Haigang Life Insurance has witnessed its first general manager change in less than three years since its establishment.
On April 22, Haigang Life announced that Qiao Ning would step down from his role as general manager due to age. Qi Meizhu has been appointed as the new general manager, with her term commencing upon approval from the Shenzhen bureau of the National Financial Regulatory Administration and formal appointment by the company. Prior to the official appointment, Qi Meizhu has been designated as the interim responsible person, exercising the authority of the general manager.
Qi Meizhu joins from Taiping Pension and possesses dual expertise in actuarial science and finance. For a young insurer that has taken over the risk assets of the former Evergrande Life, this professional background sends a clear strategic signal.
Experts note that the core skills of an actuary lie in data analysis, risk management, and the precise evaluation of long-term liabilities, particularly within the life insurance sector where issues like interest spread losses are closely tied to actuarial models. Against the backdrop of the life insurance industry widely facing pressure from interest spread losses and the pains of product transformation, selecting a senior executive with a dual background as an actuary and financial controller represents a strategic choice for the company in addressing risk control and financial health challenges.
The inaugural general manager, Qiao Ning, born in February 1964, is now 62. His career began in banking before transitioning to insurance, rising through the ranks from branch operations to corporate leadership, embodying a hands-on, practical management style.
Prior to joining Haigang Life, Qiao Ning spent many years within the Taiping Life system, serving as general manager for several provincial branches including Hebei, Jiangsu, and Shandong. He was promoted to Marketing Director of Taiping Life in 2016, later also taking on the role of spokesperson.
In September 2023, Haigang Life received approval to commence operations and fully assumed the assets and liabilities of Evergrande Life, with Qiao Ning appointed as its first general manager. At that time, he faced a situation akin to building from scratch: managing the existing policies from Evergrande Life, stabilizing the sentiments of millions of policyholders, integrating 88 branch offices, and establishing a new management system.
According to disclosures from Haigang Life's 2025 annual work conference, the company has fully achieved its three core operational objectives: ensuring liquidity safety, reducing losses year-on-year, and generating value from new business. Premium income has shown steady growth, cost reduction and efficiency improvements have been significant, and the initial framework for a distinctive Haigang customer service ecosystem has been established. Throughout 2024, the company handled 43,700 claims, paying out 743 million yuan with an average claims processing time of just 1.14 days and a claims approval rate of 98.83%.
Qiao Ning fulfilled the pioneering mission of establishing Haigang Life "from zero to one." His successor, Qi Meizhu, now faces the task of leading the company through a phase of meticulous cultivation and growth "from one to ten."
Reviewing Qi Meizhu's career, she was born in July 1972 and holds both North American and Chinese actuarial qualifications. Her professional experience spans multiple core areas including product development, actuarial management, financial control, strategic planning, and asset allocation. Early in her career, she held positions in the Product Development Department and Group Business Department at CPIC Life. She later served as the Chief Actuary and General Manager of the Planning Department at Lujiazui Cathay Life Insurance.
In June 2015, Qi Meizhu joined Taiping Pension as Chief Actuary, taking on the additional role of Financial Controller from January 2017. She was promoted to Vice President in December 2021, overseeing four key departments: Financial Accounting, Strategic Planning, Product Actuarial, and Asset Management. Her extensive experience in finance and actuarial science provides her with a deep understanding of the complete operational cycle of an insurance company, encompassing fund sourcing, management, and investment.
Experts suggest that executives with an actuarial background can implement refined management through precise product pricing, asset-liability matching, and capital management. This aids in making more accurate and stable decisions when the company faces market pressures and financial challenges. Following periods of rapid expansion, market volatility, and product transformation in the life insurance sector, the transition phase requires increased support from actuarial and financial analysis. The profound background of actuaries in pricing, reserve calculation, and risk assessment is expected to help Haigang Life better manage and resolve current interest spread pressures in the post-risk resolution phase, stabilize its financial foundation, and ensure healthy development.
