April investments in four Chinese insurers by foreign shareholders signals growing international appetite in the country’s re/insurance industry, media group Yicai Global highlighted in a recent publication.

This group includes four local insurers: Generali China Insurance, Fosun United Health Insurance, AXA International Reinsurance and Citic Prudential Life, according to data from the Insurance Association of China.

In the case of Generali, the Italian insurer increased the investment to EUR51 million last month, aimed to further expand its presence in China’s property insurance market.

Back in February, the insurer had shared its plans to inject EUR40 million (USD45 million) into its Chinese subsidiary.

In April, Citic Prudential Life gained regulatory approval for a CNY2.5 billion (USD345.4 million) capital boost, jointly founded by its Chinese and foreign shareholders – its foreign shareholder is the British-domiciled insurer Prudential.

With an anticipated average annual growth rate of 7.7% in insurance premiums over the next decade, as highlighted by the Allianz Global Insurance Report 2024, China is set to maintain its position as the world’s second-largest insurance market.

The report also highlighted that foreign insurers’ total assets in China reached CNY2.82 trillion (USD390 billion) as of September 30, last year, marking an almost 18% increase since the end of 2023.

NFRA data from January 2024 further showed that foreign insurers’ assets in China more than doubled between 2018 and 2023.

China’s rapidly expanding and opening insurance market continues to draw global companies, industry experts told Yicai.

For example, AIA Life Insurance has expanded its operations from five to 14 provinces since becoming independent in 2020, with the company expressing strong long-term confidence in the market.

AIA also highlighted new business opportunities arising from China’s focus on “new quality productive forces,” a term used by officials to describe the nation’s shift to an innovation-based growth model.

Additionally, foreign insurers and intermediaries are increasingly collaborating with local firms to support the global expansion of Chinese enterprises in these emerging sectors.

Shanghai’s new international reinsurance trading board is also proving attractive, with AXA Re and Hannover Re recently establishing operational hubs there, Yicai noted.

Digital platforms such as the Shanghai International Reinsurance Registration and Trading Center are also improving efficiency and helping connect domestic and international markets, Wang Yan, director of property and casualty insurance at Hannover Re China, stated.

Adding: “We hope to use these platforms to bridge domestic and international markets.”

“We remain confident in both China and the Shanghai market,” Wang said. “Locating our reinsurance hub in Shanghai’s Lin-gang Special Area positions us close to China’s high-tech industries and fuels our growth.”

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