UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

OR

For the fiscal year ended June 30, 20192020

OR

OR

Date of event requiring this shell company report

For the transition period from   to  

Commission file number: 001-36907

Hailiang Education Group Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)

N/A

(Translation of Registrant’s Name into English)

Cayman Islands

(Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)

1508 Binsheng Road, Binjiang District,

Hangzhou City, Zhejiang 310051People’s Republic of China

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

Ming Wang,Junwei Chen, Chief Executive Officer

1508 Binsheng Road, Binjiang District,

Hangzhou City, Zhejiang 310051People’s Republic of China

Tel: (+86-571) 58121974

Fax: (+86-571) 58121974

E-mail: ir@hailiangeducation.com

(Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:

None

(Title of Class)

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act:

None

(Title of Class)

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report.

412,450,256 ordinary shares, par value US$0.0001 per share, as of June 30, 2019.2020.

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.Act. Yes ¨ No x

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Yes ¨ No x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule405 ofRegulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes x No ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.Act.

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards* provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report.          ¨

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act)Act). Yes ¨ No x

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

Unless the context otherwise requires, in this annual report on Form 20-F references to:

Names of certain companies provided in this annual report on Form 20-F are translated or transliterated from their original Chinese legal names.

Discrepancies in any table between the amounts identified as total amounts and the sum of the amounts listed therein are due to rounding.

This annual report on Form 20-F includes our audited consolidated financial statements as of June 30, 20182019 and 20192020 and each of the three years ended June 30, 2019.2018, 2019 and 2020.

This annual report on Form 20-F contains translations of certain Renminbi amounts into U.S. dollars at specified rates. Unless otherwise stated, the translation of Renminbi into U.S. dollars has been made at RMB6.8650RMB7.0651 to US$1.00, the noon buying rate in effect on June 28, 201930, 2020 as set forth in the H.10 Statistical Release of the Federal Reserve bank. We make no representation that any Renminbi or U.S. dollar amounts could have been, or could be, converted into U.S. dollars or Renminbi, as the case may be, at any particular rate, the rates stated below, or at all. The PRC government imposes controls over its foreign currency reserves in part through direct regulation of the conversion of Renminbi into foreign exchange and through restrictions on foreign trade. On September 13, 2019,October 9, 2020, the noon buying rate was RMB7.0754RMB6.6933 to US$1.00.

We completed an initial public offering of 2,858,000 ADSs on July 6, 2015. On July 7, 2015, we listed our ADSs on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol “HLG.”

Part I

Item 1. IDENTITY OF DIRECTORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND ADVISERS

Not Applicable.

Item 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE

Not Applicable.

Item 3. KEY INFORMATION

A. Selected Financial Data

The following selected consolidated statements of profit or loss and other comprehensive income data for the years ended June 30, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2019,2020, and the selected consolidated statements of financial position data as of June 30, 20182019 and 2019,2020, have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report. The selected consolidated statements of profit or loss and other comprehensive income data for the years ended June 30, 20152016 and 20162017 and the selected consolidated statements of financial position data as of June 30, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 20172018 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements that are not included in this annual report. The consolidated financial statements are prepared and presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards, or IFRSs, as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board. Historical results are not necessarily indicative of the results for any future periods.

B. Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not Applicable.

C. Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

Not Applicable.

D. Risk Factors

Risks Relating to Our Business and Industry

We face risks related to health pandemics, natural disasters, or terrorist attacks in China.

COVID-19, a disease caused by a novel and highly contagious form of coronavirus first appeared in China in December 2019, and later classified as a pandemic in March 2020 by the World Health Organization. As of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, COVID-19 is still spreading in communities in some parts of the world. The pandemic resulted in travel restrictions, massive closure of businesses and schools, and quarantine measures imposed by governments across the world. Because substantially all of our operations are conducted in China and our students had to remain home from February to April 2020, the outbreak of COVID-19 has caused a disruption to our business. In April 2020, we resumed in-person lecturing across our schools. Most of our students, teachers and educational staff, returned to schools after taking nucleic acid tests or respecting mandatory quarantine, with the exception of some of our foreign teachers who were unable to return to China due to international flight restrictions. Although China has temporarily controlled the outbreak, we currently are unable to predict the duration and severity of the COVID-19 outbreak, the responses thereto, and their impact on our business and operations, our results of operations, financial condition, cash flows and liquidity, as these depend on rapidly evolving developments, which are highly uncertain and will be a function of factors beyond our control. Such factors include, among others, the continued spread or recurrence of contagion, the implementation of effective preventative and containment measures, the development of effective medical solutions, and the extent to which governmental restrictions on travel, public gatherings, mobility and other activities remain in place or are augmented. The COVID-19 outbreak has to some extent, impacted our results of operations and financial conditions and will likely have a continued adverse impact on our results of operations in 2020.

Additionally, our business could be materially and adversely affected by natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, tornados and tsunamis, and other outbreaks of health epidemics such as avian influenza and severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, and Influenza A virus, such as H5N1 subtype and H5N2 subtype flu viruses, as well as terrorist attacks, other acts of violence or war or social instability in the region in which we operate or those generally affecting China. If any of these occur, our schools and facilities may be required to temporarily or permanently close and our business operations may be suspended or terminated. Our students, teachers and staff may also be negatively affected by such event. Our physical facilities may also be affected. In addition, any of these could adversely affect the Chinese economy and demographics of the affected region, which could cause significant declines in the number of our students in that region and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may be unable to charge tuition at a sufficient level to be profitable or raise tuition as planned.

Our results of operations are affected by the pricing of our educational programs and services. We charge tuition and/or service fees based on a student’s grade level and whether the student attends our basic educational program, international program or other ancillary educational services. Tuition and/or service fees we charge includes 1) the provision of the curriculum education services, after-school enrichment services, accommodations, transportation services and other ancillary school activities, 2) delivery of educational books and related materials, and 3) meal catering services. Subject to the applicable regulatory requirements, we generally determine tuition based on the demand for our educational programs, the cost of our education and non-education services and the tuition and the fees charged by our competitors. Although we have been able to increase tuition in the past, there is no guarantee that we will be able to maintain or increase our tuition in the future.

In addition, the tuition we charge for some of our educational programs is subject to regulatory restrictions. See “–—The tuition, accommodation and other fees charged by our K-12 schools and student enrollment at these schools are subject to regulation by the Chinese government, and our revenue is highly dependent on the level of these fees and the number of students enrolled.” Furthermore, the tuition we charge is subject to a number of other factors beyond our control such as the perception of our brand, the academic success of our students, our ability to hire qualified teachers and economic conditions generally and particularly in Zhuji city and Zhenjiang City, where, as of June 30, 2019,2020, our affiliated schools are located. Any significant deterioration in these factors could have a material adverse effect on our ability to charge tuition at a sufficient level for us to be profitable.

In addition, the tuition we charge for some of our educational programs is subject to regulatory restrictions. See “Item 3 Key Information – D. Risk Factors - The tuition charged by our affiliated schools and student enrollment at these affiliated schools are subject to regulation by the Chinese government, and our revenue is highly dependent on the level of these fees and the number of students enrolled.”

We may fail to continue to attract and retain students in our schools.

The success of our business largely depends on the number of students enrolled in our current affiliated schools and in any new schools we may establish or acquire in the future, as well as on the amount of tuition our students and parents are willing to pay. Therefore, our ability to continue to attract students to enroll in our schools is critical to the continued success and growth of our business. The success of our efforts to enroll students will depend on several factors, including without limitation our ability to:

In addition, local and provincial government authorities may impose restrictions on the number of students we can recruit or the areas in which we can recruit students. Our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected if we cannot maintain or increase our enrollment as we expand our programs.

We may fail to continue to attract and retain teachers and we may not be able to maintain consistent teaching quality throughout our schools.

Our teachers are critical to maintaining and improving the quality of our educational programs and services, and to supporting the expansion of our affiliated school network and educational programs and services, thus maintaining our brand and reputation. We must continue to attract qualified teachers who have a strong command of their subject areasmatters and who meet our qualifications. Currently, there is a well-publicized nationwide shortage of teachers and other educational professionals in the PRC. There is also a limited number of teachers in China with the necessary experience, expertise and qualifications that meet our requirements. We also must provide competitive compensation packages to attract and retain qualified teachers.

Our teacher retention rates as of June 30, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 20192020 were 95.1%, 91.5%, 93.3% and 93.3%88.8%, respectively. “Retention rate” is calculated as 100% minus the quotient of the number of teachers who cease being employed during the period by the number of teachers at the beginning of that period (not including teachers hired during that period). In addition, we plan to increase the proportion of students enrolled in our international program and increase course offerings. Doing so will require a greater number of teachers from overseas.foreign teachers. As the market for qualified foreign teachers is extremely competitive, we cannot guarantee that we can maintain or increase our number of foreign teachers. Shortages of qualified teachers, or significant decreases in the quality of our educational programs and services, whether actual or perceived in one or more of our schools, or an increase in hiring costs, may have a material and adverse effect on our business and our reputation. In addition, we may not be able to hire and retain enough qualified teachers to maintain consistent teaching quality in different locations should we establish and/or acquire additional schools as anticipated. Further, any inability to retain teachers may adversely affect our Hailiang brand and significantly increasing teacher salaries may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Our students’ academic performance may fall and satisfaction with our educational services may otherwise decline.

The success of our business depends on our ability to deliver a satisfactory learning experience and ensure the academic performance of our students. Our schools may not be able to meet students’ and parents’ expectations for academic performance or help them achieve their college admissions goals. A student may not experience expected academic improvement and his or her performance may otherwise decline significantly due to reasons beyond our control. There is no assurance that we can provide learning and school experiences that are satisfactory to all of our students. Student and parent satisfaction with our services may decline. We may also experience negative publicity or a decrease in word-of-mouth referrals. In addition, we cannot ensure that our students will be accepted to universities at rates we have experienced in the past, and parents and students may not be satisfied with our ability to help students gain admission to universities. Any such negative developments could result in a student’s withdrawal from our schools. Although we have not experienced any significant school withdrawals in the past, if our student retention rate decreases significantly or if we otherwise fail to continue to attract and recruit students, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

Our historical results, growth rates and profitability may not be indicative of our future performance.

We have experienced growth in revenue in recent years. Our historical growth was driven by both the expansion of our existing schools as well as by our acquisition of an additional school in the 2019 fiscal year. In addition, our growth in the past three fiscal years was primarily driven by the increase in levels of tuition fees we charge our students.

Our financial condition and results of operations may fluctuate due to a number of other factors, such as expansion and related costs in a given period, our ability to maintain and increase our profitability and to enhance our operational efficiency, increased competition and market perception and acceptance of any newly introduced educational programs in any given year. In addition, while we plan to increase the proportion of our students enrolled in our international program, there is no guarantee that we will be able to do so successfully. Furthermore, we may not be successful in continuing to increase the number of students admitted to the schools we operate, and we may not be as successful as we expect in identifying and acquiring or sponsoring additional schools.

We may not sustain our past growth rates in future periods, and we may not sustain profitability on a quarterly or annual basis in the future. Our historical results, growth rates and profitability may not be indicative of our future performance. Our ADSs could be subject to significant price volatility should our earnings fail to meet the expectations of the investment community. Any of these events could cause the price of our ADSs to materially decrease.

If fewer Chinese students choose to study abroad, especially in the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, demand for our international program may decline.

One of the principal drivers of the growth of our international program is the increasing number of Chinese students who choose to study abroad, especially in the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom, reflecting the growing demand for higher education in overseas countries by Chinese students. As such, any restrictive changes in immigration policy, terrorist attacks, geopolitical uncertainties and any international conflicts involving these countries could increase the difficulty for Chinese students to obtain student visas to study overseas, or decrease the appeal of studying in such countries to Chinese students. Any significant change in admission standards adopted by overseas educational institutions could also affect the demand for overseas education by Chinese students. If overseas educational institutions significantly reduce their reliance on or acceptance of admission and assessment tests, such as TOEFL, IELTS or the Scholastic Assessment Test, or the SAT, the difficulty for Chinese students to meet the new admission standards could significantly increase, which could in turn negatively affect the demand for overseas education by Chinese students. Additionally, Chinese students may also become less attracted to studying abroad due to other reasons, such as improving domestic educational or employment opportunities associated with increased economic development in China. These factors could cause declines in the demand for our international program, which may adversely affect our revenue and profitability.

The tuition charged by our affiliated schools and student enrollment at these affiliated schools are subject to regulation by the Chinese government, and our revenue is highly dependent on the level of these fees and the number of students enrolled.

The regulatory authorities in China, at both the national and local levels, have broad powers to regulate the tuition, accommodation and other fees charged by K-12 schools as well as the student enrollment levels at these schools. As a result, new regulations could adversely impact the tuition we may charge for our school programs and the level of student enrollment at our schools. In particular, the regulatory authorities impose a maximum ceiling on the amount of tuition we can charge. For example, the ceiling on tuition and accommodation expenses we can charge for our basic educational program in 2018/2019the 2019/2020 school year was set out by the Zhuji branch of the MOEMinistry of Education (“MOE”) in August 2016, which are RMB60,000 per student, RMB65,000 per student and RMB70,000 per student for primary school, middle school and high schools respectively. The most recent ceiling on tuition and accommodation expenses we can charge for our basic educational program was set out by the Zhuji branch of the MOE in August 2019, which are RMB62,000 per student, RMB66,000 per student and RMB74,000 per student for primary school, middle school and high schools respectively. The international program of our affiliated schools areis not currently subject to ceiling limitation on the amount of tuition we can charge as long as the tuitions we charge for our international programsprogram are record-filed with local authorities and approved. Pursuant to the registration documents filed with local authorities for the 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 school year and 2020/2021 school year, we are approved tocan charge RMB 78,000 to RMB 176,000 and RMB86,000 to RMB200,000 and RMB102,000 to RMB220,000 respectively for our international program. In the 2018/20192019/2020 school year, we charged an average tuition per student for the primary school, middle school and high school education under our basic educational program of RMB43,510, RMB43,483RMB44,301, RMB45,232 and RMB44,877,RMB46,501, and an average tuition per student for international program of RMB90,339.RMB92,398. The tuition limitation is reviewed by regulatory authorities on a periodic basis. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Regulations—Regulations on Private Education—The Law for Promoting2016 Private Education (2016)Law and theThe 2004 Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004)Laws.” In addition, the Zhejiang provincial government has set a maximum number of high school students we can admit from cities other than Zhuji in Zhejiang province to our basic educational program, after consultation with us. In the 2018/20192019/2020 school year, the maximum number of such high school students was set at 620 for Hailiang Experimental High School, 140 for Hailiang Senior Middle School and 220 for Hailiang High School of Art. We generally recruit students at the maximum level set by the government in Zhejiang province and additional students from other provinces. We may not admit more than the number that is approved by the regulatory authority. There is currently no limit as to the number of students we may admit for our international program. In light of the significant increase in tuition and other education-related fees in recent years, regulatory authorities may impose stricter price control on educational charges in the future. As part of their efforts to regulate the private education industry, regulatory authorities may also impose stricter student annual enrollment quotas. If the fees were to decrease or were not allowed to increase in line with increases in our costs, or if student enrollment at our private K-12 schools were otherwise restricted, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

On January 21, 2020, the Zhejiang Provincial Development and Reform Commission, Zhejiang Provincial Department of Education, Zhejiang Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security and Zhejiang Provincial Market Supervision Administration promulgated the Administrative Measures for Private Education Fees and on August 17, 2020, the MOE and other four ministries and commissions promulgated the Opinions on Further Standardization of Education Fee, which further strengthen the regulation of private education fees. If we cannot meet the requirements of these regulations, our operations may be adversely and materially affected. For example, the Opinions on Further Standardization of Education Fee stipulate that private schools must publicize the itemized fees and standards at a prominent location in the school and indicate the itemized fees and standards in the admissions brochure and admission notice. If fees that should be publicized are not publicized, or the content of the publicity is not in compliance with the relevant policies, students are entitled to refuse the payment of the fees. In addition, the Opinions on Further Standardization of Education Fee emphasizes that the service fees must be charged based on voluntary and non-profit principles. If the regulatory authority deems otherwise, our operations may be adversely affected.

Presently, the services we provide to our managed schools are partially but not wholly dependent upon the size of the student population, and are not dependent upon the tuition levels. We are uncertain how our revenues would be impacted in the event the respective local governments of our managed schools were to decide to limitations on student numbers.

We are exposed to concentration risks as most of the affiliated schools we own are currently located in a single city.

Most of the affiliated schools we own are currently located in Zhuji city in Zhejiang province. While we continue our expansion into other cities in the future, we anticipate that a significant part of our business operations in the short-term will continue to be in Zhuji city. As such, we would be materially and adversely affected if new regulations relating to the private K-12 education business were adopted in Zhejiang province or Zhuji city that placed additional restrictions or burdens on us.

Our business depends on the strength of our Hailiang brand in the market.

Our business operation and future growth are highly dependent on the awareness and recognition of our Hailiang brand. We believe that maintaining and enhancing the Hailiang brand is critical to our competitive advantage and to the growth of our business. The consistency and quality of our educational programs and services are critical to our brand and reputation. As we continue to grow in size, and expand our presence and geographical reach, it may be more challenging to maintain the quality and consistency of our services. Any negative publicity about our programs, services or schools, regardless of its veracity, could harm our brand image. In addition, in order to retain existing students and attract new students as well as to recruit and to retain qualified teachers, we plan to continue to make significant expenditures maintaining and enhancing our positive brand image and brand loyalty. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Marketing” for a description of such efforts. We may not be able to successfully execute our brand promotion plan and as a result, our reputation and business may be materially and adversely affected.

The private for-profit K-12 education business is relatively new and may not gain wide acceptance in China.

Our business and results of operations are highly dependent upon the acceptance, development and expansion of the market for private for-profit K-12 educational services in China. The K-12 private school market started to develop in the early 1990s in China and has grown significantly due to favorable policies enacted by the Chinese government. We founded our first K-12 school in 1995. In 1997, the State Council of the PRC promulgated the first regulation to promote the private education industry in China. However, investors of private schools were not permitted to retain reasonable return in China until 2003 when the Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Promotion of Privately-run Schools became effective. The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress amended the Law on the Promotion of Private Education (the “2016 Private Education Law”), effective on September 1, 2017. Pursuant to the 2016 Private Education Law, sponsors of private schools may choose to register their schools as either non-profit or for-profit schools but sponsors are not permitted to register for-profit schools that provide compulsory education services. Nevertheless, favorable policies and laws provide continuous support and establish standardization of China’s private education industry, which in turn boosts the confidence of students and parents in the industry.

Nevertheless, weWe face uncertainty as to whether favorable policies and laws will be adverted by the government. Additionally, as a private education provider, we charge relatively higher fees for our affiliated schools in comparison with public schools. The development of this market has been accompanied by significant press coverage and public debate concerning the management and operation of private for-profit schools. Significant uncertainty remains in China as to public acceptance of this business model. If this model fails to gain wide acceptance among the general public, especially among students and their parents, our results of operations will be adversely affected.

Based on the recent development of PRC law, there is significant uncertainty relating to the application and interpretation of PRC law as it relates to the promotion of the private for-profit education industry. The 2016 Private Education Law (as defined below) and its implementing rules might limit our ability to receive profit distributions from our affiliated schools in the future.

The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress amended the Law on the Promotion of Private Education (the “2016 Private Education Law”), effective on September 1, 2017. On December 29, 2018, the Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on Amending the Seven Laws of the Labor Law of the People’s Republic of China was promulgated by Order No.24 of the President of the PRC and took into effect on the same date, which made two minor adjustments to Article 26 and Article 64 of the 2016 Private Education Law. These minor adjustments do not affect the Company’s business and operations. Pursuant to the 2016 Private Education Law, sponsors of private schools may choose to register their schools as either non-profit or for-profit schools. Sponsors of for-profit private schools are entitled to receive the profits or proceeding distributed from their schools and the operating surplus may be allocated to the sponsors pursuant to the PRC company law and other relevant laws and regulations. Sponsors of non-profit private schools are not entitled to any distribution of profits from their schools and all revenue must be used for the operation of the schools.

Pursuant to the 2016 Private Education Law, sponsors are not permitted to register for-profit schools that provide compulsory education services, which covers grades one to nine which grades account for a significant portion of our for-profit K-12 education business. However, the 2016 Private Education Law does not provide for a definitive time line for existing schools to re-register/change their for-profit or non-profit status. As of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, we have not received any notice from the regulatory bodies regarding re-registration. The State Council and certain provinces including the Zhejiang province have promulgated implementing rules (in the form of Opinions) for the 2016 Private Education Law. Zhejiang province has promulgated implementing rules that all schools located in Zhejiang province are required to re-register and/or change their for-profit or non-profit statuses before 2022. Except for Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High and Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art, we intend to maintain the current statuses of our affiliated schools (as re-registration is not required at this time under the 2004 Implementation Rules for Private Education Laws currently effective) until we have obtained better clarity on the application of the 2016 Private Education Law. In the future, we might redefine and evolve our business model in response to the changes in law, which may include, without limitation, an increased emphasis on leveraging our knowledge and expertise in school operations by providing education and management services to various schools we operate or partner with. As advised by our PRC counsel, our right to receive the service fees from our affiliated and managed schools does not contravene any PRC laws and regulations. However, if local governments deem that our new business plan fails to meet the revised local regulations, or if our new business plan fails to generate sufficient revenue, we may be unable to grow our business and the market price of our ADSs could be materially and adversely affected.

