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"United MetLife Jiangsu Branch will be our first branch office, which is very important and integral to our strategy in China," said company chairman Shen Ruolei. "United MetLife will develop a differentiated multi-channel marketing approach, keeping integrity in both its sales and claims processes, and it will expand from Nanjing throughout Jiangsu Province."

United MetLife is a 50 to 50 joint venture between MetLife Inc and Shanghai Alliance Investment Ltd, an investment arm of the municipal government. It was renamed from CitiInsurance in May because MetLife Inc acquired the joint venture's international assests from Citigroup in 2005.

Jiangsu Province, located in the economic belt of the Yangtze River Delta, is one of China's top three provinces in terms of total economic activity with a population of more than 74 million. Residents have a relatively high insurance awareness and the overall development of the insurance industry is comparatively strong. The income from the insurance industry has ranked first in China for four consecutive years.

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