Chubb, the world's biggest property and casualty insurer, is increasing its stake in Huatai Insurance Group to over 50% as it snaps up the equity held by two firms under Chinese conglomerate Wuhan Dangdai Science and Technology Industry Group for a combined CNY2.8bn ($439m).
The CBIRC is tightening regulations over life insurance sales that would introduce for the first time classification requirements for life insurance products, integrity requirements for agents, restrictions on self-insurance by agents and curbs on policy surrenders.
The insurance industry in China has made tentative steps to explore near-zero carbon car insurance, heavy rainfall catastrophe index insurance, and clean energy insurance, said a CBIRC spokesman.
The CBIRC's new regulations, issued in October, covering online life insurance sales are the talk of the town, as industry players strive to comply with the stipulated requirements.
Half or 50% of consumers have bought insurance through the Internet, according to the "2021 China Internet Insurance Consumer Insights Report".
China Reinsurance (Group) Corporation (China Re) has a five-year average return-on-equity ratio of 6.5% (2016-2020), mainly attributed to favourable investment returns, notes AM Best.
As market-oriented reforms of the use of insurance funds gain pace, the regulatory authorities have stepped up supervision of insurance fund management by launching comprehensive investigations into risks related to insurance funds and embarking on drive to mitigate the risks.
While Chinese reinsurers and insurers should do what they can to develop cross-border business, it is best for them to venture abroad by relying on the Belt and Road programme, following in the wake of Chinese companies that have projects overseas, according to Mr John Chen, president of Swiss Re China.
The birth rate in China in 2020 stood at 8.52 per thousand people, representing a new low since 1978, according to the recently published China Statistical Yearbook 2020 compiled by the National Bureau of Statistics. In addition, the rate of natural increase-the difference between the birthrate and the death rate-dropped to 1.45 per thousand, also the lowest rate in 43 years, the yearbook said.
China's central bank and banking and insurance regulator issued draft rules last week on the issuance of perpetual bonds by the country's insurance companies, reported Reuters.