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China Life Insurance Company

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Industry Insurance - Life
Employees 10,000+
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FY2023 Annual Report · China Life Insurance Company
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Stock Code : 2628

Annual

Report

The  Company  was  established  in  Beijing,  China 
on 30 June 2003 according to the Company Law 
and  the  Insurance  Law  of  the  People’s  Republic 
of  China.  The  Company  was  successfully  listed 
overseas  in  December  2003  and  returned  to  the 
domestic market as an A-share listed company in 
January  2007.  The  Company’s  registered  capital 
is  RMB28,264,705,000.

The Company is a leading life insurance company 
in China and possesses an extensive distribution 
network  comprising  exclusive  agents,  direct 
sales  representatives,  and  dedicated  and  non-
dedicated  agencies.  The  Company  is  one  of 
the  largest  institutional  investors  in  China,  and 
becomes  one  of  the  largest  insurance  asset 
management  companies  in  China  through  its 
controlling  shareholding  in  China  Life  Asset 
Management  Company  Limited.  The  Company 
also  has  controlling  shareholding  in  China  Life 
Pension  Company  Limited.

Our  products  and  services  include  individual  life 
insurance,  group  life  insurance,  and  accident 
and  health  insurance.  The  Company  is  a  leading 
provider  of  individual  and  group  life  insurance, 
annuity  products  and  accident  and  health 
insurance in China. As at 31 December 2023, the 
Company had approximately 328 million long-term 
individual and group life insurance policies, annuity 
contracts, and long-term health insurance policies 
in  force.  We  also  provide  both  individual  and 
group  accident  and  short-term  health  insurance 
policies  and  services.

CONTENTS

01 PRELUDE

Core Competitiveness

Honors and Awards

Business Highlights

Financial Summary

02 CHAIRMAN’S 

STATEMENT

MANAGEMENT
DISCUSSION AND 
ANALYSIS

03

Review of Business  

Operations

Business Analysis

Analysis of Specific Items

Technology Capabilities, 

Operations and Services

Future Prospect

2

2

3

5

6

9

12

12

15

24

27

28

07 OTHER INFORMATION

Basic Information of the 

Company

Index of Information  

Disclosure Announcements

Definitions and Material  

Risk Alert

08 FINANCIAL REPORT

Independent Auditor’s Report

Consolidated Statement of 

Financial Position

Consolidated Statement of 
Comprehensive Income

110

110

112

115

116

116

122

124

Consolidated Statement of 

126

Changes in Equity

Consolidated Statement of 

127

Cash Flows

Notes to the Consolidated 

129

Financial Statements

04 EMBEDDED VALUE

05 SIGNIFICANT EVENTS

Information on Delisting and 
Deregistration of American 
Depositary Shares

Material Litigations or 

Arbitrations

Major Connected Transactions

Material Contracts and Their 

Performance

Undertakings

Alleged Violation of Laws 

and Regulations, Penalties 
Imposed and Rectification

Restriction on Major Assets

Other Matters

06 CORPORATE 

GOVERNANCE

Report of the Board of 

Directors

Report of the Board of 

Supervisors

Changes in Ordinary  

Shares and Shareholders 
Information

Directors, Supervisors,  

Senior Management and 
Employees

Report of Corporate 

Governance

29

35

35

35

35

41

41

42

42

42

43

43

52

56

59

73

Long history 
and  
excellent  
brand

The predecessor of the Company, one of the first batch of enterprises to underwrite insurance business in 
China, was approved by the Chinese Government for establishment in October 1949. After the restructuring 
and reorganisation, the Company was successively listed overseas and domestically. The Company has 
been playing the role of an explorer and pioneer in China’s life insurance industry, and through long-term 
and continuous brand building, China Life has become one of the famous and strong brands in the world 
with growing brand value and influence.

Prominent 
principal 
business 
and sound 
financial 
strength

Convenient 
services 
and superb 
customer 
experience

The  Company  sticks  to  the  original  role  of  insurance  and  further  explores  the  huge  potentials  of  the  life 
insurance market. The Company has a sound institutional and services network, with its business outlets 
and services counters covering both urban and rural areas across China, which forms a powerful distribution 
and services network and through which the Company maintains its leading position in China’s life insurance 
market and becomes the life insurance service provider within the reach of customers. Through the long-term 
development and accumulation, China Life has solid financial strength comparable to world-class enterprises 
in the world, with its total assets ranking No. 1 in the life insurance industry in China. As one of the largest 
institutional  investors  in  China,  the  Company  becomes  one  of  the  largest  insurance  asset  management 
companies in China through its controlling shareholding in China Life Asset Management Company Limited.

The  Company  adheres  to  the  service  concept  of  “honest  and  trustworthy,  professional  and  efficient, 
customer-oriented, and  first-class  experience”,  develops the  operation model of “multiple accesses at 
the front-end, intelligent centralisation at the headquarters, and comprehensive sharing for operations”, 
and  has  established  a  customer-oriented  digital  operation  and  service  system.  The  Company  keeps 
considering and catering to demands of its customers, devoting itself to improve customer experience, 
and providing customers with “convenient, quality and caring” services. The Company also adheres to 
the concept of “people-oriented, caring for life, creating value and serving the community”, with the aim 
to consistently contribute to the protection of people’s good life.

Leading 
technologies 
and  
innovation 
empowerment

The Company implements the “Technology-driven China Life” development strategy in great depth by 
adhering to the leading concept of technological innovation. The Company has established digital platforms 
closely integrating online and offline resources with teams and outlets as the support and industry-leading 
hybrid clouds as the base, creating an open, win-win and diversified digital insurance ecosystem, facilitating 
the Company’s digital transformation in all aspects, and accelerating the replacement of old growth drivers 
with new ones, through which the Company’s business operation is empowered in all aspects, and the 
Company is able to provide smart, convenient, efficient and well-targeted comprehensive financial and 
insurance services to the public.

During  the  long  course  of  its  development,  the  Company  has  accumulated  a  wealth  of  experience  in 
operation and management and has a stable and professional management team that is well versed in 
the art of management in China’s life insurance market. The Company’s core management team and key 
personnel comprise those who have in-depth knowledge and understanding of the life insurance market 
in China, including the Company’s senior management, experienced underwriting personnel, insurance 
actuaries, investment managers and risk management teams. During the Reporting Period, there was no 
change of the above personnel which might have a material impact on the Company. The Company has 
been pushing forward the reform of the market-oriented remuneration system, continuously stimulating 
its internal vitality, and building a talent team that matches its high-quality development.

Professional 
and  
stable core 
team

02

CORE COMPETITIVENESSAnnual Report 2023 | Prelude“2023 Forbes Global 2000”, ranking 62nd
“2023 Forbes China ESG Innovative Enterprise”
Forbes

“2023 Fortune China 500 List”, ranking 12th
Fortune China

“Best Listed Insurance Company of the Year”
Financial Times 
“2023 Gold Medal List of Chinese Financial Institution 
– Golden Dragon Award”

“Ark Prize for Insurance Company with High-quality 
Development in 2023”
“Ark Prize for Innovation in the Insurance Industry in 2023”
“Ark Prize for Excellent Social Responsibility in the Insurance 
Industry in 2023”
Securities Times
“Assessment and Selection of the Ark Prizes for China’s Insurance 
Industry in 2023”

“2023 Excellent Insurance Company”
“2023 Digital Transformation Institution”
21st Century Business Herald

“Excellent Life Insurance Company 
of the Year”
National Business Daily
“2023 China Golden Tripod Awards”

03

HONORS AND AWARDSAnnual Report 2023 | Prelude“Annual Insurance Protection Brand Award”
“Annual Protection-oriented Insurance Product Award”
“Annual Insurance Service Award”
Shanghai Securities News
“2023 Assessment and Selection of the ‘Golden Wealth Management’”

“2023 Top 50 List of 
Chinese Listed Company Governance”
China Corporate Governance Experts 50 Forum

“2023 Top 100 Chinese Listed Companies with ESG Best 
Practices selected by Wind”
Wind

“2023 Financial Institution with High-quality Development”
Chinatimes.net.cn

“Investment Golden Bull Award 
for the Insurance Industry”
China Securities Journal
“Assessment and Selection of the 3rd Investment Golden Bull Awards for China’s Insurance Industry”

“Best Insurance Company for 
Responsible Investment”
Sina Finance
“2023 China Corporate ESG ‘Golden Responsibility Award’”

04

Annual Report 2023 | PreludeGross written 
premiums

641,380

million

Total  assets

5,802,086

million

Investment 
assets

5,659,250

million

Embedded  value

1,260,567

million

Value  of  one  
year's  sales

36,860

million

Comprehensive 
solvency  ratio

218.54%

First-year   
regular  premiums

112,573

million

First-year  regular  premiums 
with  a  payment  duration  of 
ten  years  or  longer

Number  of  long-term 
in-force  policies

49,522

million

3.28

hundred million

05

BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTSAnnual Report 2023 | PreludeThe  Company  has  prepared  the  annual  report  in  accordance  with  International  Financial  Reporting  Standards  (“IFRSs”), 
amendments to IFRSs and interpretations issued by the International Accounting Standards Board. Since 1 January 2023, 
the Company has adopted IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments and IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts. The Company has restated 
and  presented  the  comparative  information  of  the  previous  year  associated  with  insurance  contracts  in  accordance  with 
IFRS  17  –  Insurance  Contracts,  and  there  is  no  need  to  restate  and  present  any  comparative  information  of  the  previous 
year associated with financial instruments in accordance with IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments.

