OREANDA-NEWS. February 08, 2013. Agricultural Bank of China Limited (ABC) finalized its deal to invest RMB2.59 billion in Jiahe Life Insurance Co., Ltd. (Jiahe Life) as a controlling shareholder. The deal signified the official establishment of ABC Life Insurance Co., Ltd. (ABC Life) in Beijing. Thus, ABC Life becomes China's largest bank-established life insurance company with a service network of 15 provincial-level branches and nearly 300 branches and subsidiaries, reported the press-centre of ABC. 

Officials from the Ministry of Finance, the China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC), the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), Central Huijin Investment Ltd., Beijing Municipal Bureau of Financial Work and ABC attended the opening ceremony. Mr. Jiang Chaoliang, Chairman of ABC, and assistant of CIRC President, Mr. Huang Hong jointly announced the creation of the company.

The founding of ABC Life is yet another initiative of ABC in the field of equity investment after setting up or controlling ABC-CA Fund Management Co., Ltd., ABC Financial Leasing Co. and ABC International Holdings Limited. ABC Life is yet another step forward in ABC's ongoing strategic expansion into a comprehensive family of business companies and operations.  This growing list of services positions ABC as an all-round finance services provider and further, upgrades its value creation ability and risk resistance capacity.

Mr. Zhang Yun, President of ABC, said in his speech that entering the insurance market enhances ABC's ability to serve Sannong (agriculture, rural areas and farmers) and the real economy, and injects forces to serve people's livelihood. Serving Sannong is a unique market sector for ABC, and the vulnerability of Sannong enterprises creates a strong demand for and dependency on insurance. After its founding, through bancassurance operations, ABC Life can both strengthen ABC's risk resistance in its services for Sannong customers and effectively reduce related risks. Meanwhile, ABC Life will also offer endowment insurance, medical insurance and health insurance to thousands of households as part of a campaign to improve people's living standards and quality.

The key to success in bank-insurer cooperation lies in complementary benefits. ABC has comprehensive advantages in its presence across rural and urban areas, customer resources, IT support and capital strength. It has the leading position in the bancassurance market on fee income and market share. Jiahe Life, predecessor of ABC Life, accumulated considerable experiences and advantages in product R & D and risk control. Building upon the platform of ABC, ABC Life's prospects are highly promising.

ABC will use its strengths as the mother bank to support ABC Life's expansion and development  into a life bancassurance company with an influential brand and long-time  industry mover advantage.

Dedicated to its philosophy of "customer priority", ABC Life will adopt a differentiated product development strategy that covers children's education, pension planning, insurance guarantee, and investment & wealth management. To celebrate its opening, ABC Life launched several participating products with wealth management and guarantee functions that meet the diversified financial demands of customers.

ABC Life's "Zhen Ai Yi Sheng" life-long insurance product provides sufficient guarantees with long term coverage and flexible payments. The insurance policy covers as many as 44 serious diseases to give customers all-round protection. This product reflects the insured’s responsibility and care for his/her family.

ABC Life's “Hong Fu Nian Nian” annuity insurance is the upgraded version of "Hong Yun Nian Nian" which was honored as the Best Endowment Insurance Product by China Insurance News in 2011. It retains such features of its predecessor as short payment period, long coverage period and a feature of "benefits accumulate with times". Additionally, it gives customers more benefits and interest income. Hong Kang Insurance, ABC Life’s exclusive product against serious illnesses, covers 35 severe diseases and 18 ailments, marking a major breakthrough in traditional insurance coverage of serious sicknesses.

It was also announced that ABC and ABC Life jointly launched an "ABC Life Card." As a new-generation smart debit card, this product improves functions and provides higher value than magnetic debit card by better protecting customer assets and providing more services. To celebrate its opening, ABC Life provides this card for free for customers who purchase any of its bancassurance products. Such customers cab enjoy comprehensive accident insurance at a preferential price (RMB50-198) with an insured amount of up to RMB 2 million.

Looking into the future, ABC Life will follow the "market-oriented, customer-centered and efficiency-driven" operation philosophy to pursue its vision of “becoming one of the major platforms to serve ABC customers”. It will make great efforts in building a sound corporate governance structure, an efficient operation management team, an effective operation guarantee mechanism, and a complete system of rules and regulations. ABC Life will make coordinated arrangements and consolidated foundations for steady development under the framework of ABC's overall development strategy. It will exert its advantage in its business competitiveness as a bancassurance company to provide customers with all-round insurance guarantee and wealth planning services.