Pacific Street and Burrard Street in 2016 for $80.8 million. They were exploring a redevelopment into a high-density mixed-use tower over 50 storeys, but no application was ever submitted to the City.
Status: Under foreclosure. Listed by Jim Szabo and Vincent Minichiello of CBRE Vancouver. (More Details)
12. Southview Gardens
Address: 3240 East 58th Avenue
Lender:Peakhill Capital
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the 6.6-acre parcel in 2017 for $72,685,397. The property is occupied by one apartment building and numerous townhouses for a total of 140 units. Coromandel was planning to redevelop the property into a large community with 1,150 units, but no application was ever submitted.
Status:Sold to Cenyard Southview Gardens Ltd. for $68.5 million via receivership. (More Details)
13. AC Nanaimo
Address: 2415, 2419, 2425, 2441, 2459, 2461, 2469, 2475, and 2483 East 26th Avenue
Lender: Lanyard Investments Inc. (as GP of KESEF-B21 Limited Partnership) and Fisgard Capital Corporation
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the nine parcels in 2021 for a total of $29.6 million, with plans to hold the property — one block south of the Expo Line SkyTrain's Nanaimo Station — until the City increased the allowable density near transit stations.
Status: Sold to 1447800 BC Ltd. for $19.5 million via receivership. (More Details)
14. Nanaimo 22
Address: 3805, 3815, 3825, 3835, 3845, 3855, 3863, 3883, 3893, 3909, and 3919 Nanaimo Street
Lender: Accountable Mortgage Investment Corp
Details: Coromandel Properties formed the land assembly between 2016 and 2020 for a total purchase price of approximately $29.6 million, with plans to hold the property — one block north of Nanaimo Station — until the City increased the allowable density near transit stations.
Status: Sold to the Government of British Columbia for $22.5 million via foreclosure. (More Details)
15. Slocan 29
Address: 2723, 2735, 2741, 2745, 2757, and 2765 E 29th Avenue
Lender: Blueshore Financial Credit Union
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the land assembly between 2016 and 2017 for a total of approximately $10.8 million. The lands are located about one block west of the Expo Line SkyTrain's 29th Avenue Station and Coromandel was also holding the property in anticipation that the City would allow increased density.
Status: Previously listed by Brett Aura of TRG Commercial and David Ho, Victoria Lam, and Adam Xu of CBRE under foreclosure. Now under the new receivership.
16. Wilmar
Address: 2050, 2056, 2058, 2060, 2062, and 2066 SW Marine Drive
Lender: Accountable Mortgage Investment Corp
Details: Coromandel Properties acquired the land assembly in 2016 for approximately $13 million. For the site, Coromandel was planning to rehabilitate the heritage home on the property and construct five new homes. At the time of the CCAA filing, the heritage portion was 75% complete and the new portion was 95% complete, but construction stalled due to Coromandel being unable to pay trades.
Status: Completed under receivership. Individual units have been listed for sale by Rennie.
