Insurer to buy into Industrial Bank

Ping An Group, the country's second-largest life insurer plans to buy 4.25% of mid-tier Fujian-based Industrial Bank in order to boost its presence in China's financial sector, Reuters reported. The insurance company has agreed initially to buy a 1.75% stake, pending regulatory approval, worth US$24.2 million, before purchasing another 100 million shares, or a 2.5% stake, due to be sold through a limited auction in Beijing. If completed, the two-stage deal will make Ping An, in which HSBC has a 19.9% holding, the fourth largest shareholder of Industrial Bank.