(Adds details of company statement, share price)
HONG KONG, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Trading in shares of China's largest van maker, Brilliance China Automotive Holdings Ltd , was suspended on Friday after its ex-chairman Yang Rong obtained a court order in a bid to halt the sale of a major stake in the company.
Brilliance requested the trading suspension pending an announcement on the impact of the order, which was granted by the Supreme Court of Bermuda to Yang's Broadsino Finance Co Ltd, the company said in a statement.
Brilliance, which is registered in Bermuda, said it was in discussions with advisers and the Securities and Futures Commission on the possible impact of the court order.
Yang is trying to block the sale of a 39.45 percent stake in Brilliance by the Chinese Financial Education Development Foundation to a firm controlled by China's Liaoning provincial government for HK$144.6 million (US$18.5 million).
Earlier this month, a group of minority shareholders of Brilliance also called on Hong Kong's securities regulator to investigate the share sale, which was priced at a 92 percent discount to their then market value, announced last December.
Shares of Brilliance closed at HK$1.88 on Thursday after rising nearly 94 percent in the past three months.
Yang was dismissed as chairman of Brilliance last November. He is wanted by Chinese police for alleged economic crimes, but has said he is innocent of the charges.
He sent the court order to the Hong Kong stock exchange through his lawyer, according to local newspaper reports.
If the shares have been transferred, the company must be restrained from more dealings in the shares until a further court order and hearing, law firm Wakefield Quin said in the letter.
Both the Liaoning government and Yang, who is also the founder of Brilliance, had claimed control of the foundation.
The minority shareholders also requested an investigation into the reasons for the dismissal of Yang.
Yang has not been seen in public since last June and is believed to be in the United States.