Cash-strapped Sing Pao Daily News will temporarily cease publication today as its bank accounts have been frozen following the liquidation order of its parent company, the 76-year-old Chinese- language newspaper said.
It said since its bank accounts were frozen, the printing company was unwilling to print the daily.
This latest problem raised further doubts about the future of once-proud Sing Pao .
On Sunday, another Chinese daily, the Hong Kong Daily News, folded after 56 years succumbing to years of financial losses.
Sing Pao board chairman Gu Zheoheng said last night he regrets the newspaper will not be publishing today.
Gu said it may be the result of a communication problem as its accounts should not have been frozen.
He made his comments after meeting with KPMG executives yesterday.
Based on a notice sent to staff by the editorial team, the daily's editorial management has expressed its discontent to KPMG over the frozen bank accounts.
Yesterday, in a front-page announcement, the newspaper said the appointment of liquidators to Sing Pao Media Enterprises will not affect the operation of Sing Pao.
The High Court had earlier appointed provisional liquidators for the cash-strapped company.
Growth Enterprise Market-listed Sing Pao Media Enterprises said in an announcement on Wednesday that on July 13, "an order of the High Court of Hong Kong was granted for the appointment of Mr Edward Simon Middleton and Ms Wong Wing Sze Tiffany, both of KPMG, to act jointly and severally as provisional liquidators to Sing Pao Media Enterprises."
The company's statement said "its operating subsidiaries would remain in operation notwithstanding the appointment of the provisional liquidators."
In April, creditor Korchina Culture Investment filed a petition to the High Court to wind up the company.
Sing Pao, set up in 1939 by Ho Man-fat, has been plagued with delayed salary payments to staff for the past few years. It used to be one of the most popular local Chinese newspapers.
In the 1950s, Sing Pao almost accounted for half of the market.
Ho sold the paper in 2000 for HK$150 million to Optima Media Holding.
Qin Hui, a mainland businessman, bought Optima and changed its name to Strategic Media International in 2004. The paper was later sued for failing to pay salaries and was almost wound up by the Mandatory Provident Fund for failing to pay HK$4.2 million in contributions to staff in 2008.
Former Birmingham City Football Club boss Carson Yeung Ka-sing later offered a loan of up to HK$60 million to its parent company.
Qin transferred his shares to Yeung in 2010.
Yeung, who was sentenced in 2014 to six years in jail for money laundering, filed a HK$5.75 million lawsuit against Qin.