Hailiang Consulting has entered into contractual arrangements with Hailiang Management, the entity that owns and sponsors each of our affiliated schools, pursuant to which Hailiang Consulting provides service to our affiliated schools in exchange for the payment of service fees. As advised by our PRC counsel, our right to receive the service fees from our affiliated and managed schools does not contravene any PRC laws and regulations and that payment of service fees under our contractual arrangements should not be regarded as the distribution of returns, dividends or profits to the sponsors of our affiliated schools under the PRC laws and regulations. However, if the relevant PRC government authorities take a different view, or if 2016 Private Education Law were to be implemented and interpreted in a manner that deems our current business practices to be in violation, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

We may fail to successfully develop and introduce new educational programs and services.

One of our growth strategies is to continue to maintain and introduce diversified educational programs and services.services to our students. We may also need, from time to time, to introduce additional educational programs and services and to meet market demand. The future success of our business depends partly on our ability to develop new educational programs and services. The planned timing or introduction of new educational services and programs is subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual timing may differ materially from any originally proposed timeframes. Unexpected operational, technical or other issues could delay or prevent the introduction of one or more of our new educational programs and services. In addition, significant investment of human capital, financial resources and management time and attention may be needed based on a particular feature of our newly introduced educational programs. If we fail to manage the expansion of our portfolio of educational programs efficiently and cost-effectively, our business could be negatively affected. Moreover, we cannot assure you that any of our new programs and services will achieve market acceptance or generate incremental revenue or that our operation of such new programs and services will comply with our business scope or applicable licensing requirements. If our efforts to develop, market and sell our new educational programs and services to the market are not successful, our business, financial position and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to continually enhance our educational services and adapt them to rapid pedagogical innovations, evolving test methods and student needs and preferences.

The quality of our educational services and student and parent satisfaction are vital to the success of our business. The educational services market is characterized by rapid pedagogical innovations, evolving testteaching methods and student needs and preferences. We must quickly identify areas for changes, improvements and enhancements of our programs and services to adapt to any pedagogical innovation, changes in test methods and curriculum and evolving student needs and preferences.

For example, a significant part of our educational services focuses on middle school and high school education. There are continual changes in the focuses of the subjects and questions tested on standardized tests, such as the Zhongkao and the Gaokao, the two most significant tests for Chinese students. These tests are administered by local government authorities and are critical in determining admission into high school, in the case of the Zhongkao, and college, in the case of the Gaokao. The format of these tests and the manner in which such standardized tests are administered are also changing,may change from year to year, especially in Zhejiang province, one of the pioneers in educational reform and innovation. In particular, in 2009, Zhejiang Province implemented its new Gaokao regime, where two new types of evaluations, namely the High School Graduation Exam and the Comprehensive Quality Evaluation, were incorporated into the undergraduate admission process. The new regime also allowed universities to use their self-designed tests, as opposed to the standard tests designed by the government, in their admission process. In addition, on a national level, some top universities in China, including Tsinghua University and Peking University, have been allowed to recruit a certain percentage of students through independently administered tests and admission procedures in recent years. While college applicants are still required to have a Gaokao score above a certain threshold, the Gaokao scores for these applicants will not be the sole determining factor in the admission process. In 2019, 90 universities and colleges were allowed to recruit students through independently administered tests and admission procedures. In 2020, 36 universities launched the “strengthening basic disciplines program”, which mainly selects students who are interested in serving the country's major strategy and have excellent comprehensive qualities or excel in basic disciplines.

These changes require us to continually update and enhance our curriculum, educational materials and our teaching methods. Any inability to track and respond to changes in the educational field in a timely and cost-effective manner would make our educational services and programs less attractive to students, which may adversely affect our students’ academic performance, our reputation and ability to continue to attract and retain students. Furthermore, we understand that PRC regulatory authorities have reformed and may continue to reform the K-12 curriculum we are required to teach at our schools. Therefore, school curriculum will likely undergo changes and our services, programs and educational materials will need to adapt to such changes.

We may not be able to adapt to these planned changes, enhancements and developments in a timely and cost-effective manner. If changes to our programs and services are delayed or are not aligned with changes in market expectations, needs or preferences, we may lose market share, and our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

We face significant competition and we may fail to compete effectively.

The private K-12 education sector in China is rapidly evolving, highly fragmented and competitive, and we expect competition in this sector to persist and intensify. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Competition” for more information relating to the competitive landscape of the industry in which we compete. Competition could result in loss of market share and revenue, lower profit margins and limitations on our future growth. Some of our competitors, particularly public schools, have governmental support in forms of government subsidies and other payments or fee reductions. These competitors may devote greater resources, financial or otherwise, than we can to student recruitment, campus development and brand promotion and respond more quickly than we can to changes in student demands and market needs. Our student enrollment and retention may decrease due to intense competition. We may be required to reduce tuition and other fees or increase spending in response to competition in order to attract or retain students or pursue new market opportunities. As a result, our revenue, profit and profit margin may decrease. With respect to the services we provide to our managed schools, we are one of the pioneers in the industry to provide education and management services but we also compete with specialized education and non-education service providers who provide services in their respective specialized fields, such as admission, financial, human resources, IT and internal audit. As such, we may not be able to compete effectively and efficiently. We cannot assure you that we will be able to compete successfully against current or future competitors, and subject to PRC laws, either party of the education and management service agreement has the right to dissolve the contract at any time. If we are unable to maintain our competitive position or otherwise fail to respond to competitive pressures effectively, we may lose market share, including, among other things, the number and student enrollments of our managed schools, and our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

We have limited experience generating net income from some of our newer service offerings providing education and management services to schools and may not achieve expected results from these newer service offerings.

We have been engaged to provide various education and management services to our managed schools, and have expanded to provide education and non-education, value-addedancillary educational services to our affiliated school.schools. But we have limited experience providing education and management services at a mass level. We may devote significant resources to our newer service offerings, but fail to achieve expected results from such newer service offerings. If such newer service offerings are not well accepted, we may not achieve our expected expansion to service offerings. As a result, our overall business and results of operations, including, among other things, the number and student enrollments of our managed schools, may be materially and adversely affected.

We may experience declines in our margins due to the expansion of our business and addition of new business models.

Many factors may result in a decline of our margins. For example, our gross margin may decrease as costs incurred in the expansion of our business, affiliated school network and education and management services increase faster than our revenues. In addition, new investments and acquisitions may cause our margins to decline before we successfully integrate the acquired businesses into our operations and realize the full benefits of these investments and acquisitions. In recent years, we have experienced fluctuations in our margins, there can be no assurance that our margins will not continue to decline in the future.

We may not be able to integrate businesses we acquired or plan to acquire in the future, which may adversely affect our business growth.

We acquired 51% controlling interest in Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art (from its founders), a for-profit high school specializing in the arts education pursuant to an Investment Cooperation Agreement dated September 28, 2018. We also plan to selectively acquire schools to expand our network coverage and/or businesses that are complementary to our core expertise in K-12 education.education to expand our network coverage and/or businesses expansion. We cannot assure you that we will be able to integrate the acquired businesses with our existing operations, and we may incur significant financial resources to streamline the operation of the acquired businesses under our internal control requirements and divert substantial management attention to the transition of the acquired businesses before achieving full integration.

The main challenges involved in integrating acquired entities include the following:

In addition, the businesses and schools we acquire may behave operational loss making or have existing liabilities or other risks that we may not be able to effectively manage or may not be aware of at the time we acquire them,of our acquisition, which may impact our ability to realize the expected benefits from the acquisition or our financial performance. If we fail to integrate the acquired businesses in a timely manner or at all, we may not be able to achieve the anticipated benefitsfinancial results or synergy from the acquired businesses, which may adversely affect our business growth.

We may not be able to manage our business expansion and strategic acquisitions effectively.

We plan to continue to expand our presence through organic growth and expansion under the asset-light approach and strategic acquisitions. In particular, to support our continued growth and to strengthen our market share in the region in which we currently operate, we need to establish or acquire new schools, and obtain rights to operate new schools. We also need to establish or acquire new schools in other regions to expand geographically. Expansion has resulted, and will continue to result, in substantial demands on our management and on our operational, technological and other resources. We intend to expand our asset-light approach, where we operate and manage K-12 schools pursuant to consulting and management agreements, or act as these schools’ sponsor without acquiring ownership of land and facilities in such schools. However, such expansion is also associated with substantial risks and uncertainties, including our ability to generate sufficient revenue to offset the costs and expenses of operating and managing the schools, including the possibility of failure to achieve the intended revenue and other benefits expected from the asset-light model, our business partners’ capability of procuring lands and constructing facilities as expected for us to establish additional schools under the asset-light approach, and the diversion of resources and management attention from our existing businesses.

To manage our expected growth, we will be required to expand our existing managerial, operational, technological and financial systems. We also need to expand, train, manage and retain our growing employee base. Significant financial resources may also be needed to support our planned growth. We cannot assure you that our current and planned managerial, operational, technological and financial systems will be adequate to support our future operations, or that we will be able to effectively and efficiently manage the growth of our operations or recruit and retain qualified personnel. There is no assurance that we will obtain financial resources at commercial terms that are acceptable to us on a timely basis, or at all, to support our planned growth. Any failure to effectively and efficiently manage our expansion may materially and adversely affect our ability to capitalize on new business opportunities, which in turn may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

In addition, as a significant part of our growth strategy, we intend to pursue selective strategic acquisitions and maximize synergies through integration of acquired entities. Our strategic acquisitions involve substantial risks and uncertainties, including:

If any one or more of these risks or uncertainties materializes or if any of the strategic objectives we contemplate are not achieved, our strategic acquisitions may not be beneficial to us and may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to successfully integrate businesses that we acquire, which may cause us to lose anticipated benefits from such acquisitions and to incur significant additional expenses.

One of our growth strategies is to grow by acquisitions of additional schools. It is challenging to integrate business operations and management philosophies of acquired schools. The benefits of our future acquisitions depend in significant part on our ability to integrate management, operations, technology and personnel. The integration of acquired schools is a complex, time-consuming and expensive process that, without proper planning and implementation, could significantly disrupt our business and operations. The main challenges involved in integrating acquired entities include the following:

We may not successfully integrate our operations and the operations of schools we acquire in a timely manner, or at all, and we may not realize the anticipated benefits or synergies of the acquisitions to the extent, or in the timeframe, we anticipated, which may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Any deterioration in our relationships with providers of international educational services may adversely affect our business.

We have entered into cooperative relationships with various overseas schools and institutions to provideeducational resources for our international program. We derive direct benefits from these relationships such as the ability to offer more diverse programs and classes, the ability to charge a premium for the programs we teach with other education service providers and the progress of establishing additional schools cooperated with international educational service providers. We also derive indirect benefits from these relationships such as enhancement of our Hailiang brand and reputation, and exposure to overseas educational methods and experiences.

If our relationships with any of these education service providers deteriorate or are otherwise damaged or terminated, or if the benefits we derive from these relationships diminishes, whether as a result of our own actions, actions of any third-party, including our competitors, or of regulatory authorities or other entities beyond our control, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations would be harmed.

Our business is subject to seasonal fluctuations, which may cause our operating results to fluctuate from quarter to quarter. This may result in volatility and adversely affect the price of our ADSs.

We have experienced, and expect to continue to experience, seasonal fluctuations in our results of operations, primarily due to seasonal changes in service days and student enrollments. We recognize revenue from the delivery of educationalcurriculum education services on a straight-line basis over the school year.service period based on the estimated progress of courses delivery, and recognize revenue from accommodations and transportation services over time evenly over the period with service provided. However, our costs and expenses vary significantly and do not necessarily correspond with our recognition of revenue.revenue recognition. We expect quarterly fluctuations in our revenue and results of operations to continue. These fluctuations could result in volatility and adversely affect the price of our ADSs.

Our business depends on the continuing services of our senior management team and other key personnel, and our business may be harmed if we lose their services.

Our future success depends heavily upon the continuing services of the members of our senior management team. Competition for experienced management personnel in the private K-12 education market is intense, the pool of qualified candidates is very limited, and we may not be able to retain the services of our senior executives or key personnel, or attract and retain high-quality senior executives or key personnel in the future. If one or more of our senior executives or other key personnel, including the principals of our schools, are unable or unwilling to continue their services, we may not be able to replace them in a cost-efficient and timely manner, or at all. In addition, if any member of our senior management team or any of our other key personnel joins a competitor or forms a competing company, we may lose teachers and we may not be able to maintain or recruit students. If any such negative development occurs, our business may be materially disrupted and our financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

We may not be able to renew leases or obtain leases for our affiliated schools and companies at reasonable terms.

We operate our affiliated schools under an asset-light approach, where we sponsor our affiliated schools without having to own or acquire the land and facilities of such schools. Instead, we enter into campus management agreements or lease agreements with our affiliated schools. We may not be able to renew these agreements at a preferable price or at all at the expiration of a school year or the expiration a lease term, and thus may be forced to relocate the affected operations to a new location, which could result in substantial rent increases and material business interruption. We lease real properties used by our affiliated schools and companies with a total site area of approximately 1.131.52 million square meters as of June 30, 2019,the date of this annual report, among which, approximately 1.1 million square meters are rented from Hailiang Investment which is controlled by Mr. Feng, our ultimate controlling shareholdershareholder. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—D. Property, Plants and approximately 30,000 square meters from Zhenjiang Municipal Bureau of Land and ResourcesEquipment” for Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art. Historically, we recorded rental expenses paid to Hailiang Investment of RMB30.0 million, RMB31.0 million, and RMB31.5 million (approximately US$4.6 million) for these properties which amounted to 3.5%, 2.7%, and 2.1% of our revenue in the 2017, 2018 and 2019 fiscal years, respectively.more information.

The terms of our current leases for campuses in Zhuji city, approximately 1.1 million square meters rented from Hailiang Investment which is controlled by Mr. Feng, our ultimate controlling shareholder, are for nineteen years sincefrom July 1, 2018. The leases contain priority renewal provisions which provide that we have the right of first refusal to renew each lease upon the expiration of the lease, provided we notify lessor six months in advance. Under the lease agreements, we can terminate the lease at any time without cause, provided we notify the lessor in writing three months in advance. Hailiang Investment may only terminate the agreements upon a written notice to us one year in advance for any unapproved sublease by the lessee, unapproved modification to the premises, failure to pay rent for more than 60 days or use of the properties for illegal activities. To terminate the leases for other causes, Hailiang Investment would have to give us written notice one year in advance and obtain our consent to such termination. We and Hailiang Investment entered into a series of lease supplemental agreements, pursuant to which, on September 12, 2019, we agreed to prepay rental feesmade lease prepayments of RMB540.5RMB525.0 million (approximately(VAT exclusive, approximately US$78.774.3 million) regarding the school buildings and the related facilities on three campuses in Zhuji, China from Hailiang Investment for the entire remaining lease period from July 1, 2019 tountil June 30, 2037. On September 12, 2019, the rental fees of RMB540.5 million (approximately US$78.7 million) were fully paid. However, there is no assurance that Hailiang Investment will observe its obligations under these lease agreements. As a result, at the end of each year or the term of the lease, we may fail to continue to lease the properties. We may be forced to relocate the affected operations to a new location, which could involve substantial rent increases and material business interruption.

In addition, we cannot assure you that the lessor has duly obtained the title certificates of the properties subject to our leases or otherwise has the right to lease the properties. In particular, as of June 30, 2019, the lessor, Hailiang Investment which is controlled by Mr. Feng, our ultimate controlling shareholder, has failed to provide title certificates to properties associated with Tianma Experimental School and part of Hailiang Education Park that has an aggregate gross site area of approximately 545,000 square meters, representing 48.02%35.96% of all of our leased properties as of June 30, 2019.the date of this annual report. If any of our leases were terminated as a result of challenges by third-parties or governmental authorities, we may be forced to relocate the affected operations and incur significant expenses. We might also be liable or incur costs associated with potential defects in the properties we lease. We may also be required to pay fines or damages as a result of our use of such properties. There is no assurance that we may find suitable replacement sites in a timely manner on terms acceptable to us.

As of the date of this annual report, we are not aware of any actions, claims or investigations being contemplated by or pending before any governmental authorities with respect to our leased properties. We have not received any notice of claim from any third-party for our use of such leased properties. However, if any of these risks materializes, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—D. Property, Plants and Equipment” for more information.

Accidents or injuries may occur at our schools, which could affect our reputation and student retention and enrollment.

We could be held liable for the accidents or injuries or other harm to students or other people at our schools, including those caused by or otherwise arising in connection with our school facilities or employees. We could also face claims alleging that we were negligent, provided inadequate maintenance to our school facilities or supervision to our employees and therefore should be held liable for accidents or injuries suffered by our students or other people at our schools. In addition, if one of our students commits acts of violence, we could face allegations that we failed to provide adequate security or were otherwise responsible for his or her actions. For example, there is a shooting range on the campus of Hailiang Education Park. Although the guns used for practice are airgunsair guns and the shooting range is staffed with professional coaches and restricted by tight security, accidents or intentional misuse of these airgunsair guns may still occur. Our schools may be perceived to be unsafe, which may discourage prospective students from attending our schools. Although we maintain certain liability insurance, this insurance coverage may not be adequate to fully protect us from these kinds of claims. In addition, we may not be able to obtain liability insurance in the future at reasonable prices or at all. A liability claim against us or any of our employees could adversely affect our reputation and student enrollment and retention. Even if unsuccessful, such a claim could create unfavorable publicity, cause us to incur substantial expenses and divert the time and attention of our management.

There are risks associated with our use of the Hailiang Education Park.

In September 2016, Hailiang Investment, a company controlled by our ultimate controlling shareholder, Mr. Feng, completed the construction of the Hailiang Education Park, which has a total site area of approximately 850,000 square meters and a gross floor area of approximately 550,000 square meters. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Hailiang Education Park.”  

On November 18, 2015, we entered into a lease agreement with Hailiang Investment regarding Hailiang Education Park. The term of the lease is twenty years and the rental fee in the first year is RMB20.0 million and is subject to a 5% increase in the next three years. The rental fee commencing from the fifth year is subject to further negotiation between the Company and Hailiang Investment.

In September 2016, Hailiang Investment completed the construction of Hailiang Education Park, which has a total site area of approximately 850,000 square meters and a gross floor area of approximately 550,000 square meters. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Hailiang Education Park.”

On December 29, 2017, we and Hailiang Investment mutually terminated the above-mentioned lease agreement and entered into five new lease agreements with Hailiang Investment regarding Hailiang Education Park, in order to allocate lease fees to each school occupying the Hailiang Education Park according to their respective gross floor areas.

On April 28, 2019, we and Hailiang Investment mutually terminated the above-mentioned lease agreement and entered into eight new lease agreements with Hailiang Investment regarding Hailiang Education Park, in order to allocate lease fees to the respective schools and subsidiaries according to their used gross floor area.

Our affiliated schools and subsidiaries entered into eight Supplemental Agreements with Hailiang Investment respectively regarding Hailiang Education Park, effectively as of July 1, 2019, pursuant to which our eight affiliated schools and subsidiaries prepaid the rental fee for the remaining 18 years within 30 days from the date of those agreements. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Hailiang Education Park.”

There are certain other risks associated with the utilization of the Hailiang Education Park, including:

Capacity constraints of our school facilities could cause us to lose students to our competitors.

The educational facilities of our affiliated schools are limited in space and size. We may not be able to admit all qualified students who would like to enroll in our educational programs due to the capacity constraints of our current school facilities. Furthermore, absent additional acquisitions, we may not be able to expand our capacity at our current campuses or relocate to other facilities in the local area with more space. If we fail to expand our physical capacity as quickly as the demand for our services grows, or if we otherwise fail to grow by establishing or acquiring additional schools and campuses, we could lose potential students to our competitors, and our results of operations and business prospects could suffer as a result.

We may not be able to adequately protect our intellectual property.

Unauthorized use of any of our intellectual property may adversely affect our business and reputation. We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark and trade secrets laws to protect our intellectual property rights. Nevertheless, third-parties may obtain and use our intellectual property without due authorization. The practice of intellectual property rights enforcement action by Chinese regulatory authorities is in its early stage of development and is subject to significant uncertainty. We may also need to resort to litigation and other legal proceedings to enforce our intellectual property rights. Any such action, litigation or other legal proceedings could result in substantial costs and diversion of our management’s attention and resources and could disrupt our business. In addition, there is no assurance that we will be able to enforce our intellectual property rights effectively or otherwise prevent others from the unauthorized use of our intellectual property. Failure to adequately protect our intellectual property could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may be exposed to infringement claims by third-parties, which, if successful, could cause us to pay significant damage awards.

We cannot assure you that materials and other educational content used in our schools and programs do not or will not infringe intellectual property rights of third-parties. As of June 30, 2019,2020, and as of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, except as disclosed in “Item“Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview – Legal Proceedings” below, we have not experienced any claims for intellectual property infringement. However, there is no guarantee in the future that third-parties will not claim that we have infringed on their proprietary rights. For example, our educational materials may include test questions that are developed based on actual questions of tests administered by third-parties or regulatory authorities, who may allege that our test questions infringe their copyrights. We may also use educational materials designed in conjunction with our overseas partners and we cannot guarantee that disputes will not arise over the intellectual property rights associated with these materials.