MAJOR FINANCIAL DATA AND INDICATORS FOR THE PAST FIVE YEARS1

Major financial data

2023

2022

Change

2021

2020

2019

Under International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs)

RMB million

For the year ended
Total revenue
Profit before income tax
Net profit attributable to equity  

holders of the Company

Net profit attributable to ordinary  
share holders of the Company
Net cash inflow/(outflow) from  

operating activities

As at 31 December
Total assets

Including: Investment assets2

Total liabilities
Equity holders’ equity

Per share (RMB)
Earnings per share (basic and diluted)3
Equity holders’ equity per share3
Ordinary share holders’ equity  

per share3

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from operating 

activities per share3

Major financial ratios
Weighted average ROE (%)

Gearing ratio4 (%)

Gross investment yield5 (%)

344,746
44,576
46,181

370,861
70,060
66,680

-7.0%
-36.4%
-30.7%

824,933
50,340
50,766

805,049
54,440
50,221

729,503
59,758
58,251

46,181

66,680

-30.7%

50,766

50,020

57,857

384,366

345,284

11.3%

286,446

303,990

286,008

5,802,086
5,659,250
5,315,052
477,093

5,010,068
4,811,893
4,635,095
366,021

15.8% 4,892,480
17.6% 4,716,420
14.7% 4,405,346
479,061
30.3%

4,253,544
4,095,541
3,795,975
450,688

3,727,686
3,573,257
3,317,658
404,448

1.63
16.88
16.88

13.60

9.65

91.61

2.43

2.36
12.95
12.95

12.22

-30.7%
30.3%
30.3%

11.3%

1.80
16.95
16.95

10.13

1.77 
15.95 
15.95 

2.05 
14.31 
14.03 

10.76 

10.12 

17.26 A decrease 
of 7.61 
percentage 
points
92.52 A decrease 
of 0.91 
percentage 
point
3.90 A decrease 
of 1.47 
percentage 
points

10.92

11.81

16.46

90.04

89.24

89.00

4.98

5.30

5.24

Notes:

1.  There  is  no  need  for  the  Company  to  restate  and  present  any  comparative  information  for  the  years  from  2019  to  2021  in  accordance  with  IFRS  9  – 

Financial Instruments and IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts.

2.  As  at  31  December  2023,  Investment  assets  =  Cash  and  cash  equivalents  +  Financial  assets  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss  +  Investment  in  debt 
instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income + Investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income + 
Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost + Term deposits + Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell + Statutory deposits-restricted 
+  Investment  properties  +  Investments  in  associates  and  joint  ventures.  As  at  31  December  2022,  Investment  assets  =  Cash  and  cash  equivalents  + 
Securities  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss  +  Available-for-sale  securities  +  Held-to-maturity  securities  +  Term  deposits  +  Financial  assets  purchased 
under agreements to resell + Loans (excluding policy loans) + Statutory deposits-restricted + Investment properties + Investments in associates and joint 
ventures

3. 

In calculating the percentage changes of the “Earnings per share (basic and diluted)”, “Equity holders’ equity per share”, “Ordinary share holders’ equity 
per share” and “Net cash inflow/(outflow) from operating activities per share”, the tail differences of the basic figures have been taken into account.

4.  Gearing ratio = Total liabilities/Total assets

5. 

In the calculation of the investment yield of the year 2023, the average investment assets as the denominator exclude the fair value changes of investment 
in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income, so as to reflect the strategic intention of the Company for the management of assets 
and liabilities. In the calculation of the investment yield of the year 2022, the data of investment businesses related to IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts has 
been restated, while the data of investment businesses related to IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments has not been restated. The formula used for calculating 
the investment yield of the year 2022 is the same as that of previous years.

06

FINANCIAL SUMMARYAnnual Report 2023 | Prelude 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
INFORMATION ON THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 
PREPARED UNDER ACCOUNTING STANDARDS FOR BUSINESS ENTERPRISES 
AND INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL REPORTING STANDARDS

Under  Accounting  Standards  for  Business  Enterprises  (“ASBE”),  the  Company  adopts  the  transition  plan  for  the  new 
accounting  standards  for  insurance  contracts.  In  2023,  the  Company  continued  to  apply ASBE  No.  25  –  Direct  Insurance 
Contracts  (Caikuai  [2006]  No.  3),  ASBE  No.  26  –  Reinsurance  Contracts (Caikuai  [2006]  No.  3),  Regulations  regarding  the 
Accounting  Treatment  of  Insurance  Contracts  (Caikuai  [2009]  No.  15),  ASBE  No.  22  –  Recognition  and  Measurement  of 
Financial Instruments (Caikuai [2006] No. 3), ASBE No. 23 – Transfer of Financial Assets (Caikuai [2006] No. 3), ASBE No. 
24 – Hedging (Caikuai [2006] No. 3), ASBE No. 37 – Presentation of Financial Instruments (Caikuai [2014] No. 23) and other 
relevant accounting standards.

The  reconciliations  of  net  profit  attributable  to  equity  holders  of  the  Company  for  the  years  2023  and  2022  and  equity 
holders’ equity as at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2022 from the consolidated financial statements prepared under 
ASBE to those under IFRSs are as follows:

Net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company under ASBE
Reconciling items: 

Adjustment related to IFRS 9
Adjustment related to IFRS 17
Deferred tax effects

Net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company under IFRSs

Equity holders’ equity under ASBE
Reconciling items: 

Adjustment related to IFRS 9
Adjustment related to IFRS 17
Deferred tax effects

Equity holders’ equity under IFRSs

RMB million

2022

32,082

N/A
46,013
(11,415)
66,680

2023

21,110

(6,685)
39,593
(7,837)
46,181

As at  
31 December 
2023

As at  
31 December 
2022

460,110

436,169

198,144
(176,854)
(4,307)
477,093

N/A
(93,967)
23,819
366,021

In 2023, the net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company under IFRSs was RMB46,181 million, an increase of 
RMB25,071 million comparing with the data under ASBE. As at 31 December 2023, the equity holders’ equity under IFRSs 
was RMB477,093 million, an increase of RMB16,983 million comparing with the data under ASBE.

07

Annual Report 2023 | Prelude 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
MAJOR ITEMS OF THE CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS WITH 
CHANGE OF OVER 30% AND THE REASONS FOR CHANGENote

RMB million

Major items of the 
consolidated statement of 
financial position

As at  
31 December 
2023

As at  
31 December 
2022

Change Main reasons for change

Deferred tax assets

24,431

46,126

-47.0% A decrease in deductible temporary 

differences

Financial assets purchased 

19,759

38,533

-48.7% The needs for liquidity management

under agreements to resell

Financial assets sold under 
agreements to repurchase

216,851

148,958

45.6% The needs for liquidity management 

Financial liabilities at fair 

13,878

3,344

315.0% An increase in the scale of commercial 

value through profit or loss

pension products of subsidiaries

Equity holders’ equity

477,093

366,021

30.3% Due to the combined impact of changes  

of accounting standards, total 
comprehensive income and profit 
distribution during the Reporting Period

For the year ended 31 December 

RMB million

Major items of the 
consolidated statement of 
comprehensive income

Investment income from 
associates and joint 
ventures

2023

8,079

2022

Change Main reasons for change

3,979

103.0% An increase in the net profits of certain 
associates and joint ventures

Income tax

(2,971)

1,948

N/A Due to the combined effect of changes in 

Net profit attributable to 
equity holders of the 
Company

46,181

66,680

-30.7% The Company actively balanced long-term  

profit before income tax and non-taxable 
income

value and short-term benefits, continued 
to strengthen cost control and 
underwriting management. However, due 
to the combined impact of changes of 
accounting standards and the continued 
low performance of the equity market, the 
net profit of the Company decreased

Note:  The items significantly affected by IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments are not presented because of no comparability with the same items last year.

