ZhongAn, a leading insurtech company in China, today announced new senior leadership appointments.

Former General Manager and Joint CEO Mr. Jin Chen has resigned his positions, whilst continuing his role as an Executive Director, Chairman of the Investment Strategy Committee and the President of the Fintech Research Institute.

Meanwhile, the Board of Directors appointed former Vice General Manager and Joint CEO Mr. Xing Jiang as General Manager and CEO of the company. The qualification for the appointment of General Manager is subject to the approval of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.

ZhongAn has been streamlining its operations in recent years, resulting in a new high in the gross written premiums (GWP) for its insurance operations in FY2018, which passed the RMB10 billion mark. The appointment marks an important milestone for ZhongAn Online as part of its ongoing efforts in driving business development with its technology-based “Insurance + Technology” dual-engine strategy.

“ZhongAn Online’s successful development indicates that continuous technological innovation can bring greater value. Looking forward, we will be focused on enhancing the insurance value chain through technology,”

said Mr. Chen.

“Mr. Jiang and I have worked together for many years and have been collaborating with each other as Joint CEOs over the past several months,”

Mr. Chen continued.

“As ZhongAn Online currently has a focus on technology as a core strategy, I have recommended to the Board that Mr. Xing Jiang, who is particularly insightful on technology trends, be appointed as the General Manager of the Company to lead our experienced team and set us on course for our next business targets.”

Mr. Chen will gradually direct his responsibilities and focus of his work from operational management to strategic planning. In this new role, he will focus on integrating academic research and developments in the fintech industry, to advance the development of ZhongAn Online and the fintech ecosystem. Mr. Chen is a Adjunct Professor at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Going forward, he will also hold the position of the Dean of Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance.

Mr. Jiang joined ZhongAn Online in April 2014, with key responsibilities for the health ecosystem, e-commerce ecosystem and insurance businesses. Before assuming the current role, he was Vice President, Joint CEO of the Company and Executive Director of ZhongAn Information and Technology Services Co., Ltd.

He will lead a young professional core management team to meet the Company’s next five-year goals. Employing young professionals in top management teams is a current trend in the technology industry. As a technology-driven financial company, ZhongAn serves the next-generation users with its young employees. It is deemed a crucial part of the Company’s long-term strategy.

ZhongAn’s technology-driven insurance business has achieved stable growth in the five core ecosystems during the past five years, with GWP breaking the RMB10 billion mark in the past financial year.

“In recent years, ZhongAn has gained extensive technology and operating experience in the innovative space of insurtech. Talent is the most valuable asset of ZhongAn Online,”

Mr. Jiang explained.

Commenting on future strategy, Mr. Jiang indicated that he will continue to lead ZhongAn Online under the dual-engine strategy of “Insurance + Technology” to enhance the Company’s technology capability and operational efficiency with the vision in financial innovation and compliance management.

Going forward, ZhongAn will continue to incorporate new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing, blockchain and 5G, into insurance businesses, thereby reshaping the value chain of insurance.

ZhongAn Online will continue to explore the feasibility of integrating digital assets into product design, consumer segmentation and dual-core risk management, aiming to enhance the customer experience with its insurance robo-advisor and automated claim systems.

AI will act as one of the innovative engines for the Company. Through incorporating AI in its “ZhongAn ANswer” and smart customer service system, the Company can reduce manpower cost whilst providing a unique and customized service to users.

On the research and development (R&D) front, ZhongAn Online will establish a stable and user-friendly R&D collaboration platform and an operational monitoring platform for large-scale production support to enhance the Company’s technological competitiveness.

In addition, ZhongAn Online will also explore new technologies and innovative ideas for financial industry application building on its core insurance businesses. The Company will also encourage staff innovation through internal competition and incubation projects.

Featured image credit: A view of a ZhongAn Insurance office in Shanghai, Oct 29, 2017. [Photo/VCG]