Although we plan to defend ourselves vigorously in any such litigation or legal proceedings, there is no assurance that we will prevail in these matters. Participation in such litigation and legal proceedings may also cause us to incur substantial expenses and divert the time and attention of our management. We may be required to pay damages or incur settlement expenses. In addition, in case we are required to pay any royalties or enter into any licensing agreements with the owners of intellectual property rights, we may find that the terms are not commercially acceptable and we may finally lose the ability to use the related content or materials, which in turn could materially affect our educational programs. Any similar claim against us, even without any merit, could also hurt our reputation and brand image. Any such event could have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We have limited insurance coverage with respect to our business and operations.

We are exposed to various risks associated with our business and operations, and we have limited insurance coverage. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Insurance” for more information. We are exposed to risks including, but not limited to, accidents or injuries in our schools, loss of key management and personnel, business interruption, natural disasters, terrorist attacks and social instability or any other events beyond our control. The insurance industry in China is still at an early stage of development. Insurance companies in China offer limited business-related insurance products. While we maintain director and officer liability insurance for our executive officers and directors, we do not have any business disruption insurance, product liability insurance or key-man life insurance. Any business disruption, litigation or legal proceeding or natural disaster or other events beyond our control could result in substantial costs and diversion of our resources. Our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected as a result.

A significant majority of our outstanding ordinary shares are held by our founder, Mr. Feng, and his interests may not be aligned with the interests of other holders of our ordinary shares and ADSs.

As of June 30, 2019,2020, Mr. Feng beneficially owned approximately 87.28% of our total outstanding ordinary shares. As a result, Mr. Feng has significant influence in determining the outcome of any corporate transactions or other matters submitted to our shareholders for approval. These matters include mergers, consolidations and the sale of all or substantially all of our assets, election of directors and other significant corporate actions. This concentration of ownership may also discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company, which could deprive our shareholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of our company and might result in substantial reduction of the price of our ADSs. These actions may be taken even if they are opposed by our other shareholders. Our founder, Mr. Feng, is also the founder chairman and a major shareholder of Hailiang Group and its subsidiaries, with which we have entered into related party transactions. Mr. Feng may from time to time make strategic decisions that he believes is in the best interests of Hailiang Group as a whole, which may affect us or may not be aligned with the interests of other holders of our ordinary shares and ADSs. We may not be able to resolve any potential conflicts of interest and, even if we do, the resolution may be less favorable to us than if we were dealing with an unaffiliated party.

As a “controlled company” within the meaning of the Nasdaq listing rules, we may follow certain exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements that could adversely affect our public shareholders.

As of June 30, 2020, Mr. Feng beneficially owned approximately 87.28% of our total outstanding ordinary shares. Under the Nasdaq listing rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group, or another company is a “controlled company” and is permitted to phase in its compliance with the independent committee requirements. Although we do not intend to rely on the “controlled company” exemptions even if we are deemed a “controlled company,” we could elect to rely on these exemptions in the future. If we were to elect to rely on the “controlled company” exemptions, a majority of the members of our board of directors might not be independent directors and our nominating and corporate governance and compensation committees might not consist entirely of independent directors. Accordingly, if we rely on the exemptions, during the period we remain a controlled company and during any transition period following a time when we are no longer a controlled company, you would not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of Nasdaq.

We deposit a certain amount of cash with a related party and are subject to credit risks of such related party.

As part of our cash management policy, we have historically deposited and expect to continue to deposit a certain amount of cash generated from our private education business with Hailiang Finance, a related party finance company controlled by Hailiang Group, in order to earn interest at market rates with flexible withdrawal terms on our deposits. Since September 2014, Hailiang Group and Mr. Feng have entered into a guarantee agreement with us to irrevocably and jointly guarantee the timely return of our deposits on behalf of the finance company, and the guarantee has been renewed annually. As of June 30, 2019,2020, the balance of cash and term deposits we had with Hailiang Finance amounted to RMB1,610.6RMB1,405.6 million (approximately US$234.6198.9 million). To control our credit exposure with Hailiang Finance, based upon our current policy effective since September 2, 2019,28, 2020, we have set an upper deposit budget maintained by Hailiang Finance at any given time in fiscal 20202021 to be approximately RMB2.1RMB2.5 billion (approximately US$305.9353.9 million), and any amount above the upper deposit budget must be transferred to a commercial bank within 7 business days.

We do not control nor are we informed of the use of deposits made with the finance company and are subject to credit risks of such finance company. See “Item 11. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.” In addition, there is no assurance that we will be able to successfully enforce the guarantee granted by Hailiang Group or Mr. Feng in the event that the finance company defaults on the return of such deposits. The credit profile of the finance company and guarantors may deteriorate and their ability to return such deposits may be impaired due to various reasons beyond our control, such as a slowdown in the PRC, regional or local economies, a material decrease of profitability or significant tightening of liquidity with respect to their respective businesses, loss or material deterioration of relationships with their respective key customers or suppliers, natural disasters or other force majeure events. Our financial condition and liquidity position could be materially and adversely affected if any of these occur and, as a result, our business and prospects would be materially and adversely affected.

Worsening economic conditions generally affecting the global or Chinese economy could adversely impact our business.

Beginning in 2008, there was a significant deterioration and instability in the U.S. and global economies. The recovery from such economic downturn has been negatively affected by various subsequent events, including the European sovereign debt crisis. The growth of the Chinese economy also slowed down significantly in 2009 and may slow down again in the future. Since we derive substantially all of our revenue in China, any prolonged slowdown in the Chinese economy, or downturn affecting the global economy generally, may have a negative impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations. For example, student families may choose schools or programs with lower tuition and other fees, or otherwise decrease or delay their education spending. As a result, we may experience difficulty in recruiting and retaining students, or expanding our student base for our newly established or acquired schools. We may also need to reduce our tuition or other fees as a result of the general lower level of spending by Chinese students, especially those in the region in which we operate. The general economic downturn affecting the Chinese or global economy may also affect the attractiveness of our international program, which typically charges a higher level of fees for services associated with advanced studies in overseas educational institutions. Any such negative development could have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We face risks related to natural disasters, health epidemics or terrorist attacks in China.

Our business could be materially and adversely affected by natural disasters, such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, tornados and tsunamis, outbreaks of health epidemics such as avian influenza and severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, and Influenza A virus, such as H5N1 subtype and H5N2 subtype flu viruses, as well as terrorist attacks, other acts of violence or war or social instability in the region in which we operate or those generally affecting China. If any of these occur, our schools and facilities may be required to temporarily or permanently close and our business operations may be suspended or terminated. Our students, teachers and staff may also be negatively affected by such event. Our physical facilities may also be affected. In addition, any of these could adversely affect the Chinese economy and demographics of the affected region, which could cause significant declines in the number of our students in that region and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are an “emerging growth company” and may not be subject to requirements that other public companies are subject to, which could harm investor confidence in us and our ADSs.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various requirements applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, most significantly, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 for so long as we are an emerging growth company. As a result, if we elect not to comply with such auditor attestation requirements, our investors may not have access to certain information they may deem important.

Failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting could cause us to inaccurately report our financial results or fail to prevent fraud and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and the trading price of ADSs.

As a public company in the United States, we are subject to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires that we include a report from management on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting in our annual report on Form 20-F.

Our management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of June 30, 2019. 2020. See “Item 15. Controls and Procedures,” for a description of management’s evaluation of our internal control over financial reporting. If we fail to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future, our management may not be able to conclude that we have effective internal control over financial reporting at a reasonable assurance level. Moreover, effective internal controls over financial reporting are necessary for us to produce reliable financial reports and are important to help prevent fraud. As a result, while we have incurred and anticipate that we will continue to incur considerable costs, management time and other resources in an effort to continue to comply with Section 404 and other requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, any failure to maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting could in turn result in the loss of investor confidence in the reliability of our financial statements and negatively impact the trading price of our ADSs.

In addition, once we cease to be an “emerging growth company” as such term is defined in the JOBS Act,, our independent registered public accounting firm must attest to and report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Our management may conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is not effective. Moreover, even if our management concludes that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, our independent registered public accounting firm, after conducting its own independent testing, may issue a report that is qualified if it is not satisfied with our internal controls or the level at which our controls are documented, designed, operated or reviewed, or if it interprets the relevant requirements differently from us.

During the course of documenting and testing our internal control procedures in the future, in order to satisfy the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, we may identify weaknesses and deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting, and we may not be able to conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. If we fail to achieve and maintain an effective internal control environment, we could suffer material misstatements in our financial statements and fail to meet our reporting obligations, which would likely cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information. This could in turn limit our access to capital markets, harm our results of operations, and lead to a decline in the trading price of our ADSs. Additionally, ineffective internal control over financial reporting could expose us to increased risk of fraud or misuse of corporate assets and subject us to potential delisting from the stock exchange on which we list, regulatory investigations and civil or criminal sanctions. We may also be required to restate our financial statements from prior periods.

Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure

Our private educational service business is subject to extensive regulation in China. If the PRC government finds that the contractual arrangementarrangements that establishesestablish our corporate structure for operating our business does not comply with applicable PRC laws and regulations, we could be subject to severe penalties.

Our private education service business is subject to extensive regulations in China. The Chinese government regulates various aspects of our business and operations, such as curriculum content, educational materials, standards of school operations, student recruitment activities and tuition and other fees. The laws and regulations applicable to the private education sector are subject to frequent changes, and new laws and regulations may be adopted, some of which may have a negative effect on our business, either retroactively or prospectively.

Foreign ownership in educational services is subject to significant regulations in China. The PRC government regulates the provision of educational services through strict licensing requirements. In particular, PRC laws and regulations currently prohibit foreign ownership of companies and institutions providing compulsory educational services at primary and middle school levels, and restrict foreign investment in educational services businesses at the high school level. We are a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands. Our PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting, is a foreign owned enterprise and is currently ineligible to apply for and hold licenses to operate, or otherwise own equity interests in, our schools with K-12 educational programs. Due to these restrictions, we conduct our private education business in China primarily through contractual arrangements among (i) Hailiang Consulting, our operating subsidiary in China, (ii) our affiliated entities, including Hailiang Management and its subsidiaries, and (iii) the shareholders of Hailiang Management, namely Mr. Feng (our founder and our ultimate controlling shareholder who holds a 99.9% equity interest in Hailiang Management,Management) and Beize Group who(which holds a 0.1% equity interest in Hailiang Management and is controlled by Mr. Feng). We hold the required licenses and permits necessary to conduct our private education business in China through the schools controlled and held by Hailiang Management. We have been, and expect to continue to be, dependent on our affiliated entities to operate our private education business. Additionally, with respect to our managed schools, that we manage and operate but do not own or sponsor, relevant regulations requiring that service and management fees charged to managed schools be negotiated on an arm’s length basis that represents genuine service have not become effective as of June 30, 20192020. We believe we are currently in compliance with and expect to be in compliance with the requisite fair value service regulations upon their effectiveness.

If our ownership structure and contractual arrangements are found to be in violation of any PRC laws or regulations, or if we are found to be required but failed to obtain any of the permits or approvals for our private education business, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities, including—the MOE, which regulates the education industry in China, the Ministry of Commerce, or MOFCOM, which regulates the foreign investment in China, and the Civil Affairs Bureau, which regulates the registration of schools in China—would have broad discretion in imposing fines or punishments upon us for such violations, including:

As of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, similar ownership structure and contractual arrangements have been used by many China-based companies listed overseas, including a number of education companies listed in the United States. To our knowledge, none of the fines or punishments listed above have been imposed on any of these public companies, including companies in the education industry. However, we cannot assure you that such fines or punishments will not be imposed on us or any other companies in the future. If any of the above fines or punishments is imposed on us, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.

The newly-enacted Foreign Investment Law proposes sweeping changes to the PRC foreign investment legal regime and will likely to have a significant impact on businesses in China controlled by foreign invested enterprises primarily through contractual arrangements, such as our business.

There are significant uncertainties under the Draft Foreign Investment Law relating to the status of businesses in China controlled by foreign invested projects primarily through contractual arrangements, such as our business.

On January 19, 2015, MOFCOM published a draft of PRC law on Foreign Investment (Draft for Comment), or the Draft Foreign Investment Law. At the same time, MOFCOM published an accompanying explanatory note of the Draft Foreign Investment Law, or the Explanatory Note, which contains important information about the Draft Foreign Investment Law, including its drafting philosophy and principles, main content, plans to transition to the new legal regime and treatment of business in China controlled by foreign invested enterprises, or FIEs, primarily through contractual arrangements. The Draft Foreign Investment Law utilizes the concept of “actual control” for determining whether an entity is considered to be a foreign-invested project, and defines “control” broadly to include, among other things, voting or board control through contractual arrangements.

The Draft Foreign Investment Law proposes significant changes to the PRC foreign investment legal regime and may have a material impact on Chinese companies listed or to be listed overseas. The Draft Foreign Investment Law would regulate FIEs the same way as PRC domestic entities, except for those FIEs that operate in industries deemed to be either “restricted” or “prohibited” in a “negative list.”list”. The Draft Foreign Investment Law also provides that only FIEs operating in industries on the negative list will require entry clearance and other approvals that are not required of PRC domestic entities. As a result of the entry clearance and approvals, certain FIE’s operating in industries on the negative list may not be able to continue to conduct their operations through contractual arrangements. It also states that entities established in China but controlled by foreign investors will be treated as FIEs, while entities set up outside of China which are controlled by PRC persons or entities, would be treated as domestic projects after completion of market entry procedures.

The MOFCOM, and the National Development and Reform Commission, or NDRC, promulgated the Catalogue of Industries for Guiding Foreign Investment, or the Catalogue, as amended on March 10, 2015, which came into effect on April 10, 2015, and as further amended on June 28, 2017 and came into effect on July 28, 2017 (the “2017 Catalogue”). On June 28, 2018, the MOFCOM and NDRC promulgated the Special Measures for Foreign Investment Access (2018 version), or the 2018 Negative List, terminating the 2017 Catalogue. On June 30, 2019, the MOFCOM and NDRC promulgated the Special Measures for Foreign Investment Access (2019 version) and on June 23, 2020, the MOFCOM and NDRC promulgated the Special Measures for Foreign Investment Access (2020 version). According to the 2018 Negative List,2019 version and 2020 version, preschool education, general senior high schools and institutions of higher education can be set up through cooperation only and controlled by the education services sector in whichChinese party (with principals or principal administrators with Chinese nationality, and the Company is currently engaged in business operations, is not deemed to be either “restricted” or “prohibited”council, Chinese members in the “negative list.”board of directors or the joint management committee accounting for not less than one half of the total members). Investment in institutions offering compulsory education and religious educational institutions is prohibited. We conduct our private education business in China primarily through contractual arrangements among our operating subsidiary in China and Hailiang Management and our affiliated schools owned and operated by Hailiang Management and the shareholder of Hailiang Management. We hold the required licenses and permits necessary to conduct our private education business in China through the schools owned and operated by Hailiang Management. As of the date of this annual report, the sponsor of our current 13 affiliated schools is in compliance with the requirements of the above regulations, and we control and operate our affiliated schools through contractual arrangements that do not violate the above regulations.

On March 15, 2019, the National People’s Congress promulgated the Foreign Investment Law or the FIL, which will taketook effect on January 1, 2020, and replacereplaced the existing laws regulating foreign investment in China, namely, the PRC Equity Joint Venture Law, the PRC Cooperative Joint Venture Law and the Wholly Foreign-owned Enterprise Law, or Existing FIE Laws, together with their implementation rules and ancillary regulations. The FIL embodies an expected PRC regulatory trend to rationalize its foreign investment regulatory regime in line with prevailing international practice and the legislative efforts to unify the corporate legal requirements for both foreign and domestic investments. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Regulation— Provisions on Foreign Investment.”

However, uncertainties still exist in relation to interpretation and implementation of the FIL, especially in regard to, including, among other things, the nature of variable interest entities contractual arrangements and specific rules regulating the organization form of foreign-invested enterprises within the five-year transition period. While FIL does not define contractual arrangements as a form of foreign investment explicitly, we cannot assure you that future laws and regulations will not provide for contractual arrangements as a form of foreign investment. Therefore, there can be no assurance that our control over our VIEs through contractual arrangements will not be deemed as foreign investment in the future. In the event that any possible implementing regulations of the FIL, any other future laws, administrative regulations or provisions deem contractual arrangements as a way of foreign investment, or if any of our operations through contractual arrangements is classified in the “restricted” or “prohibited” industry in the future “negative list” under the FIL, our contractual arrangements may be deemed as invalid and illegal, and we may be required to unwind the variable interest entity contractual arrangements and/or dispose of any affected business. Also, if future laws, administrative regulations or provisions mandate further actions to be taken with respect to existing contractual arrangements, we may face substantial uncertainties as to whether we can complete such actions in a timely manner, or at all. Furthermore, under the FIL, foreign investors or the foreign investment enterpriseenterprises should be imposed legal liabilities for failing to report investment information in accordance with the requirements. In addition, the FIL provides that foreign invested enterprises established according to the existing laws regulating foreign investment may maintain their structure and corporate governance within a five-year transition period, which means that we may be required to adjust the structure and corporate governance of certain of our PRC subsidiaries in such transition period. Failure to take timely and appropriate measures to cope with any of these or similar regulatory compliance challenges could materially and adversely affect our current corporate structure, corporate governance and business operations.

We rely on contractual arrangements with Hailiang Management and its shareholders for our operations in China, which may not be as effective in providing control as direct ownership.

We have relied and expect to continue to rely on the contractual arrangements with Hailiang Management and its shareholders, Beize Group and Mr. Feng, our founder and our ultimate controlling shareholder, to operate our private education business. For a description of these contractual arrangements, see “Item 4. Information on the Company—A. History and Development of the Company” and “Item“Item 4. Information on the Company —C. Organizational Structure.” However, these contractual arrangements may not be as effective as direct equity ownership in providing us with control over Hailiang Management and our affiliated schools. Any failure by our affiliated entities, including Hailiang Management and our affiliated schools controlled and held by Hailiang Management, and the shareholders of Hailiang Management, to perform their obligations under the contractual arrangements would have a material adverse effect on the consolidated financial position and consolidated financial performance of our company. For example, the contractual arrangements are governed by PRC law and provide for the resolution of disputes through arbitration in the PRC. Accordingly, these contracts would be interpreted in accordance with PRC law and any disputes would be resolved in accordance with PRC legal procedures. The legal system in the PRC is not as developed as some other jurisdictions, such as the United States. As a result, uncertainties in the PRC legal system could limit our ability to enforce these contractual arrangements. In addition, if the legal structure and the contractual arrangements were found to be in violation of any existing or future PRC laws and regulations, we may be subject to fines or other legal or administrative sanctions.

If government actions cause us to lose our right to direct the activities of our affiliated entities or our right to receive substantially all the economic benefits and residual returns from our affiliated entities and we are not able to restructure our ownership structure and operations in a satisfactory manner, we would no longer be able to consolidate the financial results of our affiliated entities.

The majority shareholder of Hailiang Management, Mr. Feng, our founder and our ultimate controlling shareholder, may not act in the best interests of our company.

Mr. Feng is the majority shareholder of Hailiang Management. He is also the founder and ultimate controlling shareholder of our company. We cannot assure you that Mr. Feng will act in the best interests of our company. We rely on Mr. Feng to comply with the terms and conditions of the contractual arrangements. Although Mr. Feng is obligated to honor his contractual obligations with respect to our affiliated entities, he may nonetheless breach or cause Hailiang Management to breach or refuse to renew the existing contractual arrangements that allow us to effectively exercise control over our affiliated entities and to receive economic benefits from them. If Mr. Feng does not honor his contractual obligations with respect to our affiliated entities, we may exercise our exclusive option to purchase, or cause our designee to purchase, all or part of the equity interest in Hailiang Management to the extent permitted by PRC law. If we cannot resolve any disputes between us and the shareholder of Hailiang Management, we would have to rely on legal proceedings, which could result in disruption of our business and substantial uncertainty as to the outcome of any such legal proceedings.

Contractual arrangements between our affiliated entities and us may be subject to scrutiny by the PRC tax authorities and a finding that we or our affiliated entities owe additional taxes could materially reduce our net income and the value of your investment.

Under PRC laws and regulations, transactions between related parties should be conducted on an arm’s-length basis and may be subject to audit or challenge by the PRC tax authorities. We could face material adverse tax consequences if the PRC tax authorities determine that the contractual arrangements among our subsidiary in the PRC, our affiliated entities and the shareholders of Hailiang Management are not conducted on an arm’s-length basis and adjust the income of our affiliated entities through the transfer pricing adjustment. A transfer pricing adjustment could, among other things, result in, for PRC tax purposes, increased tax liabilities of our affiliated entities. In addition, the PRC tax authorities may require us to disgorge our prior tax benefits, and require us to pay additional taxes for prior tax years and impose late payment fees and other penalties on our affiliated entities for underpayment of prior taxes. To date, similar contractual arrangements have been used by many public companies, including companies listed in the United States, and, to our knowledge, the PRC tax authorities have not imposed any material penalties on those companies. However, we cannot assure you that such penalties will not be imposed on any other companies or us in the future. Our net income may be harmed if the tax liabilities of our affiliated entities materially increase or if they are found to be subject to additional tax obligations, late payment fees or other penalties.

