The China Insurance Regulatory Commission recently approved the application of Shanghai-based Da Zhong Insurance Co Ltd for a change of stock ownership, in which the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of Shanghai Municipal Government will transfer 39 percent of its shareholding of the insurance company to Starr Companies of the United States.

Insurers free to put more premiums into stocks

After the transfer, Starr will hold 59 percent of Da Zhong's shares, making it the majority holder of the insurance company's stocks. Da Zhong will also change from a State-owned financial company to a foreign-invested financial company, the first of its kind in Shanghai.

The transfer of shareholdings in Da Zhong marks a new milestone in Shanghai's reform of State-owned assets and SOEs. The Shanghai management department of State-owned financial assets said they would seek a way to carry out the reform that best suits companies' development by maximizing market forces.