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 In the not-so-distant future, the world of IT will have undergone a seismic shift. Gone were the days of traditional employment, where companies hires full-time employees to fill specific roles. Instead, the gig economy had taken over, and IT professionals will be embracing the freedom and flexibility that cames with freelancing. Companies had caught on to the benefits of project-based hiring, where they could tap into a global talent pool and scale up or down as needed. Job postings  floated online, and skilled freelancers would bid on projects that matches their expertise. Seasoned IT professionals, making the transition to freelancing in these  years, builds reputations on these  platforms like Toptal and Upwork, and their calendars will always be filled with exciting projects. Skilled  IT engineers helps big compernies to launch their new products. Their projects, some  complex, with tight deadlines, and the clients willing to pay top dollar for the ri...

Chinese property magnate loses $1 billion in Evergrande panic

 ·1-min read

The property sector accounts for more than a quarter of China's GDP (AFP/Johannes EISELE)

The boss of a Shanghai-based property developer lost more than a billion dollars Monday, as fears over the potential collapse of Chinese real estate giant Evergrande sent panic across Hong Kong trading floors.

Zhang Yuanlin, chairman of Sinic Holdings Group, saw his net worth drop from $1.3 billion Monday morning to $250.7 million by the afternoon, according to Forbes, when his firm was forced to halt trading in Hong Kong following an 87 percent slump in its share price.

Zhang was featured on Forbes' Billionaires list of the world's richest people this year and made his fortune in high-rise apartments -- now highly vulnerable as the possible collapse of teetering property giant China Evergrande sparks panic.

Sinic saw a sudden sell-off and massive increase in trading volume on its shares in the hours prior to its suspension, which comes just weeks before it must pay a 9.5 percent $246 million bond due on October 18, according to Bloomberg.

A spokesperson for Sinic did not respond to AFP's request for comment.

The firm is one of many seeing fortunes wiped over investor fears that Evergrande -- one of China's biggest developers -- will default on upcoming interest payments this week as it wallows in debts of more than $300 billion.

With the property sector estimated to account for more than a quarter of China's GDP, there are concerns of a spillover into the domestic and global economy.

The crisis has even triggered rare protests outside the company's offices by investors and suppliers demanding their money -- some of whom claim they are owed as much as $1 million.

bur-oho/lb

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