Smaller Insurers Apply for Opening More Branches

During the first 15 days of this year, 15 insurance companies of China's Mainland applied to China Insurance Regulatory Commission for opening branches.

Among them, Anbang Life Insurance Co. has been approved to open four branches in Shanghai, Henan, Hubei and Liaoning respectively; and Hexie Health Insurance Co. has also received the regulatory approval for it to open branches in Hebei, Guangdong and Sichuan respectively.

In addition, Beijing-based Happy Life Insurance Co. has been given the approval to prepare for a Henan Branch and a Shanxi Branch; China Post Life Insurance Co. has won the approval for it to open a branch in Zhejiang and another branch in Jiangsu; the financial center Shanghai-based Sino Life Insurance Co. is allowed to open branches in Guangxi and Xinjiang, two autonomous regions of the country; Aeon Life Insurance Company is permitted to open branches in Dalian and Sichuan respectively; and another one called Sun Life Everbright Life Insurance Co. is approved of a branch in Sichuan and one in Shanxi.

Among the above-said 13 life insurance firms, three rank among the top 10 life insurers of the country, one ranks as No.8 and the last one ranks in the 57th place. With their market share becoming larger, the nation's six leading life insurance companies saw a combined market share of 81.02% during the first 11 months of last year, down 3.01 percentage points from the same period of 2009.

In the meantime, five insurers have gotten the approval of the insurance industry regulator to replenish the capital bases. They include four life insurance institutions. Sino Life Insurance Co. will increase the capital base by CNY 821 million to CNY 4.4 billion; Sinatay Life Insurance Company Limited is to add the registered capital by CNY 301 million to CNY 1.47 billion; China Ping An Health Insurance Co. is going to raise the capital base by CNY 125 million to CNY 625 million; and Zhongrong Life Insurance Co. will increase the capital base by CNY 80 million to CNY 300 million.

Another one is a property insurer called TIANAN Insurance, which will replenish the capital base by CNY 2.1 billion. During the first 11 months of 2010, the Shanghai-based company reaped the premium revenues of CNY 7.57 billion, an increase of 17.6% year over year, still lower than the average growth rate of domestic property insurance market.