Which technology insurance protects whom, what does it cover, and how is it insured? Four departments clarify

According to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission’s website on March 2, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the National Intellectual Property Administration jointly issued the “Several Opinions on Accelerating the High-Quality Development of Science and Technology Insurance to Support High-Level Scientific and Technological Self-Reliance and Strength” (hereinafter referred to as the “Science and Technology Insurance Opinions”).

The “Science and Technology Insurance Opinions” aim to improve the risk diversification mechanism for major technological breakthroughs and establish a policy system for science and technology insurance.

Key Highlights

• Strengthen insurance protection for major national scientific and technological tasks. Improve risk diversification mechanisms for major technological breakthroughs. Implement specialized risk protection services for the “one laboratory, one policy” approach around the national laboratory system.

• Enhance insurance coverage for small and medium-sized science and technology enterprises. Encourage insurance institutions to provide key coverage for infringement liabilities and rights protection costs related to core patents and trademarks, offering stable expectations and security for SMEs focused on R&D and market competition.

• Strengthen insurance coverage throughout the lifecycle of science and technology enterprises. Develop insurance products for key stages such as R&D,成果转化, and industrialization promotion. Promote the implementation of products like R&D expense loss insurance, scientific and technological成果转化 expense loss insurance, and first-of-its-kind comprehensive insurance. Gradually establish an insurance compensation and risk-sharing system covering all stages, facilitating the transformation from scientific research to market application.

• Support “going global” for science and technology enterprises. Increase export credit insurance support for tech companies, strengthen coverage along the industrial chain. Improve overseas risk monitoring and early warning systems, and enhance保障 for products, capital, and talent going abroad.

• Optimize the development and actuarial pricing of science and technology insurance products. Appropriately increase the inclusiveness of product innovation, optimize the filing management of science and technology insurance products. Encourage the development of dedicated products in key fields such as AI, integrated circuits, quantum technology, biotech manufacturing, hydrogen and nuclear fusion energy, brain-computer interfaces, and embodied intelligence. Explore establishing specialized risk reserve systems.

• Improve underwriting and claims services for science and technology insurance. Enhance digital and intelligent service levels, gradually realize online underwriting and claims. Issue guidelines for underwriting and claims practices as needed to standardize operations.

Strengthening Insurance Protection for Major National Scientific and Technological Tasks

The “Science and Technology Insurance Opinions” consist of seven parts, proposing 20 policy measures. The first part covers overall requirements; parts two through six focus on key initiatives related to “who is protected, what is insured, how to insure,” centering on major scientific and technological tasks, SMEs, key innovation areas and critical links, product and service innovation, and investment in technological innovation fields; the seventh part addresses保障 and supervision.

The document clarifies that insurance protection for major national scientific and technological tasks will be strengthened, with three policy measures focusing on major technological breakthroughs, national strategic科技力量, and重点区域.

1. Improve risk diversification mechanisms for major technological breakthroughs. Optimize multi-entity risk sharing models involving government, tech enterprises, and insurance institutions. Improve multi-layer loss sharing among policyholders, insurance markets, and reinsurance markets. Establish specialized insurance共同体 in重点科技领域 where risks are large or insufficiently diversified, based on market-oriented and法治化 principles.

2. Enhance insurance services for national战略科技力量. Provide特色化 and专业化 insurance保障 services tailored to the characteristics of national laboratories, research institutions, top-tier universities, and leading科技企业.

3. Strengthen科技保险 services in重点区域. Support Beijing (京津冀), Shanghai (长三角), and the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area as首发地 for科技保险创新. Support regional科技创新中心 in building科技保险区域创新高地. Support科创金融改革试验区 and保险创新示范区 in开展特色科技保险创新实践.

Among these, the implementation of "one laboratory, one policy"专项风险保障服务 around the national laboratory system is emphasized. Strengthen insurance保障 for national research institutions, top-tier research universities, covering common关键技术攻关, major科技基础设施, high-end科研仪器,关键科技人才, and成果转移转化. Foster leading科技企业, provide全生命周期 coverage, and encourage comprehensive insurance services for产业链上下游企业.

Enhancing Insurance Coverage for SMEs in Science and Technology

The “Science and Technology Insurance Opinions” clearly state the goal to提升科技型中小企业的保险保障水平. Based on the risk characteristics of SMEs, two policy measures are proposed:

1. Promote convenient and accessible科技保险产品. Support insurance institutions in developing simple, reasonably priced, easy-to-apply, and easy-to-claim products. Encourage coverage for infringement liabilities and rights protection costs related to core patents and trademarks. Support regions with favorable conditions to introduce policies such as increased premium subsidies to reduce企业投保成本.

2. Expand coverage of科技保险. Support localities in building科技保险供需对接平台 within incubators, accelerators, university科技园, and high-tech产业园区. Offer flexible insurance方案 based on risk features and scenarios like先使用后付费.

To better align科技保险 with创新链, four policy measures are proposed:

1. Optimize product development and actuarial pricing. Increase innovation容纳度, improve filing管理. Encourage the development of专属产品 in AI, integrated circuits, quantum tech, biotech manufacturing, hydrogen and nuclear fusion energy, brain-computer interfaces, embodied intelligence, and other重点科技领域. Explore establishing专项风险准备金制度.

2. Improve underwriting and claims services. Develop services aligned with科技企业的规律和创新特点. Issue relevant指引 for underwriting and claims. Support insurance institutions in participating in重点项目建设, standard制定, and risk减量管理.

3. Promote专业化经营 of科技保险. Adhere to policies emphasizing专门政策、专属产品、专营团队、专业人才、专项考核. Reflect鼓励政策 in监管评级. Support设立科技保险专营机构 in国际科技创新中心 and区域科技创新中心,配备专业团队.

4. Foster科技保险发展生态. Support重点区域通过政府、保险机构和高校院所合作，整合研发投入、测试成本、知识产权等动态数据，建立科技型企业风险图谱库. Deepen金融科技应用研究,提升行业科技支撑能力,优化智能流程,创新风险减量服务.研究建立知识产权、网络安全保险服务标准框架。

(From China Securities Journal)