Pilot program to usher in stock investments by insurance firms

China will implement the second phase of a pilot program aimed at facilitating insurance funds making long-term stock investments in the first half of 2025, with a program size of no less than 100 billion yuan ($13.7 billion), said Wu Qing, chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission.

Wu said at a news conference on Thursday that the size of the program will be gradually expanded in the future.

Xiao Yuanqi, vice-minister of the National Financial Regulatory Administration, said at the conference that 50 billion yuan of the program will be approved before the Spring Festival to channel more investments into the stock market.

According to Xiao, the pilot program allows insurance companies to launch securities investment funds making long-term investments in the stock market. In the first implementation phase of the pilot, at a size of 50 billion yuan, the funds recorded decent returns.