AIA China approved to begin preparations for new branch opening

AIA China has received approval from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) to begin preparations to establish a new branch in Henan province.

AIA said the Chinese life insurance market offers tremendous growth potential for the company, as the market remains significantly underpenetrated. This gives the insurer the opportunity to expand into new geographies and deepen its presence in China.

The Chinese life insurance market remains significantly underpenetrated and offers tremendous growth potential for AIA as the Group expands into new areas and deepens its presence through its established operations.

The company seeks to replicate its Premier Agency model in Henan province, to drive long-term sustainable value while meeting the rapidly growing demand for insurance from China’s middle class.

“We continue to make strong progress in executing on our strategy to capture the immense growth opportunities available to AIA in Mainland China,” said Lee Yuan Siong, AIA Group president and CEO. “Our Premier Agency has been built over many years and is exceptionally positioned to leverage the structural drivers that power the life and health insurance market in China. Supported by our investments in technology, digital and analytics, our strong performance in new geographies demonstrates that we have the right model to take full advantage of our unique opportunity.”

“We are delighted to receive approval to prepare our new branch in Henan, the third most populous province in Mainland China with close to 100 million residents and ranked fifth in terms of life insurance premium in 2021,” Fisher Zhang, AIA China CEO. “We are grateful for the continuing trust placed in us by the CBIRC with the upgrade of our licences in Tianjin and Shijiazhuang and the successful opening of our latest branch in Hubei since the start of 2022. We look forward to bringing our compelling propositions to help families in Henan live healthier, longer, better lives.”

AIA’s Henan branch will begin operating once the company finishes its preparations and secures final regulatory approvals.