China's first tech insurance firm in the pipeline
China is on course to open its first tech insurance firm and an equivalent of the "Silicon Valley Bank" by 2020, according to a source with direct knowledge of the matter on Friday.
The proposal to establish a tech insurance firm has "received warm response" from China Insurance Regulatory Commission, the nation's insurance watchdog, after submitting application materials last year, said Wu Lebin, chairman of Chinese Academy of Sciences Holdings Co Ltd, a State-run asset management company and a key initiator.
At least five companies have sponsored the establishment of the insurer, a majority of whom are enterprises affiliated to the China Academy of Sciences, the national institution conducting basic and applied research, Wu said during the Boao Forum for Asia 2017.Wu said registered capital reached more than 1 billion yuan ($145.2 million).
"We see great hopes to lead the country's first tech insurance company, serving high-tech companies of all scales and in various stages, from project approval to product selling," he said.
The academy has also signed a deal with the Shanghai municipal government to set up a bank targeting small and medium-sized tech firms who long for loans to grow their businesses, Wu added. Details are under discussion with China Banking Regulatory Commission.
