Bluestone Group sues Jeffrey Wu over $15.3M mezz guaranty at Chinatown retail

Eli Tabak‘s Bluestone Group, acting through its affiliates Landmark Portfolio Mezz LLC, and Queen Elizabeth Realty Corp. sued investor and grocery store owner Jeffery Wu, also known as Myint J. Kyaw — who has been in personal bankruptcy for nearly six years — seeking repayment of a mezzanine loan with an original principal of $15.3 million tied to a 28,002-square foot retail condominium unit at 68 Elizabeth Street, in Chinatown, Manhattan, a lawsuit filed last week says.

In addition to seeking repayment through the guaranty, Bluestone Group alleges a supermarket lease Wu signed at the property when he controlled both the landlord entity and his Hong Kong Supermarket of Hester Street store, is below market, thus reducing the value of the retail. Bluestone Group also seeks the turnover of books and records related to the property. Bluestone Group filed the case in New York State Supreme Court in Manhattan on May 5, 2026.

Case LINK

That retail condo unit is also the subject of an ongoing $19.85 million foreclosure action that Bank of America brought in 2024, when Wu’s entities controlled the property.

Bluestone Group is a real estate investment firm with a focus on distressed assets. Jeffrey Wu, a prominent figure in the New York Asian-American business community, has faced a string of financial hurdles in recent years. He filed personal bankruptcy in 2020 (8:20-72407-reg), which remains active, and has lost several properties since then. He remains in control of Hong Kong Supermarket.

A partnership including Williamson Picket Gross Inc., converted the building into a condominium structure in 1990, but a loan secured by dozens of unsold units and the retail was foreclosed on in 1993. Jeffrey Wu bought the condo unit in June 1994 for $4.26 million, borrowing $3.15 million at the time.

In late 2017, Wu borrowed $15.3 million through a mezzanine loan from Bluestone Group, and in January 2018 borrowed $19.85 million from Bank of America.

This mezzanine loan, according to the new complaint, almost immediately fell into default, on April 1, 2018, and, the filing says, has never been cured. Bluestone set a UCC auction date in January 2019, but the parties signed a forbearance agreement and the sale was adjourned. On July 8, 2020, Jeffrey Wu filed for personal bankruptcy.

In  2023, the bankruptcy court lifted the stay related to this mezzanine loan, and, the complaint say, Jeffrey Wu entered into a “sham” lease as tenant with the owner entity, Queen Elizabeth Realty Corp. In May 2025, the complaint says, Bluestone Group formally took control of the entity Queen Elizabeth Realty Corp., which is the owner of the condo unit.

Bluestone Group in February 2026 was allowed to intervene in Bank of America’s foreclosure action, “solely for the limited and discrete purpose of protecting its own interest in any surplus funds that may result from the foreclosure sale of the Premises.”

The property

The property in Chinatown has 28,002 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $6.6 million.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of three of the 19 commercial properties representing 50,623 square feet of the 282,066 square feet. The largest owner is Eric Zhu, followed by Greg Sun and then Yi-Keung Lam. There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The surrounding

Within a 400-foot radius of 82 Elizabeth Street, PincusCo identified one commercial real estate item of interests occurred over the past 24 months. It was a loan which Miriam Chan borrowed $22 million from Preferred Bank secured by the 54,040-square-foot, six-unit office building (O6) on 78 Bowery and six other properties on April 3, 2025.

Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page and link to DOB NOW portal.