Industry observers note that this leadership choice may reflect a broader industry trend. Given the current complex environment, the advantages of actuarial expertise in risk response and product innovation are becoming more prominent. Executives with actuarial backgrounds are seen as better aligned with industry needs, potentially leading more insurers to follow suit, thereby pushing the industry towards a more professional and stable development path.
The establishment of Haigang Life is closely linked to the risk resolution of Evergrande Life. The predecessor of Evergrande Life was Zhongxin Dadiang Life, which commenced operations in 2006 with its headquarters in Chongqing, established as a joint venture between Singapore's Great Eastern Life and the Chongqing Real Estate Group.
In 2015, Evergrande Group acquired a 50% stake for 3.939 billion yuan and renamed the company Evergrande Life. Subsequently, leveraging Evergrande's resources and bancassurance channels, Evergrande Life's premium income skyrocketed from 1.305 billion yuan in 2015 to 60.3 billion yuan in 2020, with its asset scale once exceeding 200 billion yuan.
However, behind this rapid expansion, risks accumulated quickly. Net profit plummeted from a peak of 1.7 billion yuan in 2020 to 333 million yuan. By the end of the third quarter of 2021, its core solvency adequacy ratio had dropped to 104.55%, approaching the regulatory red line, with a net loss of 583 million yuan for that quarter. As the debt crisis of Evergrande Group erupted, Evergrande Life's operations deteriorated sharply, and it ceased publishing solvency reports.
The risk resolution plan was finalized in 2023. On June 1, 2023, Haigang Life received approval from the National Financial Regulatory Administration to commence business, with a registered capital of 15 billion yuan. Regarding shareholder structure, Shenzhen Penglian Investment Co., Ltd. contributed 7.65 billion yuan for a 51% stake; the Insurance Security Fund contributed 3.75 billion yuan for a 25% stake; Guangdong Finance Investment Holding Co., Ltd., Chongqing Yuxin Investment Co., Ltd., and Taiping Life each contributed 1.2 billion yuan for respective 8% stakes. The shareholder lineup is robust, featuring control by Shenzhen state-owned capital, support from the Insurance Security Fund, coordination from multiple local state-owned entities, and professional participation from Taiping Life.
On September 13, 2023, regulators officially approved Haigang Life's assumption of Evergrande Life's insurance business and corresponding assets and liabilities. Haigang Life promptly announced its commitment to honor all obligations under insurance contracts signed under the "Evergrande Life" name. The company has established over 80 branches nationwide, including 9 provincial-level branches.
While Haigang Life has completed the initial task of risk assumption, the road ahead remains challenging. Analysts point to two main challenges. First is the interest spread risk associated with the in-force business portfolio. This risk remains a long-term challenge for life insurers, especially in a low-interest-rate environment where long-term policy returns may fail to cover the predetermined guarantee liabilities. The company needs to mitigate the impact of interest spread losses on the existing portfolio through effective asset-liability management while optimizing its structure.
The second challenge lies in the value creation capability of new business. New business models and product innovation could become major drivers of future growth for Haigang Life. However, in a fiercely competitive market, the ability to enhance the value creation of new business through differentiated product design and customer service will directly impact the company's growth potential and represents a significant challenge.
Experts also believe that managing interest spread risk from the legacy portfolio is a crucial challenge for Haigang Life over the next three years. Given current market interest rate fluctuations, if the company's investment returns cannot cover its liability costs, interest spread losses could widen, affecting profitability and solvency. Against the backdrop of intensifying industry competition and product transformation, launching competitive, high-value new products and improving the new business value ratio are key to the company's development.
The Evergrande Life brand suffered severe impact due to its parent group's debt crisis. Although Haigang Life has stabilized customer confidence through announcements and actual contract performance, fundamentally rebuilding market trust will require a longer period of service accumulation and reputation building.
The industry will watch closely to see if Haigang Life, under the leadership of its new actuarial captain Qi Meizhu, can navigate a path that is both stable and capable of creating significant value.
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