Huang Jian is proposed to be appointed as Chairman of Lian Life Insurance. The company plans to spend nearly 900 million yuan to acquire a 5% stake in Zhongshan Public at a premium, reaching a takeover threshold.

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Recently, Lianan Life Insurance Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Lianan Life”) announced that it has elected Huang Jian as Chairman of the Board. Zhou Junshufu, due to reaching the retirement age, will no longer serve as the company’s Chairman of the Board or as a director.

(Image source: Lianan Life announcement)

Worth noting is that Lianan Life completed a change of president last year. With the new leadership team being assembled, the market has been closely watching the company’s future development path. In 2022, Lianan Life proposed the goal of “recreating another Lianan in three years, and striving to go public as soon as possible.” It planned for total assets to exceed 1 trillion yuan in 2023 and to fully push forward the IPO process. Now, with the three-year period coming to an end, although the company’s total assets have already crossed the 1-trillion-yuan threshold, there has still been no substantive progress in the IPO process. In terms of performance, in 2025 Lianan Life achieved premium income of 25.251 billion yuan and net profit of 227 million yuan.

Meanwhile, Lianan Life has also made new moves in external investments. A late-night announcement yesterday from Zhongshan Public Utilities (000685.SZ) stated that Lianan Life will become the final transferee of a 5% stake in the company. The transfer price will not be lower than 12.19 yuan per share, and the transaction amount is expected to be not less than 899 million yuan. Based on a rough calculation using Zhongshan Public Utilities’ closing price as of today, the premium is about 9.6%. Lianan Life is also expected to further increase its stake in another listed company.

Author | Blue Whale News Chen Xiaojuan

01

The company welcomed a newly appointed president last year, and compliance issues occurred frequently

Judging from his work history, Huang Jian has a solid professional finance background, with management experience across multiple areas including securities and futures—an archetypal “hands-on” financial practitioner.

He has previously served as a staff member in the finance department of Jiangsu Guoxin Group; assistant manager in the finance department, and then Finance Department Manager, at Jiangsu Shahe Pumped Storage Power Generation Co., Ltd.; assistant manager at the custody center of Xintai Securities; worked in the planning and finance department of Huatai Securities (the position during the restructuring period was not specified); financial director and secretary to the board of directors at Jintai Futures, as well as deputy general manager, financial director, and secretary to the board of directors; general manager of the Jiangsu branch at China Feng Securities; deputy general manager at Jintai Futures; deputy general manager of the capital operations department of Jiangsu Guoxin Group, general manager of the capital operations department, and general manager of the capital operations department concurrently serving as general manager of the financial department. From January 2026 to March 2026, he served as the Party Secretary of Lianan Life.

In June last year, Lianan Life just welcomed its new president, Yan Weijin. Yan Weijin is an early founding veteran of Lianan Life, involved in the preparatory work. Previously, he served in multiple positions including acting as the company’s temporary head, Chief Information Officer, Chief Investment Officer, and others.

As a result, Lianan Life is also about to enter a new leadership team period under the “Huang-Yan pairing.” This February, when Huang Jian attended the company’s “First Meeting of the New Year” in his capacity as Party Secretary of Lianan Life, he pointed out that in 2026, the company would make “the year for improving quality in assets and liabilities management” the main working thread, accelerate the improvement of efficiency and value, consolidate the risk defense line, and promote continuous, steady operations.

In terms of performance, Lianan Life has turned around losses in recent years. Based on the reporter’s review, under the consolidated basis, from 2022 to 2024, Lianan Life’s premium income was 19.388 billion yuan, 22.016 billion yuan, and 24.457 billion yuan, respectively; net profits during the same period were -2.757 billion yuan, 0.39 billion yuan, and 0.48 billion yuan, respectively.

Also, according to solvency reports, in 2025 Lianan Life achieved premium income of 25.251 billion yuan and net profit of 227 million yuan. The full-year net profit was mainly contributed in the fourth quarter, with net profit of 203 million yuan in a single quarter.

In addition, compliance-related issues within the company are also worth paying attention to. According to information in solvency reports across different quarters, in 2025 Lianan Life and its branches and subsidiaries were collectively fined 1.6674 million yuan (excluding penalties imposed on individuals). The matters subject to penalties include preparing false materials, improper management of marketing training, inadequate “dual recording” management, listing expenses without basis, listing intermediaries without basis, listing policies without basis, and so on.

02

Receiving Zhongshan Public Utilities shares at a premium, with potential for a stake increase announcement

While improving the company’s corporate governance structure, Lianan Life’s investment map has also continued to expand.

The reporter noticed that in a late-night disclosure yesterday, Zhongshan Public Utilities revealed the latest progress of an agreement transfer of company shares by its controlling shareholder, Zhongshan Investment Holding Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Zhongshan Investment Holding”), and that Lianan Life has been determined as the final transferee. The announcement stated that, as of now, Zhongshan Investment Holding holds about 719 million shares of Zhongshan Public Utilities (a shareholding ratio of 48.73%).

According to an earlier announcement, Zhongshan Investment Holding planned to transfer about 74 million shares of Zhongshan Public Utilities by agreement through a public solicitation process, accounting for 5% of the company’s total share capital, at a transfer price not lower than 12.19 yuan per share. Based on this, the transaction amount is not less than 899 million yuan.

Zhongshan Public Utilities’ closing price today is 11.12 yuan per share. Based on this calculation, the premium rate for Lianan Life’s acquisition of shares is about 9.6%. As of the end of last year’s third quarter, Lianan Life held 3.53% of Zhongshan Public Utilities. If the transfer is completed, Lianan Life will reach the threshold to trigger a stake increase.

As for the reasons why Lianan Life is taking over at a premium, market views hold that it may be related to Zhongshan Public Utilities’ good performance. Performance guidance shows that Zhongshan Public Utilities is expected to achieve attributable net profit of 1.798 billion yuan to 2.158 billion yuan for the full year, representing a year-on-year increase of 50%-80%.

In fact, in recent years Lianan Life has frequently made moves in the secondary market, increasing its stake and triggering stake increases for multiple listed companies. In July 2025, Lianan Life bought 1.1 million shares of Jiangnan Water (601199.SH). After the increase, it held a total of 46.9954 million shares of Jiangnan Water, with its stake rising from 4.91% to 5.03%, reaching the threshold to trigger a stake increase. In November 2024, Lianan Life bought 0.5 million shares of Shenzhen International (0152.HK), and its stake rose from 4.98% to 5.00%, reaching the threshold to trigger a stake increase.

In addition, Lianan Life also holds shares in multiple listed companies such as Wuxi Bank (600908.SH), Changshu Bank (601128.SH), and Anhui Natural Gas (603689.SH). It ranks among the top ten shareholders and shows a preference for steady, high-dividend stocks such as banks and public utilities.

Data shows that in 2025, Lianan Life’s cumulative return on net assets was 3.59%, return on total assets was 0.18%, investment return rate was 5.56%, and its cumulative comprehensive investment return rate was 2.46%. Over the past three years, its average investment return rate was 3.90%, and its average comprehensive investment return rate was 4.84%.

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