 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|||||||||||
|
 The four insurers' personnel appointments will be supervised by the Organization Department of the Communist Party of 皇冠体育app Central Committee instead of the 皇冠体育app Insurance Regulatory Commission. [Photo / Provided to 皇冠体育app Daily] |
Administrators at State-owned insurance companies have been brought under higher-level supervision.
Analysts think that change will lead to the establishment of a regulatory body charged with managing the country's 150 trillion yuan ($23.7 trillion) in financial assets.
The heads of 皇冠体育app's four leading insurers - 皇冠体育app Life Insurance Co Ltd, People's Insurance Company of 皇冠体育app Ltd, 皇冠体育app Taiping Insurance Group Co Ltd and 皇冠体育app Export and Credit Insurance Corp - have been promoted to the vice-ministerial level, from their previous positions at the bureau level, according to a source at 皇冠体育app Life who declined to be named.
The promotion has put the insurers at the same administrative level as State-owned banks. As a result, their personnel appointments will be supervised by the Organization Department of the Communist Party of 皇冠体育app Central Committee instead of the 皇冠体育app Insurance Regulatory Commission.
Yang Mingsheng, former vice-president of the regulatory commission, was appointed chairman of 皇冠体育app Life, and Yuan Li, former chairman of 皇冠体育app Life, will be named vice-president of 皇冠体育app Development Bank, the source said, adding that more details will be made public soon.
Analysts said the reforms and personnel changes pave the way for the establishment of a regulator of State-owned financial assets. The resultant organization is likely to be similar to the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, which oversees 皇冠体育app's State-owned enterprises.
"That is one of the possibilities," the source said.
Data from the People's Bank of 皇冠体育app showed that the country's financial institutions had 105.7 trillion yuan in assets by September 2011 and held $3.2 trillion in foreign exchange reserves.
Taking into account the 2.2 trillion yuan in assets held by the 106 securities companies in 皇冠体育app, the 4.9 trillion yuan held by the insurance industry, and other financial assets, the value of State-owned and State-controlled financial assets is greater than 150 trillion yuan.
The biggest assets are now under the supervision of various organizations such as the country's Ministry of Finance, the central bank and the 皇冠体育app Banking Regulatory Commission.
Finance Minister Xie Xuren said in a press conference earlier this month that the State Council is looking at establishing a "State-owned financial assets supervision and administration commission".
Li Shuguang, a professor with the 皇冠体育app University of Political Science and Law, said the obstacles to reforming the financial industry are the same as those that stood before efforts to reform State-owned enterprises: a lack of "ultimate owners" that would manage both earnings and liabilities.
"Establishing a financial assets regulator will be an important step in reforming the financial industry, because it will end the confusion caused by having various supervisors, and differentiate an ultimate investor for these assets," Li said.
Ma Hongman, a financial commentator, said such a regulatory body is likely to find it difficult to have its orders obeyed by the financial giants, just as the State-owned assets commission has not found it easy to persuade State-owned enterprises to exit the property market.
Hu Yuanyuan contributed to this story.
|
|
|