08

Annual Report 2023 | Prelude 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CHAIRMAN’S  
STATEMENT

2023  was  the  opening  year  for  fully  implementing  the 
guidelines  of  the  20th  CPC  National  Congress  and  also  a 
year of economic recovery and development following the 
transition of the three-year COVID-19 pandemic prevention 
and  control  measures.  Looking  back  to  the  past  year,  as 
China’s  economy  rebounded  with  sound  momentum  and 
market demands were gradually improving, the life insurance 
industry  saw  a  remarkable  recovery  trend.  Centering  on 
serving the overall interests of national development, China 
Life gave full play to the functions of insurance as a “shock 
absorber”  for  economic  operation  and  a  “stabiliser”  for 
social  development  and  steadfastly  pushed  forward  its 
development in finance with Chinese characteristics. With 
building a world-class life insurance company as its goal, the 
Company worked hard to pursue high-quality development 
with concerted efforts. As a result, the Company achieved 
a steady progress while maintaining stability in its business 
development  and  further  enhanced  its  comprehensive 
strengths  with  its  market  leading  position  remaining 
solidified.  It  has  been  awarded  Grade  A  in  the  evaluation 
of  operations  of  insurance  companies  by  the  Insurance 
Association of China for eight consecutive years, and ranked 
62nd and 12th by Forbes Global 2000 and Fortune China 500, 
respectively.  Embracing  the  “investor-oriented”  concept, 
the  Board  has  proposed  to  distribute  a  cash  dividend  of 
RMB4.30 per 10 shares (inclusive of tax), and such proposal 
will be submitted to the 2023 Annual General Meeting for 
review and discussion.

We  continued  to  provide  insurance  services  for  the 
people  and  made  consistent  efforts  to  improve  our 
performance in serving the overall interests of national 
development. We steadfastly put people as the first priority 
and deeply engaged in building a multi-tiered social security 
system  for  the  people’s  wellbeing.  We  made  significant 
improvement  to  inclusive  insurance  services  in  terms  of 
coverage  and  accessibility,  with  the  supplementary  major 
medical expenses insurance programs covering nearly 350 
million  people  and  the  long-term  care  insurance  programs 
providing  services  to  more  than  38  million  people.  The 
number of the city-customised insurance projects undertook 
by  us  hit  a  record  high,  and  our  capacity  of  supplying 
insurance  protection  for  new  urban  residents  and  new 
business  practitioners  was  constantly  enhanced.  We 
contributed to the improvement of the multi-tiered pension 
insurance system and made tremendous efforts to advance 
the pilot program of the third-pillar private pension insurance 
business while the commercial pension insurance business 
thrived.  We  paid  special  attention  to  the  enhancement  of 

09

Annual Report 2023 | Chairman’s Statementthe risk protection for the senior people, and the senior-care 
service  system  and  ecosystem  was  constantly  optimised. 
Meanwhile,  we  actively  performed  our  roles  as  the  main 
force for serving the real economy and maintaining financial 
stability,  and  realigned  the  direction  of  capital  investment, 
with our existing investments in real economy and in green 
investments amounted to over RMB4 trillion and RMB460 
billion,  respectively.  We  took  effective  actions  to  support 
rural  revitalisation  in  all  aspects,  and  helped  create  a  new 
paradigm  for  integrated  urban  and  rural  development.  The 
“rural  revitalisation  insurance”  became  the  only  project  in 
the  insurance  industry  that  was  listed  in  the  “4th  Global 
Best  Poverty  Reduction  Practices”.  We  further  reinforced 
the buildup of the ESG system and were awarded the “2023 
Forbes China ESG Innovative Enterprise” by Forbes.

We  strengthened  asset-liability  management  and 
consistently enhanced our capability in business value 
creation. We conducted an in-depth analysis of new changes 
in  both  assets  and  liabilities  and  kept  researching  on  the 
interest  rate  trend.  Prioritising  business  value  growth,  we 
reinforced  systematic,  holistic  and  long-term  thinking  and 
incorporated the concept of asset-liability management into 
all aspects including product supply, business development, 
asset  allocation  and  risk  prevention  and  control,  so  as  to 
further  improve  the  refined  management  and  balance  the 
relationships between assets and liabilities and between long-
term value and short-term benefits, in order to consistently 
enhance our capabilities of sustainable development. While 
realising  a  growth  in  the  insurance  business,  we  saw  our 
business  structure  being  optimised  further.  In  2023,  we 
hit a record high in terms of gross written premiums, with 
a  double-digit  increase  in  the  value  of  one  year’s  sales. 
Our  industry  leading  position  in  terms  of  gross  written 
premiums,  value  of  one  year’s  sales  and  embedded  value 
were further consolidated, and our solvency ratios remained 
at relatively high levels. We practised the philosophy of long-
term investment, value investment and prudent investment, 
consistently  strengthened  our  professional  capability  in 
investment,  made  allocation  to  major  assets  categories 
from the cross-cycle and long-term perspective, proactively 
took  positions  in  industries  with  medium-  and  long-term 
growth potentials at a low level of the capital market, and 
strengthened  the  management  and  control  of  investment 
risks, striving to stabilise our investment income.

We  advanced  reforms  in  greater  depth  and  continued 
to  bring  together  the  internal  driving  forces  for 
development. Following the policy direction and responding 
to market demands, we gave full play to our own advantages 
and pushed forward a series of reforms (including the “Eight 
Reform Programs”), so as to enhance the precise delivery 
of  products  and  services  and  facilitate  the  upgrading  of 
our  business  models.  The  sales  system  reforms  achieved 
breakthroughs. The three transformation measures in relation 

to the upgrading of the existing sales force, establishment 
of  new  sales  force  and  sales  force  empowerment  were 
implemented  at  an  accelerated  pace,  speeding  up  the 
transformation and upgrading of a specialised, professional 
and  integrated  sales  force.  Regarding  the  healthcare  and 
senior-care  ecosystem  as  our  long-term  development 
strategy,  we  made  tremendous  efforts  to  expand  product 
and  service  supply  through  diverse  models  and  created  a 
closed-loop system of “products – services – payment”, thus 
making significant achievements in “insurance + services”. 
Taking data and technology as the key production factors, we 
deepened the integration of digitalisation and business and 
focused on technology-driven initiatives, further enhancing 
the  convenience  and  competitiveness  of  our  insurance 
services.  We  forged  China  Life’s  good  services,  which 
are  “convenient,  quality  and  caring”,  and  ranked  among 
the  top  of  the  industry  in  the  assessment  of  protection 
of  consumers’  rights  and  interests  as  conducted  by  the 
industry regulator.

We coordinated business development and risk control, 
and consistently fortified the cornerstone for our healthy 
business operations. The insurance industry is an industry 
operating  and  managing  risks.  Taking  risk  prevention  and 
control as our permanent task and upholding the concept of 
sound and prudent business operation, we struck a balance 
between  stable  growth  and  risk  control  and  firmly  held 
onto  the  bottom  line  that  no  systemic  risks  arose.  We 
enhanced our business operations in compliance with laws 
and regulations, fully implemented the requirements under 
the C-ROSS (Phase II) Regulation, put into practice a series 
of  new  rules  on  “aligning  sales  practices  with  regulatory 
filings” in a stringent manner, ensured security while seeking 
development and vice versa. As a result, the Company’s risk 
prevention and control measures were performed effectively. 
We  continued  to  optimise  the  compliance  management 
system and successfully obtained certifications under both 
domestic  and  international  standards  in  this  regard.  The 
Company  continuously  maintained  the  rating  of  Class  A  in 
the integrated risk rating for insurance companies, and was 
among the top-ranked life insurance companies as evaluated 
by SARMRA under the C-ROSS (Phase II) Regulation.

