HONG KONG -- Chinese Estates Holdings, a Hong Kong-based developer and once-major shareholder in crisis-stricken peer China Evergrande Group, has proposed going private in a deal worth about 1.9 billion Hong Kong dollars ($244 million).

The family of billionaire former chairman Joseph Lau, which controls the company, would buy out minority investors for HK$4 per share, according to a disclosure on Wednesday. That represents a 38% premium over the closing price Sept. 29, when trading was suspended ahead of the announcement.

Chinese Estates was formerly Evergrande's second-largest shareholder but sold off much of its holdings in August and September. The company has indicated it could unload its remaining Evergrande shares.

Wednesday's statement cited the plummeting value of stakes in Evergrande -- which is at risk of collapse under its debt load -- and Kaisa Group Holdings, another mainland developer. This is on top of a "challenging and uncertain" business environment, with the coronavirus pandemic showing "no sign of significant improvement in the near future."

Chinese Estates' shares jumped 31% on the news Thursday after trading resumed.

Chinese Estates said it expects to record total losses of HK$10.4 billion this year if the company unloads its full interest in Evergrande, based on the Sept. 30 closing price.

Lau is a longtime friend of Evergrande founder and Chairman Xu Jiayin.

Lau and Chinese Estates CEO Kimbee Chan Hoi-wan, Lau's wife and the richest woman in Hong Kong, also recently disclosed the sale of some of their Evergrande shares.