Founded in January 2022, NIO’s insurance brokerage firm recently initiated a simple termination. The registered capital of the company is 50 million yuan (US$7.25 million).
According to regulations, when a national insurance brokerage institution applies to operate, it must be accepted by local bank insurance regulatory commissions and subjected to a preliminary examination. However, NIO’s insurance subsidiary has not been approved by the regulator.
Since China Southern Airlines Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. on July 11, 2018, it has never approved any other insurance brokerage firm. Media outlet Beijing Business Today reported that local regulators had or planned to terminate 1,870 insurance intermediaries in 2022.
Jiemian News quoted Song Zhanjun, deputy secretary-general of the Insurance Research Center of Beijing University of Technology and Economics, as saying that insurance supervision has been standardized in recent years, which has increased the requirements for building information systems in the insurance intermediary industry.
Some insiders pointed out that after 2018, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission did not issue new intermediary licenses, but transferred a large number of insurance intermediary licenses, which may be the future development trend. “Currently, there are more than 2,000 insurance brokerage companies in China, but most of them are not working in an ideal condition, and more than 700 of them have annual incomes of less than 1 million yuan. Previously, regulators issued a notice to encourage insurance intermediaries to engage in equity swaps.”
On October 21, 2022, NIO Anhui established NIO Data Technology Co., Ltd. with a registered capital of 100 million yuan. On December 12, the company acquired Huiding Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. and obtained his license as an insurance intermediary.
In addition to NIO, BYD’s acquisition of insurance company 1An.com earlier this year also caused heated debates. Previously, the establishment of BYD Insurance Brokerage Co was approved in March last year.
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It has become a typical move for automotive companies, especially electric vehicle companies, to get involved in the insurance industry. The iResearch Consulting Group pointed out that car insurance, as the first product consumers encounter after buying a car, can be used as a gateway for car owners due to its necessary characteristics. Auto companies can take auto insurance as a starting point to develop a more profitable after-car ecosystem.
With more regulations and technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, cloud computing and blockchain, the insurance intermediary market faces several new opportunities.