2023  also  marked  the  20th  anniversary  for  China  Life’s 
shareholding  reform  and  public  listing.  Twenty  years  ago, 
we  were  the  first  life  insurance  company  listed  overseas 
in  China,  and  attracted  close  attention  from  worldwide 
investors, creating a splendid record of the world’s largest 
IPO of that year. Looking back on the changes over the past 
two decades, the rapid growth of China’s economy created 
favourable external conditions and significant opportunities 
for the insurance industry in China. Setting our mission and 
vision  as  “safeguarding  people’s  wellbeing  and  building 
a  world-class  life  insurance  company”,  we  established 
sound  and  effective  corporate  governance  structures  and 

10

Annual Report 2023 | Chairman’s Statementinternal governance mechanisms. Maintaining a close bond 
with  the  nation,  we  adhered  to  the  rules  of  life  insurance 
business  and  advanced  reforms  and  innovations  along  the 
course of internal and external development. We maintained 
the  industry  leadership  position  and  became  the  largest 
life  insurance  company  globally,  with  our  total  assets, 
investment  assets,  embedded  value  and  gross  written 
premiums achieving growth of several times or even dozens 
of  times.  While  we  pursued  our  high-quality  development 
to  create  long-term  value,  we  have  always  attached  great 
importance  to  investor  returns.  We  have  made  dividend 
distributions of over RMB190 billion in total since our listing. 
Looking ahead to our new journey, we will draw inspiration 
and  propulsion  from  our  valuable  experiences  in  the  past 
twenty years, and pool all efforts to forge ahead in the future. 
We will continue to strengthen Party leadership in optimising 
our  corporate  governance,  promote  the  governance 
effectiveness of modern financial corporation with Chinese 
characteristics  to  be  further  manifested,  pursue  our  own 
business  development  to  catering  to  people’s  demands, 
and  create  a  new  paradigm  for  high-quality  development, 
thereby contributing to building the country into a financial 
powerhouse and serving the Chinese-style modernisation.

2024  marks  the  75th  anniversary  of  the  founding  of  the 
People’s  Republic  of  China  and  is  also  the  critical  year  for 
implementing the “14th Five-Year Plan”. We will steadfastly 
march toward the direction where we aspire. Currently, the 
life insurance industry is at a crucial stage for transformation 
and  development.  We  will  focus  on  five  major  areas, 
namely technology finance, green finance, inclusive finance, 
pension  finance  and  digital  finance,  properly  manage  the 
relationships between stability and progress, establishment 
and abolishment, scale and profitability, assets and liabilities, 
as well as development and security, and balance the short-
term profit with long-term value, with a view to enhancing 
our  business  performance.  Having  the  confidence  to  be  a 
pioneer,  we  will  constantly  deepen  supply-side  reforms, 
strengthen  business  foundation,  improve  on  services, 
transform  and  upgrade  traditional  driving  forces,  and 
accelerate  the  cultivation  of  new  driving  forces,  so  as  to 
contribute to the buildup of a modern financial system with 
Chinese characteristics.

By Order of the Board

Bai Tao
Chairman

27 March 2024

11

Annual Report 2023 | Chairman’s StatementMANAGEMENT 
DISCUSSION
AND ANALYSIS1

REVIEW OF BUSINESS OPERATIONS
2023  was  a  year  of  economic  recovery  and  development 
following  the  transition  of  COVID-19  pandemic  prevention 
and control measures. China’s economy rebounded with a 
positive outlook, and the life insurance industry also saw a 
steady recovery and growth as a whole.

The  Company  maintained  the  strategic  consistency  of 
“achieving  stable  growth,  prioritising  business  value, 
optimising  structure,  strengthening  sales  force,  promoting 
reforms  and  guarding  against  risks”,  and  took  proactive 
actions to promote growth model transformation, structural 
adjustments, as well as quality and efficiency improvement 
by  seizing  development  opportunities  arising  from  the 
continued  recovery  of  the  industry,  so  as  to  make  itself 
stronger  with  excellent  performance.  As  a  result,  the 
Company  made  satisfactory  achievements  for  high-quality 
development,  recorded  a  good  performance  with  sound 
momentum  in  business  growth  and  further  enhanced  its 
comprehensive strengths with its industry leading position 
remaining solidified. As at the end of the Reporting Period, 
the Company’s total assets and investment assets reached 
RMB5.80  trillion  and  RMB5.66  trillion,  respectively,  hitting 
new  record  highs  again.  Its  embedded  value  reached 
RMB1.26 trillion, an increase of 5.6% under the same basis, 
which remained at the industry leadership position. The core 
solvency  ratio  increased  by  14.60  percentage  points  from 
the end of 2022 to 158.19%, maintaining at a relatively high 
level. The number of long-term in-force policies held by the 
Company reached 328 million.

The Company continued to lead the industry in both business 
value and scale, and realised a strong growth in its insurance 
business with its business structure continuously optimised. 
During the Reporting Period, the Company’s gross written 
premiums  reached  a  record  high  of  RMB641,380  million, 
a  year-on-year  increase  of  4.3%,  maintaining  the  industry 
leadership position. The key business performance indicators 
achieved  a  rapid  growth.  Premiums  from  new  policies 
reached  RMB210,813  million,  a  year-on-year  increase  of 
14.1%.  First-year  regular  premiums  were  RMB112,573 
million,  increasing  by  16.7%  year  on  year.  In  particular, 
first-year  regular  premiums  with  a  payment  duration  of 
ten years or longer reached RMB49,522 million, a year-on-
year increase of 18.4%, and its proportion in the first-year 
regular  premiums  rose  by  0.62  percentage  point,  showing 
a significant improvement in business structure. The value 
of  one  year’s  sales  was  RMB36,860  million,  a  year-on-
year  increase  of  11.9%  over  the  2022  corresponding  data 
restated  under  the  new  economic  assumptions  (the  value 
of one year’s sales under the 2022 economic assumptions 
was RMB41,035 million, a year-on-year increase of 14.0% 
under the same basis), continuing to lead the industry.

In  2023,  the  Company  incorporated  the  concept  of  asset-
liability management into every aspect of business operations 
and  management,  actively  balanced  long-term  value  and 
short-term  benefits,  continued  to  strengthen  cost  control 
and underwriting management, and strived to stabilise the 
overall  income  level.  The  net  profit  attributable  to  equity 
holders of the Company was RMB46,181 million.

1 

The  data  regarding  premiums  (including  gross  written  premiums,  premiums  from  new  policies,  first-year  regular  premiums,  first-year  regular  premiums 
with  a  payment  duration  of  ten  years  or  longer,  renewal  premiums,  single  premiums  and  short-term  insurance  business  premiums,  etc.)  in  this  annual 
report are relevant data under ASBE.

12

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and AnalysisMANAGEMENT 

DISCUSSION

AND ANALYSIS1

From left to right:

Mr. Bai Kai, Mr. Ruan Qi, Mr. Li Mingguang, Ms. Liu Hui, Mr. Zhao Guodong

Key Performance Indicators of 2023

Gross written premiums
Premiums from new policies

Including: First-year regular premiums

First-year regular premiums with a payment duration of  

ten years or longer 

Renewal premiums
Value of one year’s sales1

Including: Individual agent business sector1

Policy persistency rate (14 months)2 (%) 
Policy persistency rate (26 months)2 (%) 
Surrender rate3 (%)

Embedded value1
Number of long-term in-force policies (hundred million)

Gross investment income4
Net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company

RMB million

2022

615,190
184,767
96,426
41,821

430,423
32,944
31,385
83.00
74.20
0.95

2023

641,380
210,813
112,573
49,522

430,567
36,860
34,646
90.40
79.10
1.11

As at  
31 December 
2023

1,260,567
3.28

2023

123,082
46,181 

As at  
31 December  

2022

1,194,220
3.25

2022

176,277
66,680

Notes:
1.  The corresponding results for the year 2022 have been restated using 2023 embedded value economic assumptions.
2.  The persistency rate for long-term individual life insurance policy is an important operating performance indicator for life insurance companies. It measures 
the  ratio  of  in-force  policies  in  a  pool  of  policies  after  a  certain  period  of  time.  It  refers  to  the  proportion  of  policies  that  are  still  effective  during  the 
designated month in the pool of policies whose issue date was 14 or 26 months ago.

3.  Surrender rate, which is for long-term insurance business, is the proportion of the surrender payment to the sum of the reserves at the beginning of the 

period and the premiums. Items such as surrender payment, reserves and premiums are relevant data under ASBE.

4.  For  the  year  2022,  the  data  of  investment  businesses  related  to  IFRS  17  –  Insurance  Contracts  has  been  restated  and  presented,  while  the  data  of 
investment businesses related to IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments has not been restated and presented. Therefore, relevant data is not comparable.

