Ping An Performs Better than China Life in Personal Insurane

In the coming two years, Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China (601318.SH) is predicted to surpass China Life Insurance Co. in the personal insurance premiums.

From this January to November, the premiums of new personal insurance policies of Beijing-based China Life were CNY 36 billion; and such premiums of the southern boomtown Shenzhen-based Ping An were CNY 36.4 billion. During the period, the personal insurance premiums of China Life totaled up to CNY 140 billion; while the personal insurance premiums of Ping An were CNY 119.8 billion. As for the whole year, Ping An's premiums of new personal insurance policies are forecasted to exceed those of China Life.

During the year as at December 31, 2005, China Life achieved the personal insurance premiums of CNY 161 billion, but Ping An only realized such premiums of CNY 58.8 billion. At the start of 2006, Ping An had made the resolution to beat China Life by personal insurance premiums.

At the beginning of this year, actually, Ping An made the adjustment in the whole-year sales strategy. As the life insurance platform of Ping An, Ping An Life Insurance Co. focuses heavily on the regular-premium business. In the meantime, Ping An has been trying hard to bring the potential of salespersons into full play. As for China Life, the largest life insurer mainly relies on a large number of salespersons.

Also, China Life and Ping An have different products structures. The former is principally engaged in the sales of participating products while Ping An attaches the same importance to both universal insurance and participating insurance. In addition, China Life pays closer attention to the bancassurance business.

At present, Ping An and China Life are actively making technical preparations for obtaining the online sales licenses. By the yearend of 2009, 32 Chinese insurance companies conducted the online sales, the premium revenues from which amounted to CNY 7.77 billion, including up to CNY 5.17 billion property insurance premiums and CNY 2.6 billion life insurance premiums. By now, some insurers like China Life, Ping An, CPIC and Taikang Life Insurance have set up the independent e-commerce departments; and some even sell their insurance products via www.taobao.com.

This July, the insurance industry regulator had decided to set the admittance threshold for the online sales of insurance institutions. Just as the telephone sales, only those qualified insurers could be allowed to carry out the online insurance sales. By now, only 13 insurers of the country have been permitted to sell their products via the telephone.

(USD 1 = CNY 6.64)