The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission ("CBIRC") has recently issued the Circular on Matters concerning the Optimization of Regulation of the Investment Management Capacity of Insurance Institutions (the "Circular").
The Circular mainly covers the following contents: the first is to optimize and integrate the investment management capacity of insurance institutions. The second is to refine and clarify the capacity standards and regulatory requirements for insurance institutions to carry out various investment business such as the investment in bonds, stocks, equity, and real estate, and the application of derivatives, and to issue debt investment plans and equity investment plans, and guide insurance institutions to comprehensively strengthen the building of investment management capacity. The third is to cancel the record-filing administration of the investment management capacity, and intensify the in-process and ex-post regulation. The fourth is to supervise and urge insurance institutions to continuously strengthen the building of investment management capacity. The fifth is to refine the requirements for information disclosure. The last is to reinforce the supervision and administration. In particular, according to the Circular, the investment management capacity of insurance institutions is divided into seven categories, including the credit risk management capacity, stock investment management capacity, equity investment management capacity, and real estate investment management capacity, after this adjustment. The insurance asset management institutions are no longer required to have the equity or real estate investment management capacity.