In the first half of 2025, Umbrella Insurance Broker, which assisted in processing over 59,000 claims amounting to more than 168 million yuan, presents a stark contrast to its parent company SHOUHUI GROUP, which saw a 900% surge in profits during the same period, against the backdrop of the broker's cumulative losses nearing 500 million yuan over two years and more than ten regulatory penalties.
Against the tightening "consistency in reporting and operations" policy in the insurance industry and increasingly fierce market competition, insurance intermediary institutions are facing unprecedented survival challenges.
Tracing the development path from a digital platform to a listed group, Umbrella Insurance Broker Co., Ltd., as the core platform under SHOUHUI GROUP, has grown since its establishment in 2013 into a leading digital intermediary service provider for life insurance in China.
The company primarily operates through three main platforms: Umbrella, Click Insurance, and Niu Bao 100. Among these, the Umbrella platform focuses on direct online sales to individual customers, the Click Insurance platform empowers insurance agents in their marketing efforts, and Niu Bao 100 serves business partner channels.
By the end of 2024, SHOUHUI GROUP had established cooperative relationships with over 110 insurance companies, covering more than 70% of life insurers in China.
According to data from Frost & Sullivan, based on the total premium of long-term life insurance in 2023, SHOUHUI GROUP is the second-largest online insurance intermediary in China, holding a 7.3% market share.
Examining the operating performance reveals volatile revenue and nearly 500 million yuan in cumulative losses over two years. A close look at SHOUHUI GROUP's financial data shows significant volatility in its operational performance. From 2022 to 2024, the company's operating revenue was 806 million yuan, 1.634 billion yuan, and 1.387 billion yuan respectively, peaking in 2023 before declining by 15.13% year-on-year in 2024.
Concurrently, the company's profitability experienced substantial fluctuations. During the same period, SHOUHUI GROUP's net profits were 131 million yuan, -356 million yuan, and -136 million yuan respectively, resulting in a cumulative loss of 492 million yuan over just 2023 and 2024.
In the first half of 2025, the company's performance showed a strong rebound, achieving a total premium of 4.9 billion yuan, a 25.7% increase year-on-year, with a period profit of 664 million yuan, surging over 900% compared to the previous year. This extreme volatility reflects the high sensitivity of the company's business model to market conditions and policy changes.
The company's reliance on self-media channel promotions has also intensified cost pressures. Between 2022 and 2024, nearly 30% of the company's operating costs were allocated to self-media channel promotion fees, amounting to 333 million yuan, 150 million yuan, and 430 million yuan respectively, accounting for 30.6%, 28.6%, and 47.6% of the operating costs for those periods. These substantial promotion expenses have severely eroded profit margins.
Regarding regulation and compliance, the company has repeatedly crossed red lines, revealing significant deficiencies in its internal control system. Beyond performance volatility, SHOUHUI GROUP and its subsidiaries have frequently breached regulatory boundaries in compliance management. In June 2022, Umbrella Insurance Broker was warned and fined 10,000 yuan by the Tianjin CBIRC for insufficient disclosure of information regarding internet insurance.
Earlier, in June 2020, the company was fined 120,000 yuan for providing policyholders with benefits outside those stipulated in the insurance contracts between June and August 2019.
Guang Yao, then General Manager of Umbrella Insurance Broker (also Chairman of SHOUHUI GROUP), was warned and fined 40,000 yuan for being directly responsible for this conduct.
This was not an isolated incident. In December 2023, Chuangxin Insurance Sales Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of SHOUHUI GROUP, was warned and fined 50,000 yuan by the Shenzhen Regulatory Bureau for issues including failure to use bank accounts as required, non-compliance of some internet life insurance operations with regulatory requirements, and failure to establish or manage business archives as stipulated.
