Ground-breaking Chinese insurance firm Zhong An is planning to sell 5% to 10% of its business to raise over $1 billion before a planned IPO in mainland China, it has been reported.

The firm will sell the stake in the company to several strategic investors, according to Reuters.

Zhong An, China’s first internet-only insurer, is in early talks with investors as the firm will use the raised funds to expand its business before it gets confirmation from regulators on its proposed IPO.
Zhong An is often cited as one of the leaders of the pack in terms of insurtech in the Asia Pacific region.

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In 2016, the firm was ranked 5th in the KPMG Fintech100, having ranked first in 2015.

The firm was founded in November 2013 by Alibaba executive chairman, Jack Ma, Tencent chairman Pony Ma, and Ping An Insurance Group chairman Ma Mingzhe, with the insurer holding a 12% stake in the business.

Zhong An offers more than 300 insurance products and has written more than 7.56 billion policies for over 535 million customers.


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