13

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Gross written premiums 
breakdown

(RMB million)

Renewal premiums
430,567

Single premiums
21,737

2023

Renewal premiums
430,423

Single premiums
14,077

2022

Short-term 
insurance premiums
76,503

First-year 
regular premiums
112,573

Short-term 
insurance premiums
74,264

First-year 
regular premiums
96,426

Value of one year’s sales

(RMB million)

36,860

11.9%

32,944

2023

2022

Embedded value

(RMB million)

As at 31 December 2023

As at 31 December 2022

1,260,567

5.6%

1,194,220

In  2023,  the  Company  fully  launched  a  series  of  reforms 
(including  the  “Eight  Reform  Programs”),  focusing  on 
the  key  areas  for  reform  to  accelerate  changes  in  quality, 
efficiency  and  growth  drivers.  The  sales  system  reforms 
achieved initial results, and the direction for transforming 
sales  force  to  become  more  specialised,  professional  and 
integrated  was  further  clarified.  The  existing  sales  force 
of  the  Company  were  upgraded  at  an  accelerated  pace 
with  a  focus  on  six  major  measures  such  as  structural 
adjustments,  foundation  consolidation,  reinforcement  in 
urban  areas  and  deep  engagement  in  counties.  As  at  the 
end of 2023, the size of its sales force was stabilised first 
in  the  industry.  The  number  of  agents  of  the  individual 
agent  business  sector  was  634,000,  and  the  productivity 
of the sales force was improved steadily with the monthly 
average  first-year  regular  premiums  per  agent  rising  by 
28.6%  year  on  year.  The  Company  proactively  promoted 
the  deployment  of  new  sales  models,  and  launched  the 
“Seed Program” on a pilot basis to build a team of financial 
and  insurance  planners.  As  at  the  end  of  2023,  the  pilot 
program had been rolled out in eight cities. The buildup of 
the senior-care ecosystem was accelerated. By upholding 
the  philosophy  of  building  a  senior-care  ecosystem  that 
“gives  children  peace  of  mind,  and  reassures  the  senior 
people” and sticking to the four principles of long-termism, 
customer-centric approach, market-oriented operations and 
business development on a rolling basis, the Company laid 
down its medium- and long-term objectives and planning for 
the development of a senior-care services ecosystem with 
China Life characteristics, carried out dynamic assessments 
of strategy implementation and optimised its development 
measures on an ongoing basis. The Company strengthened 

14

its  service  supply  through  diverse  models  to  accelerate 
the  projects  deployment  in  key  cities.  Operations  and 
customer  services  were  further  upgraded.  The  national 
centralised  and  shared  business  mode  of  operations, 
which  was  first  of  its  kind  in  the  industry,  was  applied  to 
all aspects of operations, and the operations efficiency was 
improved  by  over  27.0%.  The  Company  further  optimised 
the  operation  standard  specification  system,  laying  a  solid 
foundation of its operations and services characterised with 
“standardisation  and  specialisation”.  The  “convenient  and 
caring” services of claims settlement won wide recognition, 
and  innovative  service  models  such  as  “Advanced  Claims 
Payment” and the reminder services on claims notification 
of electronic invoices for medical charges were consistently 
promoted.  The  creation  of  a  “comprehensive  consumer 
protection”  paradigm  featuring  all-employee  participation, 
full coverage and whole-chain management was completed, 
and  the  Company  ranked  among  the  top  of  the  industry 
in  the  assessment  of  protection  of  consumers’  rights  and 
interests  as  conducted  by  the  industry  regulator.  FinTech 
and  digitalisation  were  advanced  in  all  aspects, 
consistently driving the iterative upgrading of the Company’s 
technological  capabilities.  Container  cloud  began  to  take 
shape,  and  a  platform  with  terabyte  level  data  processing 
capability was fully constructed. The Company was among 
the first batch of companies to implement new accounting 
standards  for  insurance  contracts  in  China.  The  intelligent 
and  digital  risk  control  system  effectively  facilitated  the 
moving  forward  of  risk  prevention  and  control  points.  The 
in-depth integration of technology and business empowered 
all aspects of operations and management of the Company, 
achieving remarkable results in the data-driven initiatives.

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
BUSINESS ANALYSIS

Figures of Gross Written Premiums

Gross Written Premiums Categorised by Business

For the year ended 31 December 

Life insurance business
First-year business
First-year regular 
Single

Renewal business

Health insurance business

First-year business
First-year regular 
Single

Renewal business

Accident insurance business

First-year business
First-year regular 
Single

Renewal business

Total

RMB million

2022

485,642
105,291
91,273 
14,018 
380,351 
115,329 
65,777 
5,149 
60,628 
49,552 
14,219 
13,699 
4 
13,695 
520 

615,190 

2023

512,622
130,839 
109,112 
21,727 
381,783 
114,023
65,655 
3,460 
62,195 
48,368 
14,735
14,319 
1 
14,318 
416 

641,380

Note:  Single premiums in the above table include premiums from short-term insurance business.

During  the  Reporting  Period,  gross  written  premiums  from  the  life  insurance  business  of  the  Company  amounted  to 
RMB512,622  million,  a  year-on-year  increase  of  5.6%.  Gross  written  premiums  from  the  health  insurance  business  were 
RMB114,023  million,  a  year-on-year  decrease  of  1.1%.  Gross  written  premiums  from  accident  insurance  business  were 
RMB14,735 million, a year-on-year increase of 3.6%.

15

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Gross Written Premiums Categorised by Channel

For the year ended 31 December 

RMB million

Individual agent business sector1

First-year business of long-term insurance

First-year regular 
Single

Renewal business
Short-term insurance business

Bancassurance channel

First-year business of long-term insurance

First-year regular 
Single

Renewal business
Short-term insurance business

Group insurance channel

First-year business of long-term insurance

First-year regular 
Single

Renewal business
Short-term insurance business

Other channels2

First-year business of long-term insurance

First-year regular
Single

Renewal business
Short-term insurance business

Total

Notes:

2023

501,580 
92,127 
91,807 
320 
391,218 
18,235 
78,748 
40,191 
20,735 
19,456 
38,112 
445 
28,154 
1,946 
15 
1,931 
1,234 
24,974 
32,898 
46 
16 
30 
3 
32,849 

641,380 

2022

492,439 
81,732 
81,508 
224 
392,849 
17,858 
63,415 
26,821 
14,879 
11,942 
36,200 
394 
27,333 
1,929 
37 
1,892 
1,345 
24,059 
32,003 
21 
2 
19 
29 
31,953 

615,190

1.  Gross written premiums of individual agent business sector mainly include premiums of the general sales team and the upsales team, etc.

2.  Gross written premiums of other channels mainly include premiums of government-sponsored health insurance business and online sales, etc.

16

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Insurance Business

Analysis of Insurance Business

In  2023,  the  Company  kept  on  pursuing  high-quality 
development,  and  attained  remarkable  achievements 
in  its  insurance  businesses  with  its  industry  leading 
position  consolidated  further.  Sales  system  reforms  were 
implemented  to  facilitate  the  upgrading  of  the  Company’s 
existing  sales  force  and  the  deployment  of  its  new  sales 
models,  which  further  consolidated  the  foundation  for  the 
Company’s business development. The Company continued 
to  enhance  its  day-to-day  sales  force  management.  The 
size  of  its  sales  force  was  stabilised  first  in  the  industry, 
with  optimised  structure  and  enhanced  quality,  and  its 
productivity  was  improved  substantially.  As  at  the  end  of 
the  Reporting  Period,  the  number  of  its  total  sales  force 
was approximately 694,000.

Individual Agent Business Sector

The individual agent business sector adhered to the strategy 
of  “productive  agents-driven  business”,  focused  on  value 
creation,  and  deepened  business  channel  transformation. 
A  rapid  growth  was  achieved  in  all  indicators  for  the  new 
business,  and  the  business  structure  was  significantly 
optimised.  During  the  Reporting  Period,  gross  written 
premiums  from  the  sector  grew  by  1.9%  year  on  year  to 
reach RMB501,580 million, within which renewal premiums 
were RMB391,218 million. First-year regular premiums were 
RMB91,807  million,  an  increase  of  12.6%  year  on  year. 
In  particular,  first-year  regular  premiums  with  a  payment 

Gross written premiums of individual 
agent business sector

(RMB million) 

91,807

501,580

1.9 %

492,439

2023

12.6%

81,508

2022

First-year regular premiums

Agents of individual 
agent business sector

634,000

duration  of  ten  years  or  longer  were  RMB49,503  million, 
an  increase  of  18.4%  year  on  year,  and  its  proportion  in 
the  first-year  regular  premiums  was  53.92%,  an  increase 
of 2.64 percentage points year on year. In 2023, the value 
of  one  year’s  sales  of  the  sector  was  RMB34,646  million, 
an increase of 10.4%2 year on year.