In September 2023, SHOUHUI GROUP and Chuangxin Insurance were listed by the court as "persons subject to enforcement" due to service contract disputes, with the enforcement subject matter exceeding 9.4 million yuan. On the same day, Umbrella Broker was also listed as a person subject to enforcement for related disputes, with the enforcement subject matter exceeding 3.87 million yuan.
These consecutive penalties and judicial disputes expose systemic problems in the company's internal controls and compliance management.
In terms of service capabilities, while claims handling shows strengths, it cannot mask the profitability dilemma. Contrasting with operational challenges, SHOUHUI GROUP has demonstrated a degree of professional capability in claims services. In the first half of 2025, the company assisted in processing over 59,000 claims, with a total assisted claims amount exceeding 168.7 million yuan.
Among these, small claims under 5,000 yuan were settled rapidly in 0.27 days through the "Flash Claim" service, with 99% of users expressing satisfaction. For the full year 2025, the company assisted in handling over 128,000 claims, with a total payout amount reaching 436.6 million yuan.
Specific insurance product data shows that for the Jin Medical Insurance million-yuan medical policy, there were 11,465 payouts in the first half, amounting to 27.163 million yuan; for the Super Mary critical illness policy, there were 219 claims, with cumulative payouts of 23.3428 million yuan, and a single maximum payout reaching 1.1 million yuan.
The company has also established a risk protection data system, mapping out high-frequency risk profiles for different insurance types. Women accounted for 59.82% of critical illness payouts, with breast and gynecological diseases being the most prevalent; for men, thyroid cancer, acute myocardial infarction, and sleep apnea syndrome were highly frequent.
Among the 205 assisted claims for children's critical illness insurance, the highest payout reached 1.75 million yuan, with leukemia ranking first in children's critical illness payouts. These figures indicate that the company possesses a certain professional foundation in claims services and risk analysis.
Looking at challenges and underlying concerns, the industry's disintermediation trend and customer concentration risks loom large. SHOUHUI GROUP acknowledged in its IPO prospectus that the "disintermediation" trend in the insurance industry could pose a significant challenge. With advancements in fintech and the emergence of internet insurance products, insurance companies are increasingly exploring ways to reduce reliance on intermediaries and connect directly with customers.
"By leveraging digital platforms and online sales channels, insurance companies can directly reach a broader base of insurance customers at low cost, thereby expanding their market reach and enhancing their ability to attract and acquire insurance customers," SHOUHUI Group explicitly pointed out this risk in its prospectus.
Simultaneously, the company faces risks associated with high customer concentration. From 2022 to 2024, revenue from the top five customers accounted for approximately 77.2%, 63.8%, and 70.7% of total revenue, respectively. Any adjustment in cooperation strategies by major partner insurers or their establishment of in-house sales channels would directly impact the company's revenue.
Notably, the reduction in commission rates has further squeezed profit margins. Influenced by the "consistency in reporting and operations" policy, insurance companies have lowered commission rates for intermediaries. The average first-year commission rate for SHOUHUI GROUP's long-term life insurance products decreased from 31.7% in 2023 to 21.5% in 2024.
Furthermore, the company faces pressure from valuation adjustment mechanisms (VAMs) with investors. According to the agreements, if SHOUHUI GROUP fails to complete its IPO within the stipulated timeframe, investors with exit rights can demand the company repurchase their shares at a pre-agreed price.
As of December 31, 2024, SHOUHUI GROUP's cash and cash equivalents stood at 113 million yuan, while the total capital contribution from the relevant investors was 135 million yuan. If the IPO is hindered and investors exercise their exit rights, the company will face cash flow pressure.
Amid intensifying competition in the insurance intermediary industry, Umbrella Insurance Broker demonstrates both professional capability and efficiency in claims services while being deeply mired in operational volatility and compliance issues.
The significant performance growth in the first half of 2025 is closely linked to the company's comprehensive push for digital transformation and optimization of its product portfolio. The challenge ahead is to achieve sustainable, high-quality development in an environment of tightening regulation and accelerating industry transformation.
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