China Pacific Insurance to speed up health-related business development

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co Ltd, one of the country's leading insurers, announced it will accelerate development of health-related businesses in the next five years, as the segment has great potential in the Chinese market, company executives said.

The insurer will renovate products and services, adopt intelligent operation, boost online business and enhance risk control in its health insurance branch, said Ma Xin, senior vice-president of the company, at an online news conference on Monday.

It plans to build an online medical platform by cooperating with renowned hospitals and doctors to combine medical consultancy, drugs and insurance to offer online and offline health management service.

It also will develop health industry-related investment funds and investment management platforms, which cover medical service, technology and equipment, and health management.

The company aims to increase penetration of health services for its clients, according to Ma. The aim is to become a leading health security integrated service provider in China with its strong client resources and sales channels, and experiences in social public medical security sector, Ma added.

"The big health industry has huge potential. And many policies released over the last two years have suggested great possibilities for commercial insurers to play a role," he said.

Revenue of the group's insurance business stood at 216.5 billion yuan ($31.1 billion) in the first half of 2020, up 4.2 percent year-on-year. Its net profit declined 12 percent to reach about 14.24 billion yuan during the period, according to the company's financial statement. Annualized total investment yield was 4.8 percent, the same as the same period of last year.

In the first half of 2020, China Pacific issued and listed global depositary receipts on the LSE, making it the first insurer simultaneously listed in Shanghai, Hong Kong and London.