In  2023,  the  individual  agent  business  sector  upheld 
the  concept  of  “team  construction  based  on  customer 
resources”,  accelerated  the  establishment  of  a  customer 
management-centric  business  operation  and  management 
system in the sector, and consistently proceeded with “6+1” 
key tasks to strive for the high-quality development of the 
Company.  The  sector  made  consistent  efforts  to  enhance 
the  professional  competence  of  the  existing  sales  force, 
optimised agent recruitment and development on an ongoing 
basis, and created an integrated cultivation system for newly 
recruited agents that coordinated recruitment and cultivation. 
Programs, such as the “Regular Operation 4.0 System for 
the Team Building of the Individual Agent Business Sector”, 
the “Zhongxin Project” and the “Foundation Strengthening 
Program”,  were  carried  out  to  further  stabilise  the  sales 
force. The exploration of new sales models was transitioned 
to the pilot stage from the research and development stage, 
and the “Seed Program” was launched under the deployment 
of new sales models to build a “specialised, value-oriented 
and  integrated”  team  of  financial  and  insurance  planners, 
aiming  for  cultivating  new  driving  forces  for  growth  in  the 
future. Sales force empowerment was further advanced as 
scenario-based  technological  applications  empowered  the 
development  of  sales  force,  and  digital  sales  offices  were 
also  established  to  improve  sales  effectiveness.  As  at  the 
end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  the  number  of  agents  of  the 
sector  was  634,000,  including  410,000  agents  from  the 
general  sales  team  and  224,000  agents  from  the  upsales 
team. The quality of sales force continued to improve, with 
an  increase  in  both  the  number  and  proportion  of  high-
performance  agents.  Meanwhile,  the  productivity  of  the 
sales  force  was  improved  substantially,  with  the  monthly 
average first-year regular premiums per agent increasing by 
28.6% year on year.

Gross written premiums of 
bancassurance channel

(RMB million) 

78,748

20,735

39.4%

24.2%

2023

63,415

14,879

Diversified Business Sector

2022

 First-year regular premiums

Account managers of 
bancassurance channel

The diversified business sector pushed forward specialised 
business  operation  in  great  depth,  concentrating  on  both 
business  scale  and  value,  and  advancing  the  high-quality 
development  of  the  Company.  In  2023,  the  sector  carried 
out  more  refined  channels  management,  made  new 
achievements in specialised business operation as well as 
transformation and upgrading, and recorded an increase in 
value contribution to the Company. The value of one year’s 
sales of the sector was RMB2,214 million, rising significantly 
by 42.0%3 year on year.

23,000

2	

3	

The growth rate is calculated based on the restated results for 2022 using the 2023 embedded value economic assumptions.

The growth rate is calculated based on the restated results for 2022 using the 2023 embedded value economic assumptions.

17

团险渠道保费 

(百万元)

短期险保费

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
(百万元)

个险板块保费 

81,508

492,439

(百万元)

银保渠道保费 

14,879

82,254

509,489

16,110

49,326

2022

年

63,415

28.6%

2022

年

2021

年

2021

年

首年期交保费

银保渠道客户经理

2.1

万人

Bancassurance  Channel  The  bancassurance  channel 
strengthened  the  cooperation  with  banks,  accelerated 
business development, and achieved a rapid growth in both 
the  scale  of  its  premiums  and  business  value.  During  the 
Reporting Period, gross written premiums from the channel 
amounted  to  RMB78,748  million,  an  increase  of  24.2% 
year on year. First-year regular premiums were RMB20,735 
million, an increase of 39.4% year on year. First-year regular 
premiums  with  a  payment  duration  of  five  years  or  longer 
were  RMB9,877  million.  Renewal  premiums  amounted 
to  RMB38,112  million  (a  year-on-year  increase  of  5.3%), 
accounting for 48.40% of gross written premiums from the 
channel.  The  bancassurance  channel  constantly  enhanced 
the professional and technological capabilities of its account 
manager team, the quality of which was improved steadily. 
As at the end of the Reporting Period, the number of account 
managers of the bancassurance channel reached 23,000, and 
the quarterly average active managers recorded a year-on-
year growth of 8.5%, with the productivity in terms of regular 
premiums per account manager increasing substantially year 
on year.

Gross written premiums of individual 

agent business sector

(RMB million) 

Gross written premiums of 
bancassurance channel

(RMB million) 

91,807

501,580

20,735

1.9 %

492,439

2023

39.4%

14,879

2022

78,748

24.2%

63,415

首年期交保费

万人

个险板块销售人力

66.8

Group  Insurance  Channel  The  group  insurance  channel 
coordinated  business  scale  and  profitability,  and  pushed 
forward  stable  development  in  all  business  lines.  During 
the  Reporting  Period,  gross  written  premiums  from  the 
channel  were  RMB28,154  million,  an  increase  of  3.0% 
year on year. In particular, short-term insurance premiums 
from the  channel were RMB24,974 million, an increase  of 
3.8% year on year. As at the end of the Reporting Period, 
the  number  of  direct  sales  representatives  of  the  channel 
was approximately 37,000, among which the proportion of 
high-performance personnel rose by 4.7 percentage points 
from the end of 2022, with the productivity per direct sales 
representative increasing steadily.

Gross written premiums of 
group insurance channel

(RMB million)

24,974 28,154

3.8%

3.0%

24,059 27,333

2023

2022

Short-term insurance premiums

Direct sales representatives of 
group insurance channel

37,000

4.7

percentage
points

First-year regular premiums

 First-year regular premiums

Proportion of 
high-performance 
personnel rose by 
from the end of 2022

Account managers of 
bancassurance channel

23,000

18

2023

12.6%

2022

81,508

Agents of individual 

agent business sector

634,000

团险渠道保费 

(百万元)

短期险保费

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
Other Channels  During the Reporting Period, gross written 
premiums from other channels were RMB32,898 million, an 
increase  of  2.8%  year  on  year.  The  Company  proactively 
participated  in  a  variety  of  government-sponsored  health 
insurance  businesses  and  supported  the  construction  of 
a  multi-tiered  medical  security  system.  As  at  the  end  of 
the  Reporting  Period,  the  Company  carried  out  over  200 
supplementary major medical expenses insurance programs, 
covering  nearly  350  million  people.  It  also  undertook  over 
70  policy-sponsored  long-term  care  insurance  programs, 
providing  services  to  more  than  38  million  people. 
Meanwhile,  it  implemented  over  120  city-customised 
commercial  medical  insurance  projects.  The  Company 
actively participated in social governance related to medical 
protection and continued to undertake over 600 healthcare 
entrusted programs.

Online Insurance Business

The  Company  continued  to  promote  the  development 
of  the  online  insurance  business  by  optimising  its  online 
insurance  business  operation  system  featuring  centralised 
operation  and  unified  management,  to  provide  customers 
with  a  quality  service  experience.  In  2023,  the  online 
insurance  business  grew  rapidly.  Total  premiums  of  the 
online insurance business under the regulatory caliber4 were 
RMB76,020  million,  an  increase  of  20.9%  year  on  year. 
The  Company  further  consolidated  its  foundation  for  the 
development  of  the  online  insurance  business  to  enhance 
the  core  operating  capabilities  and  channel  value  of  the 
online insurance business.

Integrated Financial Business

The Company actively engaged in the construction of a “Life 
Insurance  +”  integrated  financial  ecosystem,  with  a  view 
to  empowering  the  Company’s  high-quality  development. 
In  2023,  premiums  of  CLP&C  cross-sold  by  the  Company 
through  collaboration  were  RMB23,600  million,  with  the 
number  of  insurance  policies  increasing  by  6.5%  year  on 
year. Through the cross-sale of property insurance products, 
the Company diversified its client contacts and facilitated the 
acquisition of new customers and the increase of commission 
income of its sales team. The scale of business of Pension 
Company cross-sold by the Company through collaboration 
were  RMB8,655  million.  The  Company  entrusted  CGB  to 
sell  its  bancassurance  products,  with  the  first-year  regular 
premiums  amounting  to  RMB1,799  million,  an  increase  of 
16.6%  year  on  year.  The  Company  also  actively  explored 
the synergy between insurance and investment businesses, 
continuously deepened its cooperation with AMC and CLI, 
etc., and constantly innovated and explored new insurance-
investment interactive models. Besides, in order to satisfy 

the diverse needs of its customers, the Company has carried 
out various business operation activities by co-working with 
CLP&C  and  CGB,  so  as  to  provide  customers  with  one-
stop and all-round solutions of the high-quality financial and 
insurance services.

Inclusive Healthcare and Integrated Senior-care Service 
System

Being  customer-centric,  the  Company  actively  engaged  in 
the construction of a multi-tiered social security system and 
clarified its medium- and long-term objectives and planning 
for  the  development  of  a  senior-care  services  ecosystem, 
so  as  to  promote  the  buildup  of  the  inclusive  healthcare 
and integrated senior-care service system with all efforts.

In  2023,  with  respect  to  the  “insurance  +  healthcare 
services”,  the  Company  fully  consolidated  internal  and 
external  quality  resources  and  made  consistent  efforts 
to  enhance  its  capability  in  health  management  services, 
creating a health management and service system integrating 
online  and  offline  operations  and  with  high  quality  and 
efficiency.  As  at  the  end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  more 
than a hundred types of services were available on the China 
Life  Inclusive  Healthcare  Service  Platform,  covering  seven 
categories of health management services such as physical 
examination,  health  consulting,  health  promotion,  disease 
prevention, chronic disease management, medical services 
and rehabilitation care, and the accumulated registered users 
of the platform increased by 20.0% from the end of 2022, 
ranking among the top of the industry.

