ZhongAn Insurance Co adds new arm to services

ZhongAn Insurance Co Ltd, the first internet-based insurer in China, has added ZhongAn Life Sciences to its health ecosystem, aiming to expand business in health management, according to the company's top management on Tuesday.

"In the past, insurance was often located at the back end of the health management chain to function as a financial compensator only when a risk occurs," said Liu Haijiao, managing director of ZhongAn Life Sciences. "Now, we hope to extend to the front end of the chain."

ZhongAn Life Sciences also has partnered with Orig3n, a US biotechnology company, to build a joint research laboratory and explore applications for public health technologies, the company's top management said.

"Through ZhongAn Life Sciences, ZhongAn Health and ZhongAn Technology, we want to provide users with closed-loop solutions to disease prevention, tracking and intervention, health improvement, health protection and medical services," Liu said.

Due to the health problems that modern lifestyles bring, people, especially the younger generation, are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of health management, Liu said.

According to statistics from McKinsey, 65 percent of Chinese consumers in 2017 want to pursue a healthier lifestyle. Founded in 2017, ZhongAn Life Sciences has provided services to 432 million users; among them, 60 percent of the people are below 35 years old, the company's statement said.

Fan Hang contributed to this story.