The lawsuit was filed by Wise Choice Ventures Limited in the High Court on Dec. 23, as reported by Dimsum Daily. Court filings indicate Huang has not paid the principal sum or the accrued interest. The plaintiff is seeking not only the repayment of the debt but also pre-judgment interest and the payment of legal fees.

This legal challenge is not Huang’s first encounter with financial issues. In 2023, a claim was made against him for HK$2.8 million in overdue rent and other charges for a duplex unit with six parking spaces in Westminster Terrace, a private residential complex in Hong Kong’s Tsuen Wan District.

In Jan. 2022, a financial company filed a lawsuit against Huang seeking over HK$300 million for unpaid debts and interest, adding to his financial woes.

Huang, a 48-year-old Chinese-born Singaporean businessman, married Zhao, also 48, in 2008, and they have a daughter born in 2010.

Zhao was once dubbed one of China’s “Four Dan Actresses,” a title denoting the top four commercially successful young actresses from China. She entered the business world in 1999, founding companies across various industries.

According to The Straits Timesin 2016, both Zhao and her husband were banned from trading on the mainland stock market for five years and from holding key positions in listed companies for the same duration.

This sanction followed an incident involving Tibet Longwei, a media company reportedly under Zhao and Huang’s control, which made a failed attempt to acquire another company. The China Securities Regulatory Commission scrutinized the bid for irregularities.

Subsequently, in 2021, all of Zhao’s films and series were removed from video platforms, her name disappeared from movie awards websites, and brands she endorsed either removed or concealed any association with her on the Chinese social media platform Weibo. Her last known public appearance was at a Fendi event in July 2021.

Baidu suggests that Zhao’s absence indicates a ban, a frequent occurrence in China’s entertainment and sports sectors, where individuals are prohibited from working due to violations of moral or legal standards. This practice also leads to the deletion of any content on social media. Similar bans have affected other Chinese celebrities, such as singer Kris Wu, actress Zheng Shuang, and singer Zhang Zhehan, in recent years.

However, the specific reasons for Zhao’s alleged ban have not been publicly disclosed.