If any of our affiliated entities becomes the subject of a bankruptcy or liquidation proceeding, we may lose the ability to use and enjoy assets held by such entity, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We currently conduct our operations in China through contractual arrangements with our affiliated entities and the shareholders of Hailiang Management. As part of these arrangements, most of our education-related assets that are important to the operation of our business are held by our affiliated entities. If any of these entities goes bankrupt and all or part of their assets become subject to liens or rights of third-party creditors, we may be unable to continue some or all of our business activities, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. If any of our affiliated entities undergoes a voluntary or involuntary liquidation proceeding, its equity owner or unrelated third-party creditors may claim rights relating to some or all of these assets, which would hinder our ability to operate our business and could materially and adversely affect our business, our ability to generate revenue and the market price of our ADSs.

PRC regulation of loans and direct investment by offshore holding companies to PRC entities may delay or prevent us from using financing activities to make loans or additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiary and affiliated entities, which could harm our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

As an offshore holding company of our PRC subsidiaries, we may (i) make loans to our PRC subsidiary and affiliated entities, (ii) make additional capital contributions to our PRC subsidiaries, (iii) establish new PRC subsidiaries and make capital contributions to these new PRC subsidiaries, and (iv) acquire offshore entities with business operations in China in an offshore transaction. However, most of these uses are subject to PRC regulations and approvals. For example:

In addition, on August 29, 2008, SAFE promulgated Circular 142, a notice regulating the conversion by a foreign-invested company of its capital contribution in foreign currency into Renminbi. The notice requires that the capital of a foreign-invested company settled in Renminbi converted from foreign currencies shall be used only for purposes within the business scope as approved by the applicable governmental authorities. Such loan may not be used for equity investments within the PRC unless such activity is set forth in the business scope or is otherwise permissible under PRC laws or regulations. In addition, SAFE strengthened its oversight of the flow and use of such capital of a foreign-invested company settled in Renminbi converted from foreign currencies. The use of such Renminbi capital may not be changed without SAFE’s approval, and may not in any case be used to repay Renminbi loans if the proceeds of such loans have not otherwise been used. Violations of Circular 142 will result in severe penalties including heavy fines. In order to further reform the foreign exchange administration system, SAFE issued the Circular on Reform of Administration Model of the Settlement of Foreign Currency Capital of Foreign-Invested Enterprises on March 30, 2015, or Circular 19, which took effect from June 1, 2015 and replaced the SAFE Circular 142. Circular 19 allows foreign invested enterprises to settle their foreign exchange capital on a discretionary basis according to the actual needs of their business operations and provides procedures by which a foreign-invested company may convert and use equity investments made in foreign currencies. Circular 19 also reiterates, however, the principle that Renminbi converted from the foreign currency-denominated capital of a foreign-invested company may not be used, either directly or indirectly, for purposes beyond its business scope. Furthermore, SAFE has promulgated Notice of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange on Policies for Reforming and Regulating the Control over Foreign Exchange Settlement under the Capital Account, on June 9, 2016, hereinafter referred to as Circular 16, which emphasizes the unified policies for discretionary settlement of foreign exchange receipts under the capital account by domestic institutions. Circular 16 also reiterates the principle that Renminbi converted from the foreign currency-denominated capital of a foreign-invested company may not be used, either directly or indirectly, for purposes beyond the company’s business scope.

Furthermore, SAFE issued an internal guideline to its local counterparts, referred to as Circular 16, on June 9, 2016. Based on the version of Circular 16 made publicly available by certain local governmental authorities on their websites, we understand that Circular 16 requires SAFE’s local counterparts to unify and regulate the control over discretionary settlement and payment of foreign exchange receipts under the capital account, with the purpose of better serving and facilitating domestic enterprises’ needs in business and capital operations. Circular 16 stipulates that a domestic enterprise, when using its capital account foreign exchange income and Renminbi funds obtained from foreign exchange settlements, shall abide by the principle of truthfulness and only for use in its own operations, and comply with the following: (1) such receipts and funds shall not, directly or indirectly, be used for the expenditures beyond the business scope of domestic institutions or the expenditures prohibited by laws and regulations of the State; (2) unless otherwise provided, such receipts and funds shall not, directly or indirectly, be used for investment in securities or other investments than banks’ principal-secured products; (3) such receipts and funds shall not be used for the granting of loans to non-affiliated enterprises, with the exception that such granting is expressly permitted in the business license; and (4) such receipts and funds shall not be used for construction or purchase of real estate for purpose other than self-use (exception applies for real estate enterprises).

We expect that PRC laws and regulations may continue to limit our use of proceeds from financing sources. We cannot assure you that we will be able to obtain these government registrations or approvals on a timely basis, if at all, with respect to future loans or capital contributions by us to our entities in China. If we fail to receive such registrations or approvals, our ability to capitalize our PRC operations may be negatively affected, which could adversely affect our liquidity and our ability to fund and expand our business.

Risks Relating to Doing Business in China

PRC economic, political and social conditions, as well as changes in any government policies, laws and regulations, could adversely affect the overall economy in China or the educational services market, which could harm our business.

Substantially all of our operations are conducted in China, and most of our revenue is derived from China. Accordingly, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations are subject, to a significant extent, to economic, political and legal developments in China.

The PRC economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects. Although the PRC economy has been transitioning from a planned economy to a more market-oriented economy since the late 1970s, the PRC government continues to play a significant role in regulating the industry. The PRC government continues to exercise significant control over China’s economic growth through allocating resources, controlling the incurrence and payment of foreign currency-denominated obligations, setting monetary policy and providing preferential treatment to particular industries or companies. Uncertainties or changes in any of these policies, laws and regulations, especially those affecting the education industry in China, could adversely affect the economy in China or the market for education services, which could harm our business of providing education programs and services. For example, under the Private Education Laws promulgated in 2004 and its implementing rules, a private school should elect to be either a school that does not require “reasonable returns” or a school that requires “reasonable returns.” A private school must consider factors such as the school’s tuition, ratio of the funds used for education-related activities to the course fees collected, admission standards and educational quality when determining the percentage of the school’s net income that would be distributed to the investors as reasonable returns. However, pursuant to the 2016 Private Education Law, sponsors are not permitted to register for-profit schools that provide compulsory education services, which covers grades one to nine which grades account for a significant portion of our for-profit K-12 education business. However, the 2016 Private Education Law does not provide for a definitive time line for existing schools to re-register/change their for-profit or non-profit status. As of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, we have not received any notice from the regulatory bodies regarding re-registration. The State Council and certain provinces including the Zhejiang province have promulgated implementing rulessupporting regulations of 2016 Private Education Law (in the form of Opinions) for the 2016 Private Education Law.. Zhejiang province has promulgated implementing rulesopinions that all schools located in Zhejiang province are required to re-register and/or change their for-profit or non-profit statuses before 2022. Except for Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High and Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art registered as for-profit schools, Lanzhou Hailiang Experimental School, Wuhu Hailiang Experimental School, Hailiang Overseas Chinese School and Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School, which we started operating in September 2020 and Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School, which we acquired in September 2020, are registered as non-profit schools, and are registered as non-profit schools, we intend to maintain the current statuses of our affiliated schools (as re-registration is not required at this time under the 2004 Implementation Rules for Private Education Laws currently effective) until we have obtained better clarity on the application of the 2016 Private Education Law.

While the PRC economy has experienced significant growth in the past two to three decades, growth has been uneven, both geographically and among various sectors of the economy. Demand for our educational services depends, in large part, on economic conditions in China. Any significant slowdown in China’s economic growth may cause our potential students to delay or cancel their plans to enroll in our schools, which in turn could reduce our revenue. In addition, any sudden changes to China’s political system or the occurrence of social unrest could have a material and adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.

Uncertainties with respect to the PRC legal system could have a material adverse effect on us.

The PRC legal system is a civil law system based on written statutes. Unlike the common law system, prior court decisions in a civil law system may be cited as reference but have limited precedential value. Since 1979, newly introduced PRC laws and regulations have significantly enhanced the protections of interest relating to foreign investments in China. However, since these laws and regulations are relatively new and the PRC legal system continues to evolve rapidly, the interpretations of such laws and regulations may not always be consistent, and enforcement of these laws and regulations involves significant uncertainties, any of which could limit the available legal protections.

In addition, the PRC administrative and judicial authorities have significant discretion in interpreting, implementing or enforcing statutory rules and contractual terms, and it may be more difficult to predict the outcome of administrative and judicial proceedings and the level of legal protection we may enjoy in the PRC than under some more developed legal systems. These uncertainties may affect our decisions on the policies and actions to be taken to comply with PRC laws and regulations, and may affect our ability to enforce our contractual or tort rights. In addition, the regulatory uncertainties may be exploited through unmerited legal actions or threats in an attempt to extract payments or benefits from us. Such uncertainties may therefore increase our operating expenses and costs, and materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Any increase in applicable enterprise income tax rates or the discontinuation of any preferential tax treatments currently available to us may result in a significantly higher tax burden or the disgorgement of any benefits we enjoyed in the past, which could in turn negatively affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Under the 2016 Private Education Law,, which became effective on September 1, 2017, private schools, whether non-profit or for-profit, may enjoy preferential tax treatment. Except for two for-profit schools, which are Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art and Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High sevenSchool elected to register their statuses as for-profit. As of our ninethe date of this annual report, Lanzhou Hailiang Experimental School, Wuhu Hailiang Experimental School, Hailiang Overseas Chinese School and Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School, which are four new affiliated schools that we started operating or acquired in September 2020, elected to register their status as non-profit. Except for the above schools, all other affiliated schools in operation currently have not elected to change or re-register their statuses pending the effectiveness of the implementation rule. The 2016 Private Education Law provides that non-profit private schools will be entitled to the same tax benefits as public schools. Taxation policies for for-profit private schools following the effectiveness of the 2016 Private Education Law are still unclear as more specific provisions are not yet introduced. As private schools requiring reasonable return, seven of our nine affiliated schools in operation by the end of 20192020 fiscal year end have enjoyed preferential tax policies for enterprise income tax and value-added tax (“VAT”) since their establishment. Two for-profit schools by the end of 20192020 fiscal year end have enjoyed preferential tax policies for VAT as permitted by the Notice of the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation on Full Launch of the Pilot Scheme on Levying Value-added Tax in Place of Business Tax. In July 2019,2020, confirmed by the local tax authorities and our PRC counsel, (i) all of our affiliated private schools in operation have enjoyed the preferential tax policies for VAT and (ii) our affiliated private schools in operation other than Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art and Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High are exempt from income taxes since their establishment, and all of our affiliated private schools in operation did not violate any tax laws or regulations since their establishment,.establishment.

Preferential tax treatments granted to us by local governmental authorities are subject to review and may be adjusted or revoked at any time in the future. The discontinuation of any preferential tax treatments currently available to us will cause our effective tax rate to increase, which will increase our income tax expenses and in turn decrease our net income. In addition, we may not be granted preferential tax treatment by the local governments of additional regions into which we may expand. Any such negative development could have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Under the New EIT Law, we may be classified as a “resident enterprise” of China. Such classification could result in unfavorable tax consequences to us and our non-PRC shareholders.

The PRC Enterprise Income Tax Law (“New EIT Law”) and its implementing rules provide that enterprises established outside of China whose “de facto management bodies” are located in China are considered “resident enterprises” under PRC tax laws. The implementing rules promulgated under the New EIT Law define the term “de facto management bodies” as a management body which substantially manages, or has control over the business, personnel, finance and assets of an enterprise. The State Administration of Taxation, or SAT, promulgated Notice of the State Administration of Taxation on Issues Concerning the Determination of Chinese-Controlled Enterprises Registered Overseas as Resident Enterprises on the Basis of Their Bodies of Actual Management on April 22, 2009, referred to as Circular 82; Circular 82 formulates specific criteria for determining “de facto management body:” (1) its premises where its officers and management departments in charge of routine production and operation management perform their duties are mainly located inside China; (2) its financial decisions (such as borrowing, loan, financing and financial risk management) and personnel decision (such as appointment, dismissal and remuneration) are made by the organizations or persons located inside China, or need to be approved by them; (3) its principal properties, accounting books, corporate seals, meeting minutes and files of the board meetings and the shareholders’ meetings are placed or kept inside China; and (4) 1/2 or more than 1/2 of its directors or officers with voting rights customarily reside inside China. However, SAT promulgated Announcement of the State Administration of Taxation on Issues Concerning the Determination of Resident Enterprises on the Basis of Their Actual Management Bodies on January 29, 2014, referred to as Circular 9. Pursuant to these regulations, once we meet the above criteria, we shall file an application for determination of resident enterprise with the competent tax authorities at the place where its main investor is located in China. The competent local tax authorities will, upon preliminary judgment of the enterprise’s resident status, report the same from local, to municipal, to the provincial tax authorities for confirmation. Therefore, until we make such filing application, it is still unclear if the PRC tax authorities would determine that we should be classified as a PRC “resident enterprise.”

If we are deemed as a PRC “resident enterprise,” we will be subject to PRC enterprise income tax on our worldwide income at a uniform tax rate of 25%, although dividends distributed to us from our existing PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting and any other PRC subsidiaries which we may establish from time to time could be exempt from the PRC dividend withholding tax due to our PRC “resident recipient” status. This could have a material and adverse effect on our overall effective tax rate, our income tax expenses and our net income. Furthermore, dividends, if any, paid to our shareholders and ADS holders may be decreased as a result of the decrease in distributable profits. In addition, if we were to be considered a PRC “resident enterprise,” dividends we pay with respect to our ADSs or ordinary shares and the gains realized from the transfer of our ADSs or ordinary shares may be considered income derived from sources within the PRC and be subject to PRC withholding tax. This could have a material and adverse effect on the value of your investment in us and the price of our ADSs.

There are significant uncertainties under the New EIT Law relating to the withholding tax liabilities of our PRC subsidiaries, and dividends payable by our PRC subsidiaries to our offshore subsidiaries may not qualify to enjoy certain treaty benefits.

Under the New EIT Law and its implementation rules, the profits of a foreign invested enterprise generated through operations, which are distributed to its immediate holding company outside the PRC, will be subject to a withholding tax rate of 10%. Pursuant to a special arrangement between Hong Kong and the PRC, such rate may be reduced to 5% if a Hong Kong resident enterprise owns more than 25% of the equity interest in the PRC company. Our current PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting is wholly-owned by our Hong Kong subsidiary. Hailiang Consulting also wholly owns the remaining of our PRC subsidiaries, except for Haibo Education and Haibo Logistics.subsidiaries. Moreover, under the Notice of the State Administration of Taxation on Issues regarding the Administration of the Dividend Provision in Tax Treaties promulgated on February 20, 2009, the tax payer needs to satisfy certain conditions to enjoy the benefits under a tax treaty. These conditions include: (1) the taxpayer must be the beneficial owner of the relevant dividends, and (2) the corporate shareholder to receive dividends from the PRC subsidiaries must have continuously met the direct ownership thresholds during the 12 consecutive months preceding the receipt of the dividends. Further, the State Administration of Taxation promulgated the Notice on How to Understand and Recognize the “Beneficial Owner” in Tax Treaties on October 27, 2009, which limits the “beneficial owner” to individuals, enterprises or other organizations normally engaged in substantive operations, and sets forth certain detailed factors in determining the “beneficial owner” status. Furthermore, the State Administration of Taxation promulgated Announcement of the State Administration of Taxation on Issues Relating to “Beneficial Owner” in Tax Treaties (“Circular 9”) in February 2018, which took into effect on April 1, 2018 and provides guidance for determining whether a resident of a contracting state is the “beneficial owner” of an item of income under China’s tax treaties and tax arrangements.

Under applicable tax laws and regulations, we are required to apply for approvals from local tax authorities before we can enjoy any benefits under such taxation treaties relating to the 5% withholding tax rate which we have not undertaken. Hailiang Consulting will apply for such approvals when it intends to declare and pay dividends, but there is no assurance that the PRC tax authorities will approve the 5% withholding tax rate on dividends received from Hailiang Consulting.

Based on the recent development of PRC law, there is significant uncertainty relating to the application and interpretation of the 2016 Private Education Law and Implementation Rules of 2016 Private Education Law. We may be subject to significant limitations on our ability to engage in the private education business, acquire private schools, or makereceive payments tofrom our subsidiariesaffiliated entities and may otherwise be materially and adversely affected by changes in PRC laws and regulations.

The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress amended the Law on the Promotion of Private Education on November 7, 2016, which became effective on September 1, 2017. Pursuant to the 2016 Private Education Law, sponsors of private schools may choose to establish schools as either non-profit or for-profit schools. Sponsors are not permitted to establish for-profit schools that provide compulsory education services, which covers grades one to nine which accounted for a significant portion of our students as well as revenue during the reporting period. Sponsors of for-profit private schools are entitled to retain the profits from their schools and the operating surplus may be allocated to the sponsors pursuant to the PRC company law and other relevant laws and regulations. Sponsors of non-profit private schools are not entitled to any distribution of profits from their schools and all revenue must be used for the operation of the schools. For further details, refer to “Item 4. Information on the Company–B. Business–Regulations on Private Education–The Law for Promoting2016 Private Education (2016)Law and The 2004 Implementation Rules for Private Education Laws.”

On August 10, 2018, the Ministry of Justice, or the MOJ, released the Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting2016 Private Education (2004).”Laws (the MOJ Draft) to seek public comments. As of the date of this annual report, the Implementation Rules for 2016 Private Education Laws has not come into force, and their content and retroactive effect is still uncertain. The MOJ Draft stipulates, among others, (1) that foreign-invested enterprises established in China and social organizations whose actual controllers are foreign parties shall not sponsor, participate in or actually control private schools that provide compulsory education, (2) that group-based education organizations shall not control non-profit private schools through mergers and acquisitions, franchise agreements and contractual arrangements, and (3) that related party transactions entered into by private schools shall be open, fair and just and shall not harm national interests, school interests, or student or teacher interests. However, there is uncertainty as to whether the MOJ Draft will be legislated in the same form as published for consultation, how it will be interpreted and implemented, and when and if the MOJ Draft will be legislated at all. In particular, if the Implementation Rules for 2016 Private Education Laws is promulgated and implemented in accordance with the MOJ Draft with retroactive effect, the validity of our contractual arrangements may be challenged and our corporate structure may need to be restructured to comply with the new regulations, which may be time-consuming and expensive and impose additional restrictions on our business expansion. Our schools in China that are involved in related party transactions may also be subject to strict supervision by relevant government authorities, and we may need to establish corresponding information disclosure systems and incur greater compliance costs, and our contractual arrangements, which may be deemed as related-party transactions, may be subject to scrutiny against the stipulated benchmarks by relevant government authorities.

As of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, the State Council and national ministries and certain provinces including Zhejiang province have promulgated implementingsupporting rules for the 2016 Private Education Law (in the form of Opinions) for the 2016 Private Education Law. Under the 2016 Private Education Law and its implementing rules, schools that offer compulsory education services must register as non-profit schools.. The 2016 Private Education Law does not provide for a definitive time line for existing schools to re-register/change their for-profit or non-profit status. Nevertheless, Zhejiang province has promulgated implementing rulesopinions that all schools located in Zhejiang province are required to re-register and/or change their for-profit or non-profit status before 2022. In addition, local government authorities, in implementing the amended law, may impose additional limits on the tuition and fees our schools charge. Furthermore, as a holding company, our ability to generate profits, pay dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders under the existing and amended law are affected by many factors, including whether our schools are characterized as for-profit or non-profit schools, the profitability of our schools, and our ability to receive dividends and other distributions from our PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting, which in turn depends on the service fees paid to Hailiang Consulting from our affiliated schools and other service and management fees paid to Hailiang Consulting by our other PRC subsidiaries and managed schools.

Hailiang Consulting has entered into an exclusive management services and business cooperation agreement with Hailiang Management, pursuant to which we provide service to our schools in exchange for the payment of service fees. As advised by our PRC counsel, our right to receive the service fees from our schools and other affiliated entities does not contravene any PRC laws and regulations and that payment of service fees under our contractual arrangements should not be regarded as the distribution of returns, dividends or profits to the sponsors of our schools under the PRC laws and regulations. However, if the relevant PRC government authorities take a different view, or if the 2016 Private Education Law were to be implemented and interpreted in a manner that deems our current business practices to be in violation, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.

We face uncertainties with respect to indirect transfers of the equity interests in PRC resident enterprises by their non-PRC holding companies.

The State Administration of Taxation has promulgated the Announcement of the State Administration of Taxation on Several Issues Relating to Enterprise Income Tax on Transfer of Assets between Non-resident Enterprises, on February 3, 2015, hereinafter referred to as Circular 7. Under the Circular 7, where a non-resident enterprise makes indirect transfer of assets such as the equity of a Chinese resident enterprise through arrangements which do not have a reasonable commercial objective to circumvent enterprise income tax payment obligation, the indirect transfer shall be redefined pursuant to the provisions of Article 47 of the new EIT Law as direct transfer of assets such as equity of Chinese resident enterprises.The Circular 7 defined the term “Indirect Transfer” clearly in Article 1: Indirect transfer of taxable assets in China shall mean transfer by a non-resident enterprise of equity and other similar interests (hereinafter referred to as the “equity”) of an overseas enterprise which holds taxable assets in China directly or indirectly (excluding Chinese resident enterprises registered overseas, hereinafter referred to as the “overseas enterprise”), which gives rise to a transaction that has identical or similar substantial results as direct transfer of taxable assets in China, including restructuring of a non-resident enterprise which causes changes in shareholders of an overseas enterprise. The non-resident enterprise which makes the indirect transfer of taxable assets in China shall be referred to as the “transferor of equity”. Moreover, Circular 7 has also stipulated how the effective tax rates in foreign tax jurisdictions are calculated, and the process and format of the reporting of an Indirect Transfer to the competent tax authority of the relevant PRC resident enterprise. Articles 3, 4, 5 and 6 of Circular 7 provide guidance on how to determine whether a foreign investor has adopted an abusive arrangement in order to reduce, avoid or defer PRC tax. Under Circular 7, where the tax authorities in charge needs to set up a case for investigation into and making adjustment to the transaction of indirect transfer of taxable assets in China, the matter shall be dealt with pursuant to the relevant provisions on general anti-avoidance.