With  respect  to  the  “insurance  +  senior-care  services”, 
the  Company  accelerated  the  senior-care  ecosystem 
construction  by  gradually  expanding  the  deployment  of 
the  senior-care  services  projects  in  key  cities  to  further 
enhance its capability in supplying diversified services, thus 
offering its customers with full life-cycle senior-care services 
that “give children peace of mind, and reassure the senior 
people”. In 2023, seven new residential senior-care services 
projects  were  added  to  the  list  and  the  pilot  programs 
of  home-based  senior-care  services  were  launched  in  five 
cities. The Company created a new exclusive team of China 
Life  senior-care  services  planners  and  enriched  relevant 
product  system,  in  order  to  better  satisfy  the  needs  of 
customers  for  senior-care  planning  and  protection  with  its 
specialised services. The Company actively engaged in the 
construction  of  the  national  third-pillar  pension  insurance 
system, and launched its new products and services on an 
ongoing  basis.  As  at  the  end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  the 
scale of the Company’s third-pillar private pension business 
ranked among the top of the industry.

4	

Including premiums from online insurance business acquired by different sales channels of the Company.

19

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and AnalysisAnalysis of Insurance Products

With  the  “people-centric”  approach  as  the  focus  of  its 
insurance  products  supply,  the  Company  actively  served 
national  strategies  and  people’s  livelihood.  It  consistently 
optimised  the  supply  of  diverse  products  and  services, 
strengthened  asset-liability  management  and  interaction, 
and carried out in-depth research on product supply, so as 
to enhance its capability in supplying high-quality insurance 
products.  In  2023,  the  Company  newly  developed  and 
upgraded a total of 196 insurance products.

The  Company  made  great  efforts  to  provide  pension 
financial services, strengthened research and development 
of  commercial  pension  insurance  products,  and  enriched 
the  third-pillar  private  pension  insurance  product  system, 
optimised  and  upgraded  exclusive  commercial  pension 
insurance products. It also implemented the pilot programs 
of insurance liability conversion from life insurance to long-
term  care  insurance,  and  consistently  launched  insurance 
products  offering  protection  for  the  senior  people  such 
as  pension  funds,  medical  expenses,  compensation  for 
accidental  injuries.  The  Company  continued  to  increase 
its  support  to  inclusive  finance  by  expanding  insurance 
protection  supply  to  such  groups  as  women,  children, 

new  industry  practitioners  and  new  urban  residents,  and 
enriching the exclusive product system for specific groups 
of people. It also played an active role in promoting FinTech 
insurance  protection  and  optimised  technology  insurance 
product system, offering protection services to customers 
such  as  employees  of  technology  companies.  Meanwhile, 
in  fully  serving  the  Healthy  China  initiative,  the  Company 
coordinated and promoted the research and development of 
products with respect to critical illness insurance, long-term 
care insurance and medical insurance, optimised insurance 
liabilities, and improved insurance protection functions. It also 
deeply engaged in the product supply in the niche markets of 
health insurance, and explored and promoted the integrated 
development  of  health  protection  and  health  services,  for 
the purpose of better satisfying the diversified demands of 
customers for health protection. The Company continued to 
expand the scope of agriculture-related insurance products 
and  enhanced  insurance  protection  for  agriculture-related 
population,  creating  a  sound  exclusive  insurance  product 
system in relation to rural revitalisation. It innovated regional 
products  through  research  and  development  by  launching 
insurance products for Hainan Free Trade Port, Guangdong-
Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and other regions, with 
an aim to actively promote coordinated regional development.

20

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and AnalysisTop Five Insurance Products in terms of Gross Written Premiums

For the year ended 31 December 2023 

Insurance product

Gross  
written 
premiums

Standard 
premiums  
from new 
policiesNote Major sales channel

China Life Xin Xiang Wei Lai Endowment Insurance  

38,632

11,600 Mainly through the 

(國壽鑫享未來兩全保險)

China Life Xin Yao Dong Fang Annuity Insurance  

36,629

(國壽鑫耀東方年金保險)

channel of exclusive 
individual agents
8 Mainly through the 

channel of exclusive 
individual agents

China Life Xin Yu Jin Sheng Endowment Insurance  

35,630

57 Mainly through the 

(國壽鑫裕金生兩全保險)

channel of exclusive 
individual agents

China Life Xin Fu Lin Men Annuity Insurance  

35,278

10,932 Mainly through the 

(國壽鑫福臨門年金保險)

China Life Critical Illness Group Health Insurance for 

25,517

25,517

Rural and Urban Citizens (type A)  
(國壽城鄉居民大病團體醫療保險(A型))

channel of exclusive 
individual agents
Through other channels

RMB million

Surrender 
payment

97

585

414

923

–

Note:  Standard premiums are calculated in accordance with the calculation methods set forth in the “Notice on Establishing the Industry Standard of Standard 
Premiums  in  the  Life  Insurance  Industry”  (Bao  Jian  Fa  [2004]  No.  102)  and  the  “Supplementary  Notice  of  the  ‘Notice  on  Establishing  the  Industry 
Standard of Standard Premiums in the Life Insurance Industry’” (Bao Jian Fa [2005] No. 25) of the former China Insurance Regulatory Commission.

Top Three Insurance Products in terms of Net Increase in Policyholder Depositsnote

For the year ended 31 December 2023 

Insurance product

deposits Major sales channel

Net increase  
in policyholder 

RMB million

Surrender 
payment

China Life Xin Zun Bao Whole Life Insurance  

36,708 Mainly through the channel of 

354

(universal insurance) (type A)  
(國壽鑫尊寶終身壽險(萬能型)(A款))

exclusive individual agents

China Life Xin Zun Bao Whole Life Insurance  

32,152 Mainly through the channel of 

56

(universal insurance) (type C)  
(國壽鑫尊寶終身壽險(萬能型)(C款))

exclusive individual agents

China Life Xin Account Endowment Insurance  

19,564 Mainly through the channel of 

321

(universal insurance) (diamond version)  
(國壽鑫賬戶兩全保險(萬能型)(鑽石版))

exclusive individual agents

Note:  The data regarding net increase in policyholder deposits and surrender payment are relevant data under ASBE.

21

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Investment Business

In  2023,  interest  rates  were  at  low  levels,  the  shortage 
of  quality  assets  remained  unchanged,  and  the  stock 
market  fluctuated  downward  with  significant  structural 
differentiation. Under the complicated market environment, 
the  Company  firmly  maintained  its  strategic  consistency, 
pursued asset-liability matching management and conducted 
investment  operations  in  a  flexible  manner.  In  respect  of 
fixed-income  investments,  the  Company  proactively  made 
allocations  to  long-term  interest  rate  bonds  and  high-

grade  credit  bonds,  with  an  aim  to  stabilise  the  allocation 
of  underlying  positions.  In  respect  of  equity  investments, 
the  Company  proceeded  with  the  medium-  and  long-term 
investment deployment by pursuing balanced allocations and 
structural optimisation. In respect of alternative investments, 
the  Company  focused  on  high-quality  entities  as  well  as 
competitive  sectors,  and  made  innovation  in  investment 
models, for the purpose of increasing the size of allocations 
in  this  regard.  The  Company  maintained  a  stable  portfolio 
with high-quality assets in general.

Investment Portfolios

As at the end of the Reporting Period, the Company’s investment assets categorised by investment object are set out as 
below:

Investment category

Fixed-maturity financial assets

Term deposits
Bonds
Debt-type financial products2
Other fixed-maturity investments3

Equity financial assets

Common stocks
Funds4
Other equity investments5

Investment properties
Cash and others6
Investments in associates and joint ventures

Total

Notes:

RMB million

As at 31 December 2023

As at 31 December 20221

Amount

Percentage

Amount

Percentage

4,119,072 
413,255 
3,159,774 
484,828 
61,215 
1,099,601 
430,200 
206,963 
462,438 
12,753 
169,064 
258,760 

72.78%
7.30%
55.83%
8.57%
1.08%
19.43%
7.60%
3.66%
8.17%
0.23%
2.99%
4.57%

3,479,159
485,567 
2,458,440 
455,026 
80,126
890,926 
432,700 
145,341 
312,885 
13,193 
166,127 
262,488

72.31%
10.09%
51.09%
9.46%
1.67%
18.51%
8.99%
3.02%
6.50%
0.28%
3.45%
5.45%

5,659,250 

100.00%

4,811,893

100.00%

1.  As at 31 December 2022, the data of investment businesses related to IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts has been restated and presented, while the data 
of investment businesses related to IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments has not been restated and presented. Therefore, relevant data is not comparable.

