As the year-end approaches, the performance trends of major insurers are becoming clearer.
ZA ONLINE recently announced its premium income for the first 11 months, reporting a total of RMB 32.904 billion, up 5.63% year-on-year. Compared with previous years, the nearly RMB 33 billion in premiums marks a historic high, just shy of the full-year 2024 figure of RMB 33.418 billion.
Earlier, the company disclosed a net profit of RMB 668 million in the first half of the year, already surpassing the full-year 2023 profit of RMB 608 million. This suggests that ZA ONLINE is highly likely to achieve growth in both premiums and profits for 2025.
The interim report revealed further details on its liability-side performance: In the first half, contributions from the health, digital lifestyle, consumer finance, and auto insurance segments stood at 37.7%, 37.3%, 16.2%, and 8.8%, respectively. Notably, the health and auto insurance segments saw significant revenue growth.
The health insurance segment benefited from reforms in medical payment systems and stronger synergies between commercial health insurance and basic medical coverage. In the first half of 2025, China's health insurance premiums grew by 3.1%, while ZA ONLINE expanded its product offerings—including inclusive, chronic disease, outpatient, critical illness, and mid-to-high-end medical insurance—further boosting its market share.
Meanwhile, the auto insurance segment shifted from joint operations with Ping An Property & Casualty to independent underwriting. According to company executives, ZA ONLINE has begun independently managing compulsory auto insurance in Shanghai and Zhejiang, marking a breakthrough in this business line. Commercial auto insurance in Shanghai has also transitioned to independent operations.
Beyond insurance, other business lines also showed value growth, with the banking unit turning profitable and losses narrowing in the tech division. These factors collectively drove the first-half net profit to RMB 668 million—11 times higher than the same period last year.
Notably, in a board resolution two weeks ago, ZA ONLINE confirmed a new three-year leadership term, with Chairman Yin Hai retaining his role and chairing the Strategy and Investment Committee.
With improving performance and stable leadership transition, the company has laid a foundation for continuity in its 2025–2027 strategy. However, challenges remain in sustaining growth.
Over the past five years, ZA ONLINE's earnings have been volatile, with net profit growth rates of 110.3%, -216.44%, 466.58%, -85.2%, and 1103.54% from 2021 to the first half of 2025. Revenue growth has trended downward, narrowing to -0.4% in the first half of 2025.
Past fluctuations were linked to capital market shifts and the complexity of ZA ONLINE's business model, which includes tech ventures and virtual bank ZA Bank—both requiring substantial early-stage investments.
While these segments are stabilizing—tech losses improved by 30% to RMB 56 million, and ZA Bank turned a profit of HKD 49 million—whether this signals a sustained upward trend remains to be seen.
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