On October 17, 2017, the State Administration of Taxation (“SAT”) promulgated the Announcement of the State Administration of Taxation on Issues Relating to Withholding at Source of Income Tax of Non-resident Enterprises (“SAT No.37”), which took effect on December 1, 2017. The SAT No.37 shall apply to handling of matters relating to withholding at source of income tax of non-resident enterprises pursuant to the provisions of Article 37, Article 39 and Article 40 of the New EIT Law. Specifically, the SAT No.37 cancels the requirement for contract filing, but the tax authorities in charge still have the right to require the taxpayer, the withholding agent and other relevant parties who are informed, to provide contract(s) and other relevant materials relating to the tax withholding. In addition, according to the SAT No.37, where the income subject to withholding at source derived by a non-resident enterprise is equity investment income such as dividends, bonuses etc., the date of occurrence of withholding obligation for the relevant tax payable amount shall be the date of actual payment of equity investment income such as dividends, bonuses etc;etc.; where the same asset transfer income subject to withholding at source is derived by a non-resident enterprise by way of instalments, the instalments may first be treated as recovery of costs of previous investments; upon recovery of all costs, the tax amount to be withheld shall then be computed and withheld. If the non-resident enterprise does not declare and pay tax pursuant to the provisions of Article 39 of the New EIT Law, the tax authorities may order the enterprise to make payment within a stipulated period, and the non-resident enterprise shall declare and pay tax within the period determined by the tax authorities; if the non-resident enterprise has declared and paid tax before the tax authorities order it to make payment within a stipulated period, the enterprise shall be deemed to have paid tax on time.

According to the New EIT Law, where business dealings between an enterprise and its interested parties fail to comply with the independent transaction principle, and reductions are made to the taxable income or the amount of income of the enterprise or its interested parties; Or where the taxable income or amount of income of an enterprise is reduced as a result of arrangements with no reasonable commercial objectives implemented by the enterprise, the tax authorities have a right to make adjustments according to a reasonable method. Where the tax authorities have made tax adjustments and the taxpayer is required to make up outstanding tax payments, the additional tax amount shall be levied and collected with interest pursuant to the provisions of the State Council.

As a result, we and our non-resident investors may have the risk of being taxed according to above regulations and may be required to spend valuable resources to comply with above regulations or to establish that we or our non-resident investors should not be taxed according to above regulations, which may have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations or such non-resident investors’ investments in us.

Restrictions on currency exchange may limit our ability to receive income and use our revenueallocate or reinvest effectively.

Most of our revenueincome is denominated in Renminbi. As a result, restrictions on currency exchange may limit our ability to use revenueincome generated in Renminbi to fund any business activities we may have outside China in the future or to make dividend payments to our shareholders and ADS holders in U.S. dollars. Under current PRC laws and regulations, Renminbi is freely convertible for current account items, such as trade and service-related foreign exchange transactions and dividend distributions. However, Renminbi is not freely convertible for direct investment or loans or investments in securities outside China, unless such use is approved by SAFE. For example, foreign exchange transactions under our subsidiary’s capital account, including principal payments in respect of foreign currency-denominated obligations, remain subject to significant foreign exchange controls and the approval requirement of SAFE. These limitations could affect our ability to obtain foreign exchange for capital expenditures.

Hailiang Consulting is permitted to declare dividends to our offshore subsidiary holding its equity interest, convert the dividends into a foreign currency and remit to its shareholder outside of the PRC. In addition, in the event that Hailiang Consulting liquidates, proceeds from the liquidation may be converted into foreign currency and distributed outside of China to our overseas subsidiary holding its equity interest. Furthermore, in the event that Hailiang Management liquidates, Hailiang Consulting may, pursuant to a power of attorney it has entered into with Mr. Feng and Beize Group, require Hailiang Management to pay and remit the proceeds from such liquidation to Hailiang Consulting. Hailiang Consulting then may distribute such proceeds to us after converting them into foreign currency and remit them outside of China in the form of dividends or other distributions. Once remitted outside of the PRC, dividends, distributions or other proceeds from liquidation paid to us will not be subject to restrictions under PRC regulations on its further transfer or use.

Other than the above distributions by and through Hailiang Consulting which are permitted to be made without the necessity to obtain further approvals, any conversion of the Renminbi-denominated revenueincome generated by our affiliated entities for direct investment, loan or investment in securities outside China will be subject to the limitations discussed above. To the extent we need to convert and use any Renminbi-denominated revenueincome generated by our affiliated entities not paid to Hailiang Consulting and revenueincome generated by Hailiang Consulting not declared and paid as dividends, the limitations discussed above will restrict the convertibility of, and our ability to directly receive and useallocate or reinvest such revenue.income. As a result, our business and financial condition may be adversely affected. In addition, there is no assurance that the PRC regulatory authorities will not impose more stringent restrictions on the convertibility of Renminbi in the future, especially with respect to foreign exchange transactions.

Our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China are subject to restrictions on making dividends and other payments to us.

We are a holding company and rely principally on dividends paid by our subsidiary in China for our cash needs, including paying dividends and other cash distributions to our shareholders to the extent we choose to do so, servicing any debt we may incur and paying our operating expenses. Hailiang Consulting and its subsidiaries’ income in turn depends on the service fees paid by our affiliated entities and managed schools. Current PRC regulations permit our subsidiary in China to pay dividends to us only out of its accumulated profits, if any, determined in accordance with Chinese accounting standards and regulations. Under the applicable requirements of PRC law, Hailiang Consulting may distribute dividends only after it has made allowances to fund certain statutory reserves. These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends. In addition, at the end of each fiscal year, pursuant to theThe 2004 Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004),Laws, each of our schools that is a private school in China requiring reasonable return is required to allocate a certain amount to its development fund for the construction or maintenance of the school properties or purchase or upgrade of school facilities. However, following the effectiveness of the 2016 Private Education Law, which no longer uses the term “reasonable return” and requires a private school to either register as for-profit or non-profit. Pursuant to the 2016 Private Education Law, sponsors are not permitted to establish for-profit schools that provide compulsory education services, which covers grades one to nine which accounted for a significant portion of our students as well as revenue during the reporting period. Sponsors of for-profit private schools are entitled to retain the profits from their schools and the operating surplus may be allocated to the sponsors pursuant to the PRC company law and other relevant laws and regulations. Sponsors of non-profit private schools are not entitled to any distribution of profits from their schools and all revenue must be used for the operation of the schools. In addition, prior to the specific implementing rulesImplementation Rules of 2016 Private Education Law being promulgated by the State Council and other relevant regulations promulgated by other local and regional governments, all of our affiliated schools that we control, each of which is a private school, are required to allocate not less than 25% of their annual net income to its development fund for the construction or maintenance of the school properties or for the purchase or upgrade of school facilities. We are uncertain how the implementing rulesImplementation Rules of 2016 Private Education Law will be promulgated, and how such rules will impact our operation. For more detailed information, refer to “Item“Item 4. Information on the Company–B. Business–Regulations on Private Education–The Law for Promoting2016 Private Education (2016)Law and theThe 2004 Implementation Rules for the Law for Promoting Private Education (2004).Laws.” Furthermore, if our subsidiaries or our affiliated entities in China incur debt on their own behalf in the future, the instruments governing the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other payments to us. Any such restrictions may materially affect such entities’ ability to make dividends or make payments, in service fees or otherwise, to us, which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Fluctuations in the value of the Renminbi may have a material adverse effect on your investment.

The change in value of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar and other currencies is affected by, various factors, such as changes in China’s political and economic conditions. On July 21, 2005, the PRC government changed its decade-old policy of pegging the value of the Renminbi to the U.S. dollar. Under such policy, the Renminbi was permitted to fluctuate within a narrow and managed band against a basket of certain foreign currencies. Later on, the People’s Bank of China has decided to further implement the reform of the RMB exchange regime and to enhance the flexibility of RMB exchange rates. Such changes in policy have resulted in a significant appreciation of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar since 2005 though there have been periods when the U.S. dollar has appreciated against the Renminbi as well. There remains significant international pressure on the PRC government to adopt a more flexible currency policy, which could result in a further and more significant adjustment of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar.

Any significant appreciation or revaluation of the Renminbi may have a material adverse effect on the value of, and any dividends payable on, our ADSs in foreign currency terms. More specifically, if we decide to convert our Renminbi into U.S. dollars, appreciation of the U.S. dollar against the Renminbi would have a negative effect on the U.S. dollar amount available to us. To the extent that we need to convert U.S. dollars we received from our initial public offering or that we will receive from future offerings or financings into Renminbi for our operations, appreciation of the Renminbi against the U.S. dollar would have an adverse effect on the Renminbi amount we would receive from the conversion. In addition, appreciation or depreciation in the exchange rate of the Renminbi to the U.S. dollar could materially and adversely affect the price of our ADSs in U.S. dollars without giving effect to any underlying change in our business or results of operations.

We might have been required to obtain prior approval of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, or CSRC, of the listing and trading of our ADSs on the Nasdaq Global Market.

On August 8, 2006, six PRC regulatory authorities, including the MOFCOM, the State Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the State Administration of Taxation, State Administration for Industry and Commerce of PRC, or SAIC, CSRC and SAFE, jointly issued the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, or the M&A Rules. This regulation, among other things, requires that the listing and trading on an overseas stock exchange of securities in an offshore special purpose vehicle formed for purposes of holding direct or indirect equity interests in PRC companies and controlled directly or indirectly by PRC companies or individuals be approved by the CSRC. On September 21, 2006, the CSRC published on its official website the procedures for such approval process. In particular, certain documents are required to be filed with the CSRC as part of the approval procedures and it could take several months to complete the approval process.

While the implementation and interpretation of the M&A Rules remains unclear, we believe, based on the advice of our PRC counsel, that approval by the CSRC was not required for our initial public offering because we are not a special purpose vehicle formed or controlled by PRC companies or PRC individuals as defined under the M&A Rules. However, we cannot assure you that the relevant PRC regulatory authorities, including the CSRC, would reach the same conclusion as our PRC counsel. If the CSRC or other PRC regulatory authority subsequently determines that we needed to obtain the CSRC’s approval for our initial public offering, we may face sanctions by the CSRC or other PRC regulatory authorities. In such event, these regulatory authorities may, among other things, impose fines and penalties on or otherwise restrict our operations in the PRC or delay or restrict any remittance of the proceeds from our initial public offering into the PRC. Any such or other actions taken could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, reputation and prospects, as well as the trading price of our ADSs.

Certain PRC regulations, including the M&A Rules and national security regulations, may require a complicated review and approval process which could make it more difficult for us to pursue growth through acquisitions in China.

The M&A Rules established additional procedures and requirements that could make merger and acquisition activities in China by foreign investors more time-consuming and complex. For example, the MOFCOM must be notified in the event a foreign investor takes control of a PRC domestic enterprise. In addition, certain acquisitions of domestic companies by offshore companies that are related to or affiliated with the same entities or individuals of the domestic companies, are subject to approval by the MOFCOM. In addition, the Implementing Rules Concerning Security Review on Mergers and Acquisitions by Foreign Investors of Domestic Enterprises, issued by the MOFCOM in August 2011, require that mergers and acquisitions by foreign investors in “any industry with national security concerns” be subject to national security review by the MOFCOM. In addition, any activities attempting to circumvent such review process, including structuring the transaction through a proxy or contractual control arrangement, are strictly prohibited.

There is significant uncertainty regarding the interpretation and implementation of these regulations relating to merger and acquisition activities in China. In addition, complying with these requirements could be time-consuming, and the required notification, review or approval process may materially delay or affect our ability to complete merger and acquisition transactions in China. As a result, our ability to seek growth through acquisitions may be materially and adversely affected.

In addition, if the MOFCOM determines that we should have obtained its approval for our entry into contractual arrangements with our affiliated entities and the shareholder of Hailiang Management, we may be required to file for remedial approvals. There is no assurance that we would be able to obtain such approval from the MOFCOM. We may also be subject to administrative fines or penalties by the MOFCOM that may require us to limit our business operations in the PRC, delay or restrict the conversion and remittance of our funds in foreign currencies into the PRC or take other actions that could have material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

A failure by the beneficial owners of our shares who are PRC residents to comply with certain PRC foreign exchange regulations could restrict our ability to distribute profits, restrict our overseas and cross-border investment activities and subject us to liability under PRC law.

SAFE has promulgated regulations, including the Notice on Relevant Issues Relating to Domestic Residents’ Investment and Financing and Round-Trip Investment through Special Purpose Vehicles , or SAFE Circular No. 37, effective on July 4, 2014, and its appendices, that require PRC residents, including PRC institutions and individuals, to register with local branches of SAFE in connection with their direct establishment or indirect control of an offshore entity, for the purpose of overseas investment and financing, with such PRC residents’ legally owned assets or equity interests in domestic enterprises or offshore assets or interests, referred to in SAFE Circular No. 37 as a “special purpose vehicle.”vehicle”. SAFE Circular No. 37 further requires amendment to the registration in the event of any significant changes with respect to the special purpose vehicle, such as increase or decrease of capital contributed by PRC individuals, share transfer or exchange, merger, division or other material event. In the event that a PRC shareholder holding interests in a special purpose vehicle fails to fulfill the required SAFE registration, the PRC subsidiaries of that special purpose vehicle may be prohibited from making profit distributions to the offshore parent and from carrying out subsequent cross-border foreign exchange activities, and the special purpose vehicle may be restricted in its ability to contribute additional capital into its PRC subsidiaries. Further, failure to comply with the various SAFE registration requirements described above could result in liability under PRC law for foreign exchange evasion.violation.

These regulations apply to our direct and indirect shareholders who are PRC residents and may apply to any offshore acquisitions or share transfers that we make in the future if our shares are issued to PRC residents. However, in practice, different local SAFE branches may have different views and procedures on the application and implementation of SAFE regulations, and since SAFE Circular No. 37 was recently issued, there remains uncertainty with respect to its implementation. We have requested PRC residents who we know currently hold direct or indirect interests in our company to make the necessary applications, filings and amendments as required under SAFE Circular No. 37 and other related rules. As advised by AllBright Law Offices, our PRC legal counsel, as of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, such PRC residents have duly made such applications, filings and amendments as required by SAFE Circular No. 75, the predecessor regulation of SAFE Circular No. 37. Such applications, filings and amendments were made pursuant to SAFE Circular No. 75 before SAFE Circular No. 37 went into effect. However, SAFE Circular No. 37 shall apply to any subsequent amendments made by Mr. Feng after the effective date of SAFE Circular No. 37. As of the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, to the best of our knowledge, Mr. Feng is not required to make any amendment under SAFE Circular No. 37. However, we cannot assure you that Mr. Feng or any other direct or indirect shareholders or beneficial owners of our company who are PRC residents will be able to successfully complete the registration or update the registration of their direct and indirect equity interest as required in the future. If they fail to make or update the registration, our PRC subsidiaries could be subject to fines and legal penalties, and SAFE could restrict our cross-border investment activities and our foreign exchange activities, including restricting our PRC subsidiaries’ ability to distribute dividends to, or obtain loans denominated in foreign currencies from, our company, or prevent us from paying dividends. As a result, our business operations and our ability to make distributions to you could be materially and adversely affected.

Our independent registered public accounting firm isYou may experience difficulties in effecting service of legal process, enforcing foreign judgments, or bringing actions in China against us or our management named in the prospectus based on foreign laws. It may also be difficult for you or overseas regulators to conduct investigations or collect evidence within China.

As a company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands, we conduct a majority of our operations in China and a majority of our assets are located in China. In addition, all of our senior executive officers reside within China for a jurisdictionsignificant portion of the time and are PRC nationals. As a result, it may be difficult for you to effect service of process upon those persons inside mainland China. It may be difficult for you to enforce judgements obtained in U.S. courts based on civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal securities laws against us and our officers and directors, as none of them currently resides in the U.S. or has substantial assets in the U.S. In addition, there is uncertainty as to whether the courts of the Cayman Islands or the PRC would recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts against us or such persons predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the U.S. or any state.

The recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments are provided for under the PRC Civil Procedures Law. PRC courts may recognize and enforce foreign judgments in accordance with the requirements of the PRC Civil Procedures Law based either on treaties between China and the country where PCAOBthe judgment is currently unablemade or on principles of reciprocity between jurisdictions. China does not have any treaties or other forms of written arrangement with the United States that provide for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of foreign judgments. In addition, according to the PRC Civil Procedures Law, the PRC courts will not enforce a foreign judgment against us or our directors and officers if they decide that the judgment violates the basic principles of PRC laws or national sovereignty, security, or public interest. As a result, it is uncertain whether and on what basis a PRC court would enforce a judgment rendered by a court in the United States.

It may also be difficult for you or overseas regulators to conduct inspections withoutinvestigations or collect evidence within China. For example, in China, there are significant legal and other obstacles to obtaining information, documents, and materials needed for regulatory investigations or litigation outside China. Although the approvalauthorities in China may establish a regulatory cooperation mechanism with its counterparts of another country or region to monitor and oversee cross border securities activities, such regulatory cooperation with the securities regulatory authorities in the Unities States may not be efficient in the absence of practical cooperation mechanism. Furthermore, according to Article 177 of the PRC authorities,Securities Law, or “Article 177,” which became effective in March 2020, no overseas securities regulator is allowed to directly conduct investigation or evidence collection activities within the territory of the PRC. Article 177 further provides that Chinese entities and individuals are not allowed to provide documents or materials related to securities business activities to foreign agencies without prior consent from the securities regulatory authority of the PRC State Council and the competent departments of the PRC State Council. While detailed interpretation of or implementing rules under Article 177 have yet to be promulgated, the inability for an overseas securities regulator to directly conduct investigation or evidence collection activities within China may further increase difficulties faced by you in protecting your interests.

Recent joint statement by the SEC and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), or the “PCAOB,” proposed rule changes submitted by Nasdaq, and an act passed by the U.S. Senate all call for additional and more stringent criteria to be applied to emerging market companies upon assessing the qualification of their auditors, especially the non-U.S. auditors who are not inspected by the PCAOB. These developments could add uncertainties to us.

On April 21, 2020, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton and PCAOB Chairman William D. Duhnke III, along with other senior SEC staff, released a joint statement highlighting the risks associated with investing in companies based in or have substantial operations in emerging markets including China. The joint statement emphasized the risks associated with lack of access for the PCAOB to inspect auditors and audit work papers in China and higher risks of fraud in emerging markets.

On May 18, 2020, Nasdaq filed three proposals with the SEC to (i) apply minimum offering size requirement for companies primarily operating in “Restrictive Market,” (ii) adopt a new requirement relating to the qualification of management or board of director for Restrictive Market companies, and (iii) apply additional and more stringent criteria to an applicant or listed company based on the qualifications of the company’s auditor.

On May 20, 2020, the U.S. Senate passed an act requiring a foreign company to certify it is not owned or manipulated by a foreign government if the PCAOB is unable to audit specified reports because the company uses a foreign auditor not subject to PCAOB inspection. If the PCAOB is unable to inspect the company’s auditor for three consecutive years, the issuer’s securities are prohibited to trade on a national exchange.

On June 4, 2020, the U.S. President issued a memorandum ordering the President’s working group on financial markets to submit a report to the President within 60 days of the date of the memorandum that should include recommendations for actions that can be taken by the executive branch and by the SEC or PCAOB to enforce U.S. regulatory requirements on Chinese companies listed on U.S. stock exchanges and their audit firms. On August 6, 2020, the President’s working group released a report recommending that the SEC take steps to implement the five recommendations outlined in the report. In particular, to address companies from jurisdictions that do not provide the PCAOB with sufficient access to fulfill its statutory mandate, the President’s working group recommended enhanced listing standards on U.S. stock exchanges. This would require, as such,a condition to initial and continued exchange listing, PCAOB access to work papers of the principal audit firm for the audit of the listed company. Companies unable to satisfy this standard as a result of governmental restrictions on access to audit work papers and practices in their jurisdiction may satisfy this standard by providing a co-audit from an audit firm with comparable resources and experience where the PCAOB determines it has sufficient access to audit work papers and practices to conduct an appropriate inspection of the co-audit firm. The report permits the new listing standards to provide for a transition period until January 1, 2022 for listed companies. If we fail to meet the new listing standards before Janaury 1, 2022 due to factors beyond our control, we could face possible de-listing from Nasdaq, deregistration from the SEC and/or other risks, which may materially and adversely affect, or effectively terminate, our ADRs trading in the United States. On August 10, 2020, the SEC announced that the SEC chairman had directed the SEC staff to prepare proposals in response to the report of the President’s working group, and that the SEC was soliciting public comments and information with respect to the development of these proposals. It remains unclear what further actions, if any, the U.S. executive branch, the SEC, and PCAOB will take to address the problem.

