Embattled Chinese property developer Evergrande is rushing to sell assets in a bid to raise cash to pay off its debts.

The property giant has sold a £1.1bn stake it owns in Chinese commercial bank, Shengjing Bank, to a state-owned company.

The money raised will be used to pay off debts Evergrande owes to Shengjing.

The latest development in the saga comes as Beijing yesterday ordered state-owned companies to buy the heavily indebted property developer’s. 

The company is estimated to have around $305bn in liabilities, largely caused by Evergrande borrowing heavily to fuel rapid expansion across China. The company says it has built homes for around 12m people in the country.

The asset purchases are intended to dampen the impact of a messy Evergrande collapse sparking mass social unrest. The news was first reported by Reuters.

The property giant  missed a $83.5m interest payment  to offshore bondholders last week and has a $47.5m interest payment due today.

Fears over the potential fallout of its collapse sent shockwaves through global markets last week. However, estimates of how much its debt is interlaced in the global financial system have tempered, prompting markets to regain most of their Evergrande-driven losses.