Aon-COFCO targets second-tier cities for expansion

Aon-COFCO Insurance Brokers Co Ltd, the China arm of US Aon, will boost efforts to speed up expansion.

"Business goes fast but competition is also fiercer," said Wu Qing, chief executive officer of Aon-COFCO.

The company plans to extend its business into second-tier cities along coastal areas to meet growing demand, Wu said at the celebration of its 10th anniversary on Wednesday.

Aon-Cofco, the first foreign company granted an insurance brokerage license by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission in 2003, is a joint venture between Aon, the world's leading risk and insurance broker, and the China National Cereals, Oil & Foodstuffs Corp.

After 10 years of development, its revenue rose from 20 million yuan ($3.26 million) in 2004 to more than 300 million yuan in 2012 with six subsidiaries set up in Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Chengdu, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

"We aim to double our revenue, or at least exceed the average growth rate of the market, after several years of effort," she said.

Aon-COFCO's expansion strategy was firmly supported by Greg Case, Aon president and chief executive officer, who said Aon will intensify its investment in China in the next several years to promote the venture's expansion.

"China has been a priority in our global market, which needs investing," Case said. But he didn't say how much will be injected into the Chinese market.

Aon will help the venture develop new products targeting at not only big companies, but small and medium-sized clients, he said.