The lack of access to the PCAOB inspection in China prevents the PCAOB from fully evaluating audits and quality control procedures of the auditors based in China. As a result, investors may be deprived of the benefits of such inspection.PCAOB inspections. The inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of auditors in China makes it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of these accounting firm’s audit procedures or quality control procedures as compared to auditors outside of China that are subject to the PCAOB inspections, which could cause investors and potential investors in our Ordinary Shares to lose confidence in our auditor’s audit procedures and reported financial information and the quality of our financial statements.

Our auditor, the independent registered public accounting firm whichthat issues the audit report included elsewhere in ourthis annual report filed with the SEC,on Form 20-F, as an auditor of companies that are traded publicly in the United States and a firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), or PCAOB, is required by thesubject to laws ofin the United States pursuant to undergowhich the PCAOB conducts regular inspections by PCAOB to assess its compliance with the laws of the United States andapplicable professional standards. Our auditor is located in China, a jurisdiction where PCAOB is currently unable to conduct inspections without the approval of the PRC authorities, and hence, our auditor is not currently inspected by the PCAOB. On December 7, 2018,However, the SECrecent developments would add uncertainties to our listing on Nasdaq and the PCAOB issued a joint statement highlighting continued challenges faced by the U.S. regulators in their oversight of financial statement audits of U.S.-listed companies with significant operations in China. The joint statement reflects a heightened interest in an issue that has vexed U.S. regulators in recent years. However, it remains unclear what further actions the SECwe cannot assure you whether Nasdaq or regulatory authorities would apply additional and the PCAOB will takemore stringent criteria to address this issue. Inspections of other firms that PCAOB has conducted outside of China have identified deficiencies in those firms’ audit procedures and quality control procedures, which may be addressed as part of the inspection process to improve future audit quality. The inability of PCAOB to conduct inspections of independent registered public accounting firms operating in China makes it more difficult to evaluateus after considering the effectiveness of our auditor’s audit procedures or quality control procedures. As a result, investors may be deprived of the benefits of PCAOB inspections. The inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of auditors in China makes it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of our auditor’s audit procedures orand quality control procedures, adequacy of personnel and training, or sufficiency of resources, geographic reach, or experience as comparedit relates to auditors outside of China that are subject to PCAOB inspections. Investors may lose confidence in our reported financial information and procedures and the quality of our financial statements.audit.

Labor Contract Laws in China May Adversely Affect Our Results of Operations.

On June 29, 2007, the PRC government promulgated the Labor Contract Law of the PRC, or the Labor Contract Law, which became effective on January 1, 2008. The Labor Contract Law imposes greater liabilities on employers and significantly affects the cost of an employer’s decision to reduce its workforce. Further, it requires certain terminations be based on the mandatory requirement age. In the event we decide to significantly change or decrease our workforce, the Labor Contract Law could adversely affect our ability to enact such changes in a manner that is most advantageous to our business or in a timely and cost-effective manner, thus materially and adversely affecting our financial condition and results of operations.

Increases in labor costs in the PRC may adversely affect our business and our profitability.

The economy of China has been experiencing significant growth, leading to inflation and increased labor costs. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China, the consumer price index in China increased by 2.0%1.6%, 1.6%,2.1% and 2.1%2.9% in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2018,2019, respectively. China’s overall economy and the average wage in the PRC are expected to continue to grow. Future increases in China’s inflation and material increases in the cost of labor may materially and adversely affect our profitability and results of operations unless we are able pass on these costs to our students by increasing tuition.

Risks Relating to our Ordinary Shares and ADSs

The market price for the ADSs may be volatile.

The market price for our ADSs has fluctuated since we listed our ADSs. Since our ADSs became listed on the NASDAQ Global Market on July 7, 2015, the trading price of our ADSs has ranged from US$7.02 to US$88.92 per ADS, and the last reported trading price on September 20, 2019October 13, 2020 was US$63.7457.11 per ADS. The market price of the ADSs may be highly volatile and subject to wide fluctuations in response to factors including the following:

In addition, the securities markets in the United States, China and elsewhere have from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are not related to the operating performance of particular companies. These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of the ADSs.

Substantial future sales of our ADSs or the anticipation of future sales of our ADSs in the public market could cause the price of our ADSs to decline.

Sales of substantial amounts of our ADSs or ordinary shares in the public market, or the perception that these sales could occur, could cause the market price of our ADSs to decline. All of our outstanding ADSs are freely transferable without restriction or additional registration under the Securities Act and are available for sale, subject to certain restrictions. Sales of these shares into the market could cause the market price of our ADSs to decline.

We may need additional capital, and the sale of equity or debt securities would result in dilution to our shareholders and restrictions on our business and operations.

We believe that our current cash and cash equivalents and anticipated cash flow from operations will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash needs for more than the next twelve months. We may, however, require additional cash resources due to changed business conditions or other future developments. If our resources are insufficient to satisfy our cash requirements, we may seek to sell equity or debt securities or obtain a credit facility. The sale of equity securities could result in dilution to our shareholders. The incurrence of indebtedness would result in increased debt service obligations and could result in operating and financing covenants that would restrict our operations or our ability to pay dividends. Our ability to raise additional funds in the future is subject to a variety of uncertainties, including our future financial condition, results of operations and cash flows, general market conditions for capital-raising activities, and economic, political and other conditions in China and elsewhere. We cannot assure you that if we need cash financing it will be available in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, or if they adversely change their recommendations regarding our ADSs, the price of our ADSs and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for our ADSs depends in part on the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. We do not have any control over these analysts. If one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade us, the price of our ADSs would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause the price of our ADSs or trading volume to decline.

You may be subject to limitations on transfer of your ADSs.

Your ADSs are transferable on the books of the depositary. However, the depositary may close its transfer books at any time or from time to time when it deems necessary or advisable in connection with the performance of its duties, or at our reasonable written request. In addition, the depositary may refuse to deliver, transfer or register transfers of ADSs generally when our books or the books of the depositary are closed, or at any time if we or the depositary deem it necessary or advisable to do so in good faith, because of any requirement of law or of any government or governmental body or commission or securities exchange on which our ADSs are listed, or under any provision of the deposit agreement, or for any other reason.

We incur increased costs as a result of being a public company, particularly after we cease to qualify as an “emerging growth company.”

As a public company, we incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we did not incur as a private company. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as well as rules subsequently implemented by the SEC and the Nasdaq Global Market, imposes various requirements on the corporate governance practices of public companies. As a company with less than US$1.07 billion in revenue for our last fiscal year, we qualify as an “emerging growth company” pursuant to the JOBS Act.Act. An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified reduced reporting and other requirements that are otherwise applicable generally to public companies. These provisions include exemption from the auditor attestation requirement under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 in the assessment of the emerging growth company’s internal control over financial reporting.

Compliance with these rules and regulations has increased and will continue to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and has made and will continue to make some corporate activities more time-consuming and costly. After we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” we expect to incur significant expenses and devote substantial management effort toward ensuring compliance with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the other rules and regulations of the SEC. We will cease to qualify as an “emerging growth company” on the earliest of (i) the last day of the fiscal year in which we had US$1.07 billion or more in annual gross revenue, (ii) the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of our initial public offering, (iii) the date on which we have, during the previous three-year period, issued more than US$1.0 billion in non-convertible debt or (iv) the date on which we are deemed a “large accelerated filer” under the Exchange Act.Act.

In addition, we have incurred additional costs associated with our public company reporting requirements. It may also be more difficult for us to find qualified persons to serve on our board of directors or as executive officers. We expect these rules and regulations to increase our legal and financial compliance costs, but we cannot predict or estimate the additional costs or the timing of additional costs we may incur.

Shareholders of a public company often bring securities class action suits against the company following periods of instability in the market price of that company’s securities. If we were involved in a class action suit, it could divert a significant amount of our management’s attention and other resources from our business and operations, which could harm our results of operations and require us to incur significant expenses to defend the suit. Any such class action suit, whether or not successful, could harm our reputation and restrict our ability to raise capital in the future. In addition, if a claim is successfully made against us, we may be required to pay significant damages, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

If we cease to qualify as a foreign private issuer, we would be required to comply fully with the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act applicable to U.S. domestic issuers, and we would incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we do not incur as a foreign private issuer.

As a foreign private issuer, we are exempt from the rules under the Exchange Act prescribing the furnishing and content of proxy statements, and our officers, directors and principal shareholders will be exempt from the reporting and short-swing profit recovery provisions contained in Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we are not required under the Exchange Act to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S. domestic issuers, and are not required to disclose in our periodic reports all of the information that U.S. domestic issuers are required to disclose. If we do not qualify as a foreign private issuer in the future, we will be required to comply fully with the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act applicable to US domestic issuers, and we will incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we would not incur as a foreign private issuer.

Anti-takeover provisions in our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control.

Some provisions of our currently effective amended and restated memorandum and articles of association may discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of our company or management that shareholders may consider favorable, including, among other things, the following:

The depositary may give us a discretionary proxy to vote the ordinary shares represented by the ADSs.

The depositary will try, as far as practical, subject to the laws of the Cayman Islands and the provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, to vote or to have its agents vote the ordinary shares or other deposited securities (in person or by proxy) as you instruct. If we timely requested the depositary to solicit your instructions but no instructions are received by the depositary from an owner with respect to any of the deposited securities represented by the ADSs of that owner on or before the date established by the depositary for such purpose or the instructions fail to specify the manner in which the depositary is to vote, the depositary shall deem that owner to have instructed the depositary to give a discretionary proxy to a person designated by us with respect to such deposited securities, and the depositary shall give a discretionary proxy to a person designated by us to vote such deposited securities. However, no such instruction shall be deemed given and no such discretionary proxy shall be given with respect to any matter if we inform the depositary, we do not wish such proxy given, substantial opposition exists or the matter materially and adversely affects the rights of holders of the ordinary shares. The effect of this discretionary proxy is that if you do not give voting instructions, you cannot prevent the ordinary shares underlying your ADSs from being voted, except in the circumstances described above. This may make it more difficult for shareholders to influence the management of our company. Holders of our ordinary shares are not subject to this discretionary proxy.

You may not have the same voting rights as the holders of our ordinary shares and may not receive voting materials in time to be able to exercise your right to vote.

As a holder of our ADSs, you will only be able to exercise the voting rights with respect to the underlying ordinary shares in accordance with the provisions of the deposit agreement. Under the deposit agreement, you must vote by giving voting instructions to the depositary. In order to give you a reasonable opportunity to instruct the depositary as to the exercise of voting rights relating to deposited securities, if we request the depositary to act, we will give the depositary notice of any such meeting and details concerning the matters to be voted at least 30 business days in advance of the meeting date. However, there is no guarantee that you will receive voting materials in time to instruct the depositary to vote, and it is possible that you, or persons who hold their ADSs through brokers, dealers or other third-parties, will not have the opportunity to exercise a right to vote.

Upon receipt of notice of a shareholders meeting from us, the depositary will distribute to registered holders of ADSs a notice which contains, among other things, a statement as to the manner in which your voting instructions may be given, including an express indication that, subject to limited exceptions, such instructions may be given or deemed given to the depositary to give a discretionary proxy to a person designated by us if no instructions are received by the depositary from you on or before the response date established by the depositary.

You may not be able to participate in rights offerings and may experience dilution of your holdings as a result.

We may from time to time distribute rights to our shareholders, including rights to acquire our securities. Under the deposit agreement for the ADSs, the depositary will not offer those rights to ADS holders unless both the rights and the underlying securities to be distributed to ADS holders are either registered under the Securities Act,, or exempt from registration under the Securities Act with respect to all holders of ADSs. We are under no obligation to file a registration statement with respect to any such rights or underlying securities or to endeavor to cause such a registration statement to be declared effective. In addition, we may not be able to take advantage of any exemptions from registration under the Securities Act.Act. Accordingly, holders of our ADSs may be unable to participate in a rights offeringsright offering we make and may experience dilution in their holdings as a result.

You may not receive distributions on our ordinary shares or any value for them if such distribution is illegal or if any required government approval cannot be obtained in order to make such distribution available to you.

The depositary of our ADSs has agreed to pay to you the cash dividends or other distributions it or the custodian receives on ordinary shares or other deposited securities underlying our ADSs, after deducting its fees and expenses. You will receive these distributions in proportion to the number of ordinary shares your ADSs represent. However, the depositary is not responsible if it decides that it is unlawful or impractical to make a distribution available to any holders of ADSs. For example, it would be unlawful to make a distribution to a holder of ADSs if it consists of securities that require registration under the Securities Act but that are not properly registered or distributed under an applicable exemption from registration. In these cases, the depositary may determine not to distribute such property. We also have no obligation to take any other action to permit the distribution of ADSs, ordinary shares, rights or anything else to holders of ADSs. This means that you may not receive distributions we make on our ordinary shares or any value for them if it is illegal or impractical for us to make them available to you. These restrictions may cause a material decline in the value of our ADSs.

You will have limited ability to bring an action against us or against our directors and officers, or to enforce a judgment against us or them, because we are incorporated in the Cayman Islands, we conduct a majority of our operations in China, and the majority of our directors and officers reside outside the United States.

We are incorporated in the Cayman Islands and conduct our operations primarily in China. Substantially all of our assets are located outside the United States and the majority of our directors and officers reside outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for you to bring an action against us or against these individuals in the Cayman Islands or in China in the event that you believe your rights have been infringed under the applicable securities laws or otherwise. Even if you are successful in bringing an action of this kind, the laws of the Cayman Islands and of China may render you unable to enforce a judgment against our assets or the assets of our directors and officers.

The laws of the Cayman Islands may not provide our shareholders with benefits comparable to those provided to shareholders of corporations incorporated in the United States.

Our corporate affairs are governed by our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, by the Companies Law, Cap 22 (Law 3 of 1961, as consolidated and revised) of the Cayman Islands and by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The rights of shareholders to take action against our directors, actions by minority shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors to us under Cayman Islands law are to a large extent governed by the common law of the Cayman Islands. The common law in the Cayman Islands is derived in part from comparatively limited judicial precedent in the Cayman Islands and from English common law. Decisions of the Privy Council (which is the final Court of Appeal for British overseas territoriesOverseas Territories such as the Cayman Islands) are binding on a court in the Cayman Islands. Decisions of the English courts, and particularly the House of Lords and the Court of Appeal are generally of persuasive authority but are not binding in the courts of the Cayman Islands. The rights of our shareholders and the fiduciary responsibilities of our directors under Cayman Islands law are not as clearly established as they would be under statutes or judicial precedents in the United States. In particular, the Cayman Islands has a less developed body of securities laws relative to the United States. Therefore, our public shareholders may have more difficulty protecting their interests in the face of actions by our management, directors or controlling shareholders than would shareholders of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction in the United States.

Legislation enacted in the Cayman Islands as to Economic Substance may affect our operations.

Pursuant to the International Tax Cooperation (Economic Substance) Law, 2018 of the Cayman Islands (“Cayman ES Law”Law”) that came into force on January 1, 2019, a “relevant entity” is required to satisfy the economic substance test set out in the Cayman ES Law.  A “relevant entity” includes an exempted company incorporated in the Cayman Islands (such as the Company); however, it does not include an entity that is tax resident outside the Cayman Islands.  Accordingly, for so long as the Company is a tax resident outside the Cayman Islands, including in the U.S., it is not required to satisfy the economic substance test set out in the ES Law. If we ceased to be a tax resident outside the Cayman Islands,,and failed to satisfy the economic substance test set out in the Cayman ES Law, we may initially be subject to penalty in accordance with the Cayman ES Law.

We may be classified as a passive foreign investment company, which could result in adverse United States federal income tax consequence to U.S. holders of our ADSs or ordinary shares.

A non-United States corporation such as ourselves will be treated as a PFIC, as defined in Section 1297(a) of the Code, for United States federal income tax purposes for any taxable year if, applying applicable look-through rules, either:

For this purpose, passive income generally includes dividends, interest, royalties, and rents (other than certain royalties and rents derived in the active conduct of a trade or business and not derived from a related person).

If we are determined to be a PFIC for any taxable year (or portion thereof) that is included in the holding period of a U.S. taxpayer who holds our ordinary shares, the U.S. taxpayer may be subject to increased U.S. federal income tax liability and may be subject to additional reporting requirements.

Depending on the assets held for the production of passive income, it is possible that, for our 20192020 taxable year or for any subsequent year, more than 50% of our assets may be assets which produce passive income. We will make this determination following the end of any particular tax year. Although the law in this regard is unclear, we are treating Hailiang Management and its subsidiaries as being owned by us for United States federal income tax purposes, not only because we control their management decisions, but also because we are entitled to the economic benefits associated with Hailiang Management and its subsidiaries, and as a result, we are treating Hailiang Management as our wholly-owned subsidiary for U.S. federal income tax purposes. For purposes of the PFIC analysis, in general, according to Internal Revenue Code Section 1297(c), a non-U.S. corporation is deemed to own its pro rata share of the gross income and assets of any entity in which it is considered to own at least 25% of the equity by value. Although we do not technically own any stock in Hailiang Management, because of our control of management decisions of Hailiang Management, our entitlement to economic benefits associated with Hailiang Management, and the inclusion of Hailiang Management as part of the consolidated group, there is a risk that our interest in Hailiang Management might be considered a deemed stock interest. Therefore, the income and assets of Hailiang Management and its subsidiaries should be included in the determination of whether or not we are a PFIC in any taxable year. It is important to emphasize that there is little to no guidance other than the statute itself (Internal Revenue Code Section1297(c)) and analogous portions of the code, treasury regulations and other accepted authorities and as such it is possible for the IRS to challenge the argument that the look through rule would apply in this case, especially since the statute explicitly says “stock.” Thus, if we are not treated as owning Hailiang Management and its subsidiaries for United States federal income tax purposes, we would likely be treated as a PFIC.

The determination of whether we are or will become a PFIC for any taxable year may depend in part upon the value of our goodwill and other unbooked intangibles not reflected on our balance sheet (which may be determined based upon the market value of our ADSs or ordinary shares from time to time). A material decline in the trading price of our ADSs relative to their current trading price may result in us becoming a PFIC. If we are a PFIC for any taxable year for which a U.S. holder holds our ADSs or ordinary shares, certain adverse United States federal income tax consequences could apply to such U.S. holders. See “Item 10. Additional Information—E. Taxation—United States Federal Income Taxation—Passive Foreign Investment Company.”

Item 4. INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY

A. History and Development of the Company

We are an exempted company with limited liability incorporated in the Cayman Islands. We conduct our business through our subsidiaries and affiliated entities in China. As of June 30, 2019,2020, we owned and operated 9nine affiliated schools offering K-12 educational services in Zhuji, Zhejiang province and Zhenjiang, Jiangsu province of China, and managed and operated, but did not own or sponsor, an additional 2728 private and public schools that offer K-12 educational services in the Jiangxi, Hubei, Shandong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces of China. In September 2020, we started operating or acquired four additional affiliated schools, namely, Lanzhou Hailiang Experimental School, Wuhu Hailiang Experimental School, Hailiang Overseas Chinese School and Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School, which are located in Gansu, Anhui and Zhejiang Provinces of China, increasing our affiliated schools from nine as of June 30, 2020 to 13 as of the date of this annual report. Moreover, there are two additional schools, tentatively named Ninghai Public School and Xianghu Public School which are to be sponsored by us, are under construction. These two schools are located in Zhejiang Province of China, and are expected to start operating in the fall of 2021.

We started our operations in 1995 when Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language School, our first private school, was founded by Mr. Feng. Our second private school, Hailiang Experimental High School, was founded by Mr. Feng and Mr. Zhanghuan Meng in 2001. At the time of itsHailiang Experimental High School’s founding, Mr. Feng owned 60% of the equity interest in the school and Mr. Zhanghuan Meng held the remaining equity interest in the school. In November 2011, Mr. Feng purchased the remaining 40% equity interest in Hailiang Experimental High School from Mr. Zhanghuan Meng and became the sole sponsor of Hailiang Experimental High School. Our third private school, Tianma Experimental School, was jointly acquired by Mr. Feng and Mr. Zhanghuan Meng in July 2009. At the time of the acquisition, Mr. Feng and Mr. Zhanghuan Meng beneficially owned 80% and 20% of the equity interest in the school, respectively. In November 2011, Mr. Feng acquired the 20% equity interest in the school from Mr. Zhanghuan Meng and became the sole sponsor of Tianma Experimental School.

Between 2011 and 2013, we underwent a corporate restructuring in contemplation of our initial public offering. In particular:

In October 2014, Mr. Feng transferred his 100% interest in Brilliant One Development Limited, one of the four BVI companies that Mr. Feng had previously transferred his shares of Hailiang Inc. to in December 2011, to Hailiang International Investment (HK) Limited, a company wholly owned by Hailiang Group. Hailiang Group is controlled by Mr. Feng.

Foreign ownership in educational services is subject to significant regulations in China. The PRC government regulates the provision of educational services through strict licensing requirements. In particular, PRC laws and regulations currently prohibit foreign ownership of companies and institutions providing compulsory educational services at primary and middle school levels, and restrict foreign investment in educational services businesses at the high school level. We are a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands. Our PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting, is a foreign-owned enterprise and is currently ineligible to apply for and hold licenses to operate, or otherwise own equity interests in, our schools with K-12 educational programs, either for-profit or not-for-profit. Due to these restrictions, we, through our PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting, have initially entered into a series of contractual arrangements prior to our initial public offering, with (i) our affiliated entities, consisting of Hailiang Management and the schools which Hailiang Management controls and holds, and (ii) the shareholder of Hailiang Management, Mr. Feng, who is also our founder, which enable us to:

We do not have any equity interest in our affiliated entities. However, as a result of these contractual arrangements, we control our affiliated entities through our PRC subsidiary, Hailiang Consulting. We have consolidated the results of our affiliated entities in our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report on Form 20-F in accordance with IFRSs.

On June 30, 2017, Hailiang Consulting, Hailiang Management and Mr. Feng entered into a series of amended and restated contractual arrangements (collectively, the “First Amended and Restated Contractual Arrangements”). The First Amended and Restated Contractual Arrangements added new affiliated entities of Hailiang Management and allowed for potential contractual arrangements, if any and when applicable, to be entered into by controlled affiliate(s) of Hailiang Consulting.

On February 23, 2018, Hailiang Management, Hailiang Consulting, Mr. Feng and Beize Group entered into a series of contractual arrangements (the “Second Amended and Restated Contractual Arrangements”), including the Second Amended and Restated Call Option Agreement, Second Amended and Restated Powers of Attorney, Second Amended and Restated Consulting Services Agreement and Second Amended and Restated Equity Pledge Agreement.

We have been advised by AllBright Law Offices, our PRC legal counsel, that:

We have been advised by our PRC legal counsel, however, that there are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of PRC laws and regulations. Accordingly, PRC regulatory authorities may in the future take a view that is contrary to the opinion of our PRC legal counsel. We have been further advised by our PRC legal counsel that if the PRC government finds that the contractual arrangements and agreements that establish the structure for operating our educational services business in China do not comply with relevant PRC government restrictions on foreign investment in the educational services industry, we could be subject to severe penalties, including being prohibited from continuing operations. For a detailed description of the risks associated with our corporate structure, see “Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Corporate Structure” and “Item“Item 3. Key Information—D. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Doing Business in China.”

On July 6, 2015, we completed the initial public offering of 2,858,000 ADSs. On July 7, 2015, we listed our ADSs on the NASDAQ Global Market under the symbol “HLG.”

On December 22, 2017, we filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form F-3 for a shelf registration offering of Ordinary Shares and warrants in the aggregate amount of $100,000,000 (the “Shelf Offering”), which was declared effective on January 5, 2018. As of June 30, 2019,2020, and the date of this annual report on Form 20-F, we have not completed any draw down ofunder the Shelf Offering.

In September 2015, Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language School and selected programs from Tianma Experimental School and Hailiang Experimental High School relocated to the Hailiang Education Park. Tianma Experimental School’s and Hailiang Experimental High School’s remaining programs continue to operate on their existing respective campuses. As of June 30, 2019,2020, our affiliated schools and subsidiaries operatedoperating in Hailiang Education Park include Hailiang Primary School, Hailiang Junior Middle School, Hailiang Senior Middle School, Hailiang Foreign Language School, Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High, Hailiang After-school, Zhuji Hailiang Logistics, Hailiang Sports and Zhuji Nianxin Lake Hotel. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Hailiang Education Park.”

In November 2016 and February 2017, certain schools were separated from Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language School and Zhuji Private High School (currently named Hailiang Experimental High School) and established as separate legal entities, with all of their equity interests held by Hailiang Management. Hailiang International Kindergarten, Hailiang Primary School, Hailiang Junior Middle School and Hailiang Senior Middle School became independent from Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language School, and Hailiang High School of Art became independent from Hailiang Experimental High School. We remained owners of 100% of the equity interest in each of the aforementioned schools by the end of 2017 fiscal year end.

On February 28, 2018, we sold the sponsorship and 100% equity interest of Hailiang Kindergarten to Hangzhou Hailiang Preschool Education Group Co., Ltd. (“Hailiang Preschool”), a related party ultimately controlled by Mr. Feng, for a consideration of RMB20.0 million pursuant to a purchase agreement. An independent third-party appraisal entity provided an appraisal opinion valuing the Hailiang Kindergarten at RMB20.0 million. The Hailiang Kindergarten was operating at a loss in recent years.

On February 28, 2018, we sold all the assets and liabilities related to the kindergarten business unit of Tianma Experimental School (“Tianma Kindergarten”) to Zhuji Hailiang Preschool Education Investment Co., Ltd., a related party ultimately controlled by Mr. Feng, for a consideration of RMB1.7 million pursuant to an asset restructuring agreement. An independent third-party appraisal entity provided an appraisal opinion valuing the Tianma Kindergarten at RMB1.7 million.

As a result, Hailiang Kindergarten and Tianma Kindergarten are no longer part of our operation.

We initially acquired right to operate Chuzhou Hailiang Foreign Language School on July 19, 2017. Pursuant to an amendment to the operator agreement in June, 2018, we transferred our operating right to Chuzhou Zhengxu Education Information Consulting Co., Ltd., a subsidiary controlled by Hailiang Group, for a consideration of RMB1.8 million (the “Chuzhou School Transfer Transaction”) based upon the appraised value determined by an independent third-party evaluator. The Chuzhou School Transfer Transaction was conducted based on our business assessment in response to current market conditions.

On August 28, 2018, Hailiang Management incorporated Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High as the first for-profit school of our Group. As of June 30, 2019, 1,4092020, 1,467 students are enrolled in Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High.

On September 28, 2018, we entered into an Investment Cooperation Agreement to acquire a 51% controlling interest in Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art from three founders of the School. The transaction was completed on October 31, 2018. As of June 30, 2019,2020, Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art’s student body consists of 127 students and 30 faculty members.439 students. It offers various art education programs including but not limited to painting, music and media, with a variety of specialized modules and seminars.

On July 16, 2019, we signed a cooperation agreement with the People's Government of Chengguan District, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province. We willProvince, pursuant to which, it’s free for us to lease part of the existing land, facilities, equipment and other assets of an existingthat were previously used by a public school to sponsor a new school, which will provideprovides primary and middle school courses of basic education program. This new school is expected to openhas opened in September 2020 with an enrollment capacity up to approximately 2,400 students.2020.

InOn December 28, 2019, Hailiang Group signed a cooperative school operating agreement with the fiscal year endedWuhu Municipal People's Government of Anhui Province to establish and operate a new affiliated school named Wuhu Hailiang Experimental School, which provides high school programs. The affiliated school has commenced operation in September 2020.

On April 15, 2020, Hailiang management signed a cooperative school operating agreement with Zhejiang Juxian Education Technology Co., Ltd. to establish and operate a new school named Hailiang Overseas Chinese School. Juxian Technology will lease the land, facilities, equipment and other assets for free to sponsor the affiliated school by August 31, 2026. Hailiang Overseas Chinese School provides primary and middle school programs. The school has commenced operation in September 2020. Additionally, the school plans to build a new site in the next few years, which will increase the school’s capacity.

On April 29, 2020, we established a wholly owned subsidiary, Hailiang International Education Group Pte. Ltd. (“HIEG”), our international education headquarter located in Singapore, to promote our K-12 educational services (including education training and online education, study trip, overseas study consulting services), create a cooperative operations system between our domestic and international headquarters, and provide high quality and diversified service offerings to improve the Company's strategic global education portfolio.

On July 15, 2020, we entered into a sponsorship transfer agreement with Hailiang Investment to acquire 100% sponsorship of Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School, with a total consideration of RMB34.0 million (approximately US$4.8 million). The school is located in Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province. As of June 30, 2019, we continued to vigorously implement our asset-light model where instead of acquiring ownership in and sponsoring schools, we would be providing education and management services as well as other related services to schools sponsored by affiliated third parties. Additionally, we have established several new subsidiaries in2020, the PRC to facilitate the provisions of various types of services to carry out our asset-light strategic approach. Through 2017 Group Strategic Cooperation Agreement and collaboration with governments, as of the end of fiscal year 2019, we have managed and operatedschool has an aggregate of 27 private598 enrolled students. On September 16, 2020, we obtained the relevant administrative approval and public schools, where we receive education and management service fees for providing a mixed array of services including but not limitedcompleted all the required process to branding, academic management, basic and international education resources, school culture, admission, finance, human resources, procurement, IT, internal audit, property and logistics management services. We may provide additional services inobtain the future, as needed, to our managed schools.

Pursuant to our collaboration with Hailiang Group and Hailiang Investment, we are now able to accelerate the expansion of our Company across China and improve the business prospectssponsorship of the Company, without the needschool. The transaction will be accounted for as a large amount of capital.business combination between entities under common control.

Our principal executive offices are located at No. 1508 Binsheng Road, Binjiang District, Hangzhou City, Zhejiang Province, 310051, People’s Republic of China. Our telephone number at this address is +86-571-5812-1974 and our fax number is +86-571-5812-1974. Our registered office in the Cayman Islands is located at the offices of Conyers Trust Company (Cayman) Limited, Cricket Square, Hutchins Drive, PO Box 2681, Grand Cayman, KY1-1111, Cayman Islands. Investors should submit any inquiries to the address and telephone number of our principal executive offices. Our website is http://www.hailiangeducation.com. The information contained on our website is not a part of this annual report on Form 20-F. Our agent for service of process in the United States is Corporation Service Company, 1180 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 210, New York, New York 10036-8401.

For information regarding our principal capital expenditures, see “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources—Capital Expenditures.”

B. Business Overview

Overview

We are an education and management services provider of primary, middle, and high schools in the PRC, offering K-12 educational service, education and management service, and ancillary education services, such as educational training service, study trip service, overseas consulting service. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—B. Business Overview—Ancillary Education Services.”

K-12 educational service consists of academic programs, after-school enrichment services, accommodations, meals, transportation services and study materials, which are offered through our affiliated schools and wholly owned service companies, such as Zhuji Hailiang Logistics, Hailiang Mingxin and Hailiang After-school.As of June 30, 2019,2020, we operate and manage an aggregate of nine affiliated schools in the PRC that we own or sponsor through our PRC affiliated entities (the “affiliated schools”), and we provide operational, supporting, or management services to, but do not own or sponsorentities. As of June 30, 2020, an additional 27 schools (the “managed schools”). Our Cayman Islands holding company does not have any substantive operations other than indirectly controlling Hailiang Management, our affiliated entity, which controls and holds our schools through certain contractual arrangements.

We generate revenue from operating and sponsoringaggregate of 23,716 students were enrolled in our affiliated schools. As of June 30, 2019,2020, we employ an aggregate of 22,819 students were enrolled in our nine affiliated schools, including an aggregate of 2,0622,153 teachers and educational staff. We are dedicated to hiring teachers and educational staff who hold the required academic credentials, are dedicated and active professionals in their field, and are committed to improving their students’ academic performance. In September 2020, we started operating four additional affiliated schools across Gansu, Anhui and Zhejiang Provinces of China, namely Lanzhou Hailiang Experimental School, Wuhu Hailiang Experimental School, Hailiang Overseas Chinese School and Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School, increasing our affiliated schools from nine as of June 30, 2020 to 13 as of the date of this annual report. Moreover, there are two additional schools, tentatively named Ninghai Public School and Xianghu Public School which are to be sponsored by us, are under construction. These two schools are located in Zhejiang Province of China, and are expected to start operating in the fall of 2021.

Our Cayman Islands holding company does not have any substantive operations other than indirectly controlling Hailiang Management, our affiliated entity, which controls and holds our schools through certain contractual arrangements.

We offer our basic educational program and international program at the primary school, middle school and high school levels, which covers grades one to nine, the compulsory education, and grades ten to twelve. Our basic educational program offers curricula with courses both mandated by the PRC regulatory authorities and developed through internal research and development.research. Our international program offers curricula mandated by the PRC regulatory authorities with a focus on preparing students to study abroad. As most of the students in our international program plan to study abroad after they graduate from our middle school and high school programs, we have designed our international program to specifically address the linguistic and academic needs of these students. In addition, we provide courses designed to help students become eligible to U.S, U.K.U.S., UK and Australian undergraduate programs, including as A-levels courses for U.K. universities, SAT courses for U.S. universities, or VCE courses for AustraliaAustralian universities. We have steadily developed our international program within our affiliated schools system from 2,825 students as of June 30, 2017, 3,860 students as of June 30, 2018, and 4,553 students as of June 30, 2019.

To diversify our operation and business model, we have adopted the asset-light model where we operate and manage K-12 schools pursuant2019, to consulting and management agreements, or act as these schools’ sponsor without acquiring ownership of land and facilities in such schools. This approach has allowed us to operate a highly scalable business model and launch schools with significantly lower upfront capital expenditures. As such, we now also generate revenues from management fees and operation service fees pursuant to stand-alone agreements entered into by and among us, any relevant wholly owned subsidiaries in the PRC, and the specific school. We operated and managed an aggregate of 16 schools and 27 schools4,859 students as of June 30, 2018 and 2019 respectively. We expect to continue to increase the number of schools that we operate, manage but not own or sponsor. As of June 30, 2019, across our 27 managed schools, we had an aggregate number of approximately 38,290 students. For more detailed information on both our managed schools and our asset-light model, refer to “Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview –Our Schools and Programs,” and “Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview – Asset- Light Model.”2020.

We are an educational service provider of private primary, middle and high schools in China. Hailiang Senior Middle School was recognized as Tier 2 Special Model School in Zhejiang province for the 2016/2017 school year. Both Hailiang Senior Middle School and Hailiang Experimental High School were recognized as “Key Schools” (重点学校) and both of Hailiang Junior Middle School and Tianma Experimental School were recognized as “Model Schools” (示范学校) by Zhejiang’s Department of Education in recognition of a number of factors, including the quality of education, course design, teacher qualifications and feedback from parents. In 2017/2018 school year, Hailiang Experimental High School was recognized as “Digital Campus Model School” (浙江省数学校园示范学校) by Zhejiang’s Department of Education in recognition of convergence of information technology and education. In school year 2017/2018, Hailiang Education received multiple awards including "2017 Education Group Influencer" (2017年度影响力教育集团) by Tencent Education Annual Billboard, "2017 Top Brand of China's Education Group Award" (2017中国品牌实力教育集团) by Sina Education, "Annual Most Value Investment Award" by the China Financial Summit Winter Forum, and "Top 10 Innovative Brand in China" (中国十大创新品牌) awarded jointly by China International Business magazine and other authorized institutions. In the 2018/2019 school year, we received multiple awards including, among others, “2018 Top 100 Influential Brand in China” (2018中国品牌影响力100强) by China Enterprise News, “2018 Annual Brand of China’s Education Group Award” (2018年度中国教育品牌) by the Xinhua Education Forum, "2018 Annual Brand Award" (2018年度品牌奖) by the China Financial Summit Winter Forum, “Best Education Investment Performance of China: Most Influential Education Institute Award” (中国最佳教育投资表现: 2018年度最具影响力教育机构) by the First Education Industry Investor’s Day held by i-EDU, and “Top 100 China’s International Digital Schools Award” (中国国际数码学校100强) by Tencent Education.

With respect to our international academic programs,program, we have continued to develop new courses with our partners or collaborators to strengthen the competitiveness of the programs offered by our affiliated schools. These programs are intended to provide an efficient international education pathway to students who wish to study abroad for their undergraduate degrees. On February 25, 2017, Hailiang Foreign Language School, Hailiang Education and Thomas Carr College in Australia entered into a collaboration agreement (“TCC Agreement”) to deliver the Victorian Certificate of Education (“VCE”) program, as authorized by the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (“VCAA”), in addition to Chinese high school curriculums for students aiming at studying in AustraliaAustralian higher education institutions. On September 8, 2017, Hailiang Foreign Language School and ELS American Education Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (“ELS”) entered into a cooperation agreement in order to supplement and incorporate the EAP program (English for Academic Purpose) into Hailiang’s existing curricula. With certificates issued by ELS, students can apply for community colleges and universities that recognize language certificates issued by ELS in the United States without completing IELTS/TOEFL examinations.

On September 23, 2017, andwe entered into a cooperation agreement, as further supplemented on September 18, 2018, we entered into a cooperation agreement with Pate’s Grammar School, a premier co-ed state schools in the UK, to develop new curriculum based on the same principles of educational philosophy that Pate’s Grammar School and we shared. Accordingly, in September 2018, we commenced a new class in Hailiang Foreign Language School based on Pate’s curriculum to provide our Zhuji students with a full British education. In June 2018, Hailiang Foreign Language School became a candidate school for the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme, or IB PYP, an educational program for students aged three to twelve managed by the International Baccalaureate Organization, or IBO, an international educational foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. Hailiang Foreign Language School is preparing for the IB PYP Consultation Visit, the second phase of authorization, which will be held by the IBO in December 2020. In May 2019, Hailiang Foreign Language School became a candidate school for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme, or IB DP, a two-year educational program for students aged between sixteen to nineteen and managed by the International Baccalaureate.IBO. As of June 2020, Hailiang Foreign Language School has completed the IB DP Consultation Visit, the second phase of authorization, held by the IBO. Hailiang Foreign Language School is expected to complete the final phase in 2021. In June 2019, Hailiang Foreign Language School entered into an Education Cooperation Agreement with Canada Kent School located in Ontario, Canada to jointly offer Canadian high school courses. Accordingly, a “2+1” model is applied, in which students will be studying at Hailiang Education campus for 2 years and at Canada Kent School for 1 year, Thethe high school diploma issued by Canada Kent School will also be granted to the students participating in this course. In May 2020, we started enrolling students’ enrollment activities after the cooperation. In June 2019, Hailiang Foreign Language School also entered into an Education Cooperation Agreement with Australia Deakin University to open preparatory programs in our school. In March 2020, Hailiang Foreign Language School was authorized by the American College Board to be an American Advanced Placement Program (“AP”) accredited school (CEEB code 694166), and included in the list of high schools offering AP courses. Hailiang Foreign Language School started to offer AP courses in September 2020.

We provide education and management services to schools that we do not own or sponsor (“managed schools”), including but not limited to branding, academic management, basic and international education resources, school culture, admission, finance, human resources, procurement, IT, internal audit, property and logistics management services. We may provide additional services in the future, as needed, to our managed schools. As of June 30, 2020, we provided education and management services to 28 managed schools. For more detailed information on both our affiliated schools and our managed schools, refer tosee “Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview –Our Schools and Programs.”–Services Provided to Our Managed Schools”.

We have experienced significant growth in our business. Our total revenue increased by 37.0% to RMB1,169.3 million in the 2018 fiscal year, and by 28.2% to RMB1,499.0 million (approximately US$218.4 million) in the 2019 fiscal year. These increases wereyear, primarily due to the growth in revenue from K-12 educational services and the expansion of other ancillary services to our students such as educational training and study trips. The increaseOur total revenue slightly decreased by 1.1% to RMB1,482.6 million (approximately US$209.8 million) in the 2020 fiscal year. Since early 2020, the global outbreak of COVID-19 has impacted our business. Revenue from study trips decreased due to restrictions on travel domestically and internationally. Revenue from accommodation and transportation services decreased due to the suspension of physical classes from February to April 2020 during a nationwide lockdown in China. Revenue from K-12 educational services for high school level of RMB32.3 million (approximately US$4.6 million) was deferred to the next fiscal year because of the delay of school year end, and revenue from K-12 educational services was driven by an increase infor middle and primary school were not significantly impacted. Revenue from educational training services decreased due to the average tuition charged per studentliquidation of Haibo Education and the numbersuspension of students enrolled in our international program. In particular, in line with our strategy to increase enrollment in our international program, we have increasedonsite training courses during the proportion of revenue derived from students enrolled in our international program from 22.9% of revenue from K-12 educational services in the 2017 fiscal year, 30.1% of revenue from K-12 educational services in the 2018 fiscal year, and to 33.8% of revenue from K-12 educational services in the 2019 fiscal year. pandemic period.

Our gross profit increased by 78.1% to RMB364.7 million in the 2018 fiscal year, and increased by 29.4% to RMB472.1 million (approximately US$68.8 million) in the 2019 fiscal year. Our net profit increased by 37.7% to RMB230.9 million in the 2018 fiscal year, and increased by 36.8%5.8% to RMB315.8RMB499.4 million (approximately US$46.070.7 million) in the 2020 fiscal year.

Our net profit attributable to our shareholders increased by 31.8% to RMB293.4 million in the 2019 fiscal year, and increased by 26.4% to RMB370.8 million (approximately US$52.5 million) in the 2020 fiscal year.

Asset-Light Model

Prior to fiscal year ended June 30, 2018, we have provided educational services in the PRC through the traditional model of owning and having legal sponsorship in each of the schools we launched or acquired. Beginning in 2017 and predominantly in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2018, we have also made a strategic shift to develop our asset-light expansion strategy, where we operate and manage K-12 schools pursuant to consulting and management agreements, or act as these schools’ sponsor without acquiring ownership of land and facilities in such schools.

With this asset-light approach, we are able to sponsor additional schools without having to own or acquire the land and facilities of such schools. By leasing land and facilities to sponsor additional schools, we can avoid significant capital expenditure. While considering the adoption of IFRS 16 commencing July 1, 2019, we are required to recognize a right-of-use asset representing the right to use the leased campuses and a lease liability representing the obligation to make lease payments. See “Item 4. Information on the Company—D. Property, Plants and Equipment” for more information.

By entering into consulting and management agreements with affiliated schools, we provide education and management services to these schools in exchange for services fees. Services we provide include, but are not limited to branding, academic management, basic and international education resources, school culture, admission, finance, human resources, procurement, IT, internal audit, property and logistics management services. To expedite the asset-light model, we entered into a cooperation agreement, the 2017 Group Strategic Cooperation Agreement, with our related parties, Hailiang Group and Hailiang Investment. Both Hailiang Group and Hailiang Investment plan to establish additional schools through construction, merger and acquisition, and cooperation with third-parties. Pursuant to the 2017 Group Strategic Cooperation Agreement, all of these schools are expected to be operated through entrusted management and we have a priority right to operate and manage such schools. This cooperation affords us an opportunityIn addition, we also cooperate with governments and third parties to operate schools acquired or owned by Hailiang Group or Hailiang Investment. Pursuant to 2017 Group Strategic Cooperation and cooperation with local governments, we operated and managed 27 schools, which are currently in operation and have students actively enrolled as of the date of this annual report. We providedprovide education and management services to both public and private schools. As of June 30, 2020, we operated and managed 28 schools located in exchange for services fees including but not limited to branding, academic management, basicthe Jiangxi, Hubei, Shandong, Jiangsu and international education resources, school culture, admission, finance, human resources, procurement, IT, internal audit, property and logistics management services.Zhejiang provinces, with a total of 42,628 enrolled students. We may provide additional services in the future, as needed, to our managed schools. As of June 30, 2019, our managed schools were located in Jiangxi, Hubei, Shandong, and Zhejiang Province, and consisted of 38,290 students enrolled in our managed schools. Such cooperation provides us with a brand-new business expansion model, which will enhance the asset-light approach, to accelerate the expansion of our operations across China, and greatly improve our business outreach. With the asset-light approach, we can also sponsor additional schools without having to own or acquire the land and facilities of such schools. For Zhenjiang Jianghe High School of Art, we leased approximately 30,000 square meters from Zhenjiang Municipal Bureau of Land and Resources instead of acquiring the underlying land and facilities. By leasing land and facilities to sponsor additional schools, we can avoid significant capital expenditure. While considering the adoption of IFRS 16 commencing July 1, 2019, we are expected to recognize a right-of-use asset representing the right to use the leased campuses and a lease liability representing the obligation to make lease payments. See “Item 5. Operating and Financial Review and Prospects—B. Liquidity and Capital Resources—Capital Expenditures—Recent Accounting Pronouncements—IFRS 16 Leases” for more information.

We have established several subsidiaries in the PRC to facilitate our strategic asset-light strategic approach in acquiring rights to operate and manage new schools, and providing education and management services.

On June 20, 2017, Ningbo Haoliang was incorporated as Hailiang Consulting’s wholly-owned subsidiariessubsidiary to provide consulting and management services. In January 2018, Ningbo Haoliang acquired a 56% equity interests in Haibo Logistics, a logistic services company. On September 26, 2018, Zhuji Hailiang Logistics and Zhuji Hailiang Supply were incorporated as Ningbo Hailiang’s wholly-owned subsidiaries to provide logistic services and procurement services respectively for affiliated and managed schools.respectively.

Our Schools and Programs

We have experienced significant growth since 1995. Since the commencement of operation of our first Hailiang school in 1995, an aggregate number of more than 40,000 students have graduated from our high school programs offered at our affiliated schools. As of June 30, 2019,2020, we operateoperated and manage 9managed nine affiliated schools in the PRC that we own or sponsor through our PRC affiliated entities (the “affiliated schools”). Currently,As of September 2020, we also provide educationhave four new affiliated schools started operating, and management services to ananother two additional 27 managed schools were in the PRC that we do not own or sponsor (the “managed schools”) either directly or through our affiliated entities in the PRC.

Eight of our nine affiliated schools are located in Zhuji City, Zhejiang Province, with one affiliated school in Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province. 27 managed schools are located in Nanchang City, Yichun City, Jingdezhen City, Xinchang City, Xiantao City, Feicheng City, Hangzhou City, Jinhua City and Zhuji City. Nanchang Baishu Technology, our related party controlled by Hailiang Investment, is the sponsor or operator of “15 Baishu Schools” in Jiangxi Province; Hailiang Investment, our related party, is the sponsor of Xinchang Nanrui Experimental School and Jinhua Hailiang Foreign Language School; Xiantao Tiancheng Education Investment Co, Ltd. our related party controlled by Hailiang Investment, is the sponsor of Xiantao No.1 Middle School; Feicheng Hailiang Education Investment Co., Ltd. our related party, is the sponsor of Feicheng Hailiang Foreign Language School; Hangzhou Hailiang Preschool Education Group Co., Ltd. and its subsidiaries, related party controlled by Hailiang Group, is the sponsor of Hailiang Kindergarten, Zhuji Hailiang Jinshan Kindergarten and Tianma Kindergarten; Hangzhou Chunhui Primary School, Hangzhou Xixing Middle School, Xiaoshan District Wenyan Primary School, Xiaoshan District Wenyan No. 2 Primary School and Xiaoshan District Wenyan Middle School are the public schools in Hangzhou, which are located in Binjiang District or Xiaoshan District;.

construction. As of June 30, 2019,2020, across our affiliated schools, we had an aggregate number of 22,81923,716 students, including 4,445 students in primary school, 5,708 students in middle school, 8,113 students in high school offor our basic educational program, 4,536 students in the primary school program, 6,014 students in the middle school program, 8,307 students in the high school program, and 4,5534,859 students in our international program. Our schools employed an aggregate number of 2,0622,153 teachers and educational staff. We have experienced significant growth since 1995, as the national and local governments in the PRC have adopted various policies to encourage and support the growth of private K-12 education in China. Since the commencement of operation of our first Hailiang school in 1995, an aggregate number of more than 30,000 students have graduated from high schools in our affiliated schools.

The following table sets forth the basic information of our nine currently in operation affiliated schoolsstaff as of June 30, 2019:2020.

The following table sets forth the numbers of students, classes and teachers and educational staff ofFor our affiliated schools, aswe generally require our students to board at our schools, and substantially all of June 30, 2017, 2018our students live in our boarding facilities. We provide student dormitory and 2019.cafeteria services in our schools. Each student dormitory building houses 144 to 1,440 students. Students who want to commute, rather than board at our schools, are reviewed and admitted on a case-by-case basis. Generally, we only accept non-boarding applications from students that can demonstrate a feasible commuting arrangement that would not affect their ability to attend our school programs in any material way. We charge students basic accommodation fees, and accommodation standard upgrade fees generally range from RMB3,000 to RMB4,000 per school year, for students who wish to upgrade their dormitory accommodation. Cafeterias in our schools offer our student breakfast, lunch and dinner during the time our students are boarding at schools. Apart from cafeteria staff, we also engaged dietitians to guarantee a balanced and nutritious diets to our students. At each of our cafeterias we also adopt rigorous management and quality control beginning from raw materials procurement to dishes cooking and offering. Our boarding facilities provide an attractive option to parents who want their children to experience living outside the home before attending college in China or overseas.

Each of our current affiliated schools is located within Zhuji City, Zhejiang Province or Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province.We also aim to provide modern, comprehensive, and immersive learning and teaching facilities. As of June 30, 2019,2020, our affiliated schools in aggregate had over 878916 multi-media classrooms, all with Wi-Fi-coverage,Wi-Fi coverage, over 2,4592,347 computers and tablet computers, 11 sports fields and approximately 4,6724,751 student dormitory rooms. On April 9, 2018, both the library and shooting range in Hailiang Education Park opened. The library covers a gross floor area of approximately 2,000 square meters, which can accommodate a total number of approximately 300,000 books. The shooting range covers a gross floor area of approximately 2,256 square meters with 3 stadiums of 10-meter, 25-meter and 50-meter respectively. In November 2018, we opened the fencing hall was put into use, which is located in Hailiang Education Park which covers a site area of approximately 1,200 square meters (13,000 square feet) with 9 fencing lines.

ForThe following table sets forth the basic information of our affiliated schools we generally require allcurrently in operation as of June 30, 2020:

The following table sets forth the numbers of students, classes and teachers and educational staff of our students to board at ouraffiliated schools as of June 30, 2018, 2019 and substantially all of our students are housed in our boarding facilities. Each student dormitory building houses 144 to 1,032 students. Students that want to commute, rather than board at our schools, are reviewed and admitted on a case-by-case basis. Generally, we only accept non-boarding applications from students that can demonstrate a feasible commuting arrangement that would not affect their ability to attend our school programs in any material way. The basic boarding fees are included in the tuition fees, and additional boarding fees generally range from RMB3,000 to RMB4,000 per school year. The final tuition fee depends among other factors, including the schools and educational programs that the students are enrolled in, the level of the accommodation chosen by the students, and students’ grade. A majority of our boarding students are from areas outside of Zhuji. Our boarding facilities provide an attractive option to parents who want their children to experience living outside the home before attending college in China or overseas.2020.

Our affiliated schools’ systemschools are managed by a five-member committee, under the supervision of our board of directors. The committee consists of a principal in charge of the overall school operation and management, a president responsible for businesssenior management and three vice presidents responsible for daily managementprincipals of teaching. The committee meetseach school. They meet on a monthly basis. The meeting agenda consists ofregular basis to discuss major policy decisions, personnel changes, student recruitment, and operation adjustments; other meetings may be held from time to time to discuss safety, human resource, IT, and student management. We believe effective and timely exchange of knowledge and expertise among the committee membersthem ensures consistent quality in our educational services and efficient management of schools.

Additionally, as of June 30, 2020, we provided education and management services to 28 managed schools in the PRC that we did not own or sponsor the managed schools either directly or through our affiliated entities in the PRC. For more detailed information on our managed schools, see “Item 4. Information on the Company – B. Business Overview –Services Provided to Our Managed Schools.”

Academic Programs

Students enrolled in our affiliated schools can choose between enrolling in our basic educational program and international program. The key differences between our basic educational programs and our international program are as follows:

The tuition fee depends among a number of factors, including the schools and educational programs that the students are enrolled in, the level of the accommodation chosen by the students, and the students’ grade level.

As for managed schools, since we provide education and management services to these schools, such as educational, managerial, logistics, supporting and operational services, and the academic programs offered at these schools are not part of our products and hence, not ultimately determined by us, we have not included programs offered at our managed schools hereunder.

Basic educational program

The basic educational program offered by our affiliated schools consists of primary school, middle school and high school programs. The curricula are composed of compulsory courses required by the PRC regulatory authorities and a variety of selectiveelective courses to develop student interests, strength and comprehensive ability. The basic compulsory curriculum is guided by detailed and demanding government standards that specify what students should know and be able to do at the end of each school year.

Middle school students in our basic educational program generally prepare for and take Zhongkao, a standardized annual admission test administered by local authorities at a prefectural level for admission into high schools in the same geographic region. High school students in our basic educational program generally prepare for and take Gaokao, a standardized annual admission test administered by local authorities at a provincial level and the result is critical in determining student admission into undergraduate programs in universities in China.

As of June 30, 2019,2020, our affiliated schools offered approximately 295600 courses. These courses include approximately 5334 compulsory courses, mandated by the PRC central government and the local governments and approximately 242a total of 566 elective courses including Applied Physics, Economics, English Literature, Computer Programming, Digital Media Design, Photography and Etiquette. Our selective courses include supplemental courses developed fromin our affiliated schools. The compulsory curriculum, and other courses such as STEM, extracurricular clubs, mentorship for start-ups, tips for daily life, and etiquette education. Our STEM courses are designed through integrating different disciplines, such as math, art, psychology, sociology, inguided by detailed and demanding government standards that specify what students should know and be able to do at the aimend of developing our students the ability to deal with complicated situations. We categorize our STEM courses under five groups, including housework, architecture, transportation, energy and ecology, and provide our students with various workshops, including 3D printing, robot design projects to facilitate innovation and compatibility.each school year. As for the course materials for our basic educational program, we primarily use materials designated by the governmental authorities while complementing materials designed by our teachers based on their research and experience. Our elective courses are designed to develop the students' interests, strength and comprehensive ability. Students can choose courses freely, such as career planning, baking, photography. We also offer characterized sports training services, including swimming, NBA Academy, fencing and shooting to enhance students’ physical health, and after-school courses based on our students’ interest and demand, such as workshops for science competitions. Among these elective courses, we have some school-based courses, which are based on the compulsory curriculum, and actively expands the courses that combine Hailiang Education's characteristics, such as the Olympiad Competition courses, inventor courses, Chinese traditional culture courses.

In addition, we offer art educational program under our basic educational education. The curricula for art educational program are composed of compulsory courses required by the PRC regulatory authorities and a variety of art courses. Students enrolled in art educational program generally prepare for and take Gaokao, Art Joint Examination and/or Art school-level examination. Apart from being able to apply for art universities, students in art education program can also apply for a comprehensive university majoring in art.

Our art educational program consists of art, music and media courses, with a variety of featured modules. For instance, art courses consist of sketch, watercolor painting, and other elective courses, such as art appreciation, calligraphy, and sculpture; music courses consist of singing, listening, vocal music, instrumental music, and other elective courses, such as music theory and music appreciation; media courses consist of lines, physique, performance, and other elective courses, such as drama, stage play,broadcasting and screenwriter.hosting. In addition, we offer a selection of specialized public courses to the entire student body to fully satisfy the diversified talent development, such as social morality, art literacy, and elegant life courses. The art education program offers students a turnkey development platform in art, music, media, dance, performance, and drama, which integrates art and culture education.

International program

In addition to the basic educational program offered by our affiliated schools, students enrolled in our affiliated schools can also elect to be placed into our international program which is geared towards students who wish to study abroad. PRC students in our international program take courses required by the PRC regulatory authority and earn a PRC school diploma. As most of the students in our international program plan to study abroad after they graduate from our middle school or high school programs, we have designed our international program to specifically address the needs of these students in terms of both language and academics. For instance, in our primary and middle schools, we offer bilingual international, immersive Cambridge English classes, and Montessori primary courses, and we will be offering IB PYP in the 2019/2020 school year; incourses. In our high schools, we offer A-level classes,courses, VCE classes,courses, American high school courses, Canadian high school courses, and will be offering AP courses in the 2020/2021 school year. In addition, we have becomebecame the candidate school for IB DP. In addition,DP in 2019. At the same time, we also provide programs that combine basic high school modules and intensive language courses. Students can acquire the PRC graduation certificate after passing a graduation test with theupon completion of basic modules, and at the same time learn foreign languages to be better prepared for university education abroad. For example, we provide IELTS, TOEFL, ELS training courses, and other foreign language courses, including Korean, Japanese, and Spanish. Students who want to study in Japan, Korea, and Spain can take other foreign language testtests instead of English in Gaokao and acquire an international certificate.

The number of students enrolled in our affiliated schools’ international program has increased rapidly in the last three school years, from 2,825 as of June 30, 2017 to 3,860 as of June 30, 2018, to 4,553 as of June 30, 2019, to 4,859 as of June 30, 2020., including both PRC students and foreign students, to 4,553 as of June 30, 2019.students.

In addition to preparing Chinese students for studying abroad, we also offer the HSK (Hanyu Shuiping Kaoshi) program for our foreign students to learn Chinese at our schools. In 1999, we were authorized by the Zhejiang provincial government to accept foreign students for Chinese language studying. Foreign students may prepare and take the Chinese Proficiency Test administered by the Department of Education of the PRC and the Gaokao for admission to PRC universities. Our HSK program offers a variety of academic and non-academic subjects featuring Chinese culture, such as Chinese History, Chinese Geography, Martial Arts and Chinese Painting and Calligraphy, with varied optional modules including guitar, piano, dance, handwork, ceramics, badminton, football and basketball. In addition, we provide students with activities to practice the Chinese language and short trips each academic year. We have accumulated more than ten years of teaching experience in our HSK program. All of our teachers have acquired the International Chinese Teacher Qualification Certificate issued by Education Commission of the PRC. 100%In November 2019, Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High became an HSK test center certified by Hanban (“汉办”) of ourChina, also known as the Office of Chinese Language Council International, originally called the China National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language, established in 1987.

In January 2020, Zhuji Hailiang Foreign Language High started operating the International Student College, which was formally established and developed from the original HSK program into a separate college for international students. For international students passedinterested in applying for Chinese domestic universities, the high school program offered at the International Student College offers them an academic track, preparing them for examinations, such as the HSK Level IV test.level test, necessary for applying for China's top universities. For students interested in applying for international universities, the high school program offers IGCSE and A-Level courses designed to increase students' competitiveness in applicant pools and prepare them to enter top universities in the world. As of June 30, 2019, 612020, we have 124 foreign students in our affiliated schools, and 56 students were enrolled in our international program,International Student College. These students came from foreignseveral countries, including but not limited to,such as the United Kingdom, South Korea, Germany, Russia, Brazil, the United States, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands. 100% of our HSK graduating students passed HSK Level IV test.

Our Students

Student recruitment and admission

It has been 2425 years since our initial school was established. We have confidence in our brand and our ability to attract more students in the future to our affiliated schools. Our target students are from families with medium to high levels of household income as well as students who want to study abroad after graduating from our schools.

Due to the improvement of the academic results of our affiliated schools, our recognized brand and social influence, we no longer send out our recruiters to most regions. Our schools and programs are publicized through social media, teachers and educational staffs’staff’s promotion and parents’ recommendations. We encourage our teachers and educational staffsstaff to actively participate in the recruitment process and offer incentive-based payments to employees who make a significant contribution to student recruitment. We also rely on a combination of advertisements on local television channels and newspaper to recruit students.

As of June 30, 2019,2020, we had 12,55812,484 students from Zhejiang province and 10,13711,108 students from other regions in China, including 22 provinces, 4 municipalities, 4 autonomous regions and 2 special administrative regions. We also have 124 foreign students from 2223 foreign countries.

Students are required to take an entry examination before being admitted into our schools. We require applicants to our high schools to meet certain minimum scores on the Zhongkao to ensure they have the necessary academic ability to succeed. In addition to academic requirements, the admission and entrance standards of our schools are designed to identify those students who have strong desire to learn, passion for their areas of interest and ability to contribute to a positive classroom dynamic. The characteristics are generally identified through personal interviews by representatives in admission office. WeIn addition, we launched a ‘Creative Talent’ project in December 2017 to recruit exceptional middle and high school students in China. In July 2018, we also launched "The Belt and Road International Talents Program" to increase our efforts to recruit outstanding talents from disadvantage communities from countries along the Belt and Road to study in China.

Academic performance

We routinely monitor students’ progress in our affiliated schools according to academic standards. We set our standards and instructional programs based on international, national and local standards published by the regulatory authorities. We believe our students are well prepared for Zhongkaointernational tests, such as A-level and Gaokao.VCE, and national and provincial tests, such as Gaokao and Zhongkao. We require our teachers to regularly evaluate their students and set specific goals for them. Our students take all standardized tests required by international, provincial and local authorities, and we also administrate/manage our own annual tests calibrated to our academic standards. Our students have achieved outstanding academic performance, as measured by these external assessments. For example, over 96.68%98.37% of our students from our affiliated schools in the 20182019 graduate classes passed the Joint Graduation Exam, an annual provincial test administered to each graduating class.

InFor the 2018/20192019/2020 Gaokao, 1,6572,743 students infrom our affiliated schools received admissions into universities. 410universities and 399 students passed the admission cutoff of “first tier universities”, ofamong which, 18451 passed the admission cutoff of “first tier universities” in university entrance examination for athlete and art students. In Gaokao, one of our students in affiliated schools scored 702 out of 750, the highest score in Zhuji City, and was admitted to Tsinghua University, a well-recognized and high-ranking university in the PRC. Another student in our affiliated schools was awarded the Gold Medal of 35th National Physics Competition and was admitted into Peking University, another well-recognized and high-ranking university in the PRC. 18 students passed the high-level universities’ independent admission examination, including Tsinghua University, Peking University, Fudan University, and Zhejiang University. In university entrance examinationexaminations for athlete and art students, and 113 students were admitted into dual first-class universities, and one student was admitted to Beijing Sport University,by Peking University. For the 2019/2020 Gaokao, three students from our affiliated schools were ranked 2^nd, 3^th and two students were admitted to China Academy of Art. In addition, our students have achieved the highest score4^th in the Art Joint Examination ofZhuji City, Zhejiang Province for color and fashion performance, and the highest score in Art School-level Examination for music and music performance in Zhejiang Province.

In the 2019 graduate2020 graduating classes of our international program from our affiliated schools, 284434 students in our international programs applied for overseas universities, among which 283325 students have received offers, 41%37.10% of these students received offers from global top 100 universities, such as Cambridge University, Imperial College London and University College London. All of the 39 graduates ofFor Hailiang Foreign Languages School, 87.37% of the graduates received the offers from global top 100 universities. 72%universities, 36.84% of these offersstudents were fromadmitted to global top 30 universities, and 26%22.11% were fromadmitted to global top 10 universities. It is worth mentioning that 100% of students in the 2020 graduating class of our A-level courses in Hailiang Foreign Languages School have been admitted to global top 100 universities. These universities include Imperial College London, University College London, Nanyang Technological University, The University of Edinburgh, or The University of Manchester, King's College London, The University of New South Wales, The University of Queensland, University of Bristol, and The University of Warwick.among others. In addition, students in our HSK program achieved outstanding academic performance andperformance. They received admissionsadmission notices from top domestic universities, including Tsinghuasuch as Peking University, FudanRenmin University of China, Zhejiang University, Nanjing University, SouthwestWuhan University, Tongji University. This is the first time our students were admitted to Peking University and Renmin University of China Academysince this program was founded. In addition, three of Art,15 HSK graduates were admitted to foreign universities, and Shanghai International Studies University.one student received two offers from the well-known University of Manchester and University of Warwick in the UK.