2.  Debt-type  financial  products  include  debt  investment  schemes,  trust  schemes,  asset-backed  plans,  credit  asset-backed  securities,  specialised  asset 

management plans, and asset management products, etc.

3.  Other fixed-maturity investments include statutory deposits-restricted and interbank certificates of deposits, etc.

4.  Funds  include  equity  funds,  bond  funds  and  money  market  funds,  etc.  In  particular,  the  balance  of  money  market  funds  as  at  31  December  2023  was 

RMB1,597 million.

5.  Other equity investments include private equity funds, unlisted equities, preference shares and equity investment plans, etc.

6.  Cash and others include cash, cash at banks, short-term deposits, and financial assets purchased under agreements to resell, etc.

As at the end of the Reporting Period, the Company’s investment assets reached RMB5,659,250 million. Among the major 
types of investments, the percentage of investment in bonds was 55.83%, the percentage of term deposits was 7.30%, 
the percentage of investment in debt-type financial products was 8.57%, and the percentage of investment in stocks and 
funds (excluding money market funds) was 11.23%.

22

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Investment Income

For the year ended 31 December 

Gross investment income
Net investment income

Net income from fixed-maturity investments
Net income from equity investments
Net income from investment properties
Investment income from cash and others
Share of profit of associates and joint ventures

+ Realised disposal gains
+ Unrealised gains or losses
– Expected credit losses of investment assets
– Impairment losses of investment assets

Net investment yield2
Gross investment yield2

Notes:

RMB million

20221

176,277 
178,870 
142,913 
29,704 
87 
2,187
3,979
27,518
(8,751) 
N/A
21,360
3.96%
3.90%

2023

123,082
185,866
144,216
29,117
102
4,352
8,079
(31,280)
(32,786)
(1,282)
N/A
3.70%
2.43%

1.  For  the  year  2022,  the  data  of  investment  businesses  related  to  IFRS  17  –  Insurance  Contracts  has  been  restated  and  presented,  while  the  data  of 
investment businesses related to IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments has not been restated and presented. Therefore, relevant data is not comparable.

2. 

In the calculation of the investment yield of the year 2023, the average investment assets as the denominator exclude the fair value changes of investment 
in  debt  instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive  income,  so  as  to  reflect  the  strategic  intention  of  the  Company  for  the  management  of 
assets and liabilities. The formula used for calculating the investment yield of the year 2022 is the same as that of previous years.

In  2023,  the  Company’s  net  investment  income  was 
RMB185,866  million,  and  the  net  investment  yield  was 
3.70%; the gross investment income of the Company was 
RMB123,082  million,  and  the  gross  investment  yield  was 
2.43%.

Credit Risk Management

The  Company’s  credit  asset  investments  mainly  included 
credit  bonds  and  debt-type  financial  products,  which 
concentrated  on  sectors  such  as  banking,  transportation, 
non-banking  finance,  public  utilities,  and  energy.  As  at  the 
end of the Reporting Period, over 98% of the credit bonds 
held  by  the  Company  were  rated  AAA  by  external  rating 
institutions,  whereas  over  99%  of  the  debt-type  financial 
products were rated AAA by external rating institutions. In 
general, the asset quality of the Company’s credit investment 
products  was  in  good  condition,  and  the  credit  risks  were 
well controlled.

The Company insisted on a prudent investment philosophy. 
Based on a disciplined and scientific internal rating system 
and  a  multi-dimensional  management  mechanism  of  risk 
limits, the Company prudently scrutinised credit profiles of 
targets and risk exposure concentration before investing and 
carried  out  ongoing  tracking  after  investment,  effectively 
controlling  credit  risks  through  early  identification,  early 
warning, and early disposal. No credit default event in relation 
to domestic credit assets occurred for the Company in 2023.

Major Investments

During  the  Reporting  Period,  there  was  no  material  equity 
investment or non-equity investment of the Company that 
was subject to disclosure requirements.

23

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
ANALYSIS OF SPECIFIC ITEMS

Insurance Contract Liabilities

RMB million

As at  
31 December 
2023

As at  
31 December  

2022

Change

Insurance contract liabilities of long-term insurance business
Insurance contract liabilities of short-term insurance business

4,825,405 
33,770 

4,231,075
35,872

Total of insurance contract liabilities

Including: Contractual service margin

4,859,175 

4,266,947

769,137 

783,473

14.0%
-5.9%

13.9%

-1.8%

As  at  the  end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  the  insurance  contract  liabilities  of  the  Company  were  RMB4,859,175  million,  an 
increase  of  13.9%  from  the  end  of  2022,  primarily  due  to  the  accumulation  of  insurance  liabilities  from  new  policies  and 
renewals.

Analysis of Cash Flows

Liquidity Sources

The  Company’s  cash  inflows  mainly  come  from  insurance 
premiums  received,  interest,  dividend  and  bonus,  and 
proceeds from sale and maturity of investment assets. The 
primary liquidity risks with respect to these cash inflows are 
the risk of surrender by contract holders and policyholders, 
as  well  as  the  risks  of  default  by  debtors,  interest  rate 
fluctuations  and  other  market  volatilities.  The  Company 
closely monitors and manages these risks.

The Company’s cash and bank deposits can provide it with a 
source of liquidity to meet normal cash outflows. As at the 
end of the Reporting Period, the balance of cash and cash 
equivalents was RMB148,061 million. In addition, the vast 
majority of its term deposits in banks allow it to withdraw 
funds on deposits, subject to a penalty interest charge. As 
at  the  end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  the  amount  of  term 
deposits was RMB413,255 million.

The  Company’s  investment  portfolio  also  provides  it  with 
a  source  of  liquidity  to  meet  unexpected  cash  outflows. 
The Company is also subject to market liquidity risk due to 
the  large  size  of  its  investments  in  some  of  the  markets 
in  which  it  invests.  In  some  circumstances,  some  of  its 
holdings  of  investment  securities  may  be  large  enough  to 
have an influence on the market value. These factors may 
adversely affect its ability to sell these investments or sell 
them at a fair price.

Liquidity Uses

The  Company’s  principal  cash  outflows  primarily  relate  to 
the payables for the liabilities associated with its various life 
insurance, annuity, accident insurance and health insurance 
products, operating expenses, income taxes and dividends 
that  may  be  declared  and  paid  to  its  equity  holders.  Cash 
outflows  arising  from  the  Company’s  insurance  activities 
primarily relate to benefit payments under these insurance 
products,  as  well  as  payments  for  policy  surrenders, 
withdrawals and policy loans.

The  Company  believes  that  its  sources  of  liquidity  are 
sufficient to meet its current cash requirements.

24

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Consolidated Cash Flows

The  Company  has  established  a  cash  flow  testing  system,  and  conducts  regular  tests  to  monitor  the  cash  inflows  and 
outflows under various scenarios and adjusts the asset portfolio accordingly to ensure sufficient sources of liquidity.

For the year ended 31 December 

RMB million

2023

2022

Change Main reasons for change

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from 

384,366

345,284

11.3% An increase in the scale of 

operating activities

universal insurance accounts

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from 

(424,236)

(158,271) 

168.0% The needs for investment 

investing activities

management

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from 

60,273

(120,095)

N/A The needs for liquidity 

financing activities

management

Foreign exchange gains/(losses) on 

64

217

-70.5% –

cash and cash equivalents

Net increase in cash and cash 

20,467

67,135

-69.5% –

equivalents

Solvency Ratio

An  insurance  company  shall  have  the  capital  commensurate  with  its  risks  and  business  scale.  According  to  the  nature 
and  capacity  of  loss  absorption  by  capital,  the  capital  of  an  insurance  company  is  classified  into  the  core  capital  and  the 
supplementary capital. The core solvency ratio is the ratio of core capital to minimum capital, which reflects the adequacy 
of the core capital of an insurance company. The comprehensive solvency ratio is the ratio of the sum of core capital and 
supplementary capital to minimum capital, which reflects the overall capital adequacy of an insurance company. The following 
table shows the Company’s solvency ratios as at the end of the Reporting Period:

Core capital
Actual capital
Minimum capital
Core solvency ratio 
Comprehensive solvency ratio

As at  
31 December 
2023

710,527
981,594
449,160
158.19%
218.54%

RMB million

As at  
31 December  

2022

699,688
1,007,601
487,290
143.59%
206.78%

As at the end of the Reporting Period, the Company’s comprehensive solvency ratio was 218.54%, an increase of 11.76 
percentage  points  from  the  end  of  2022,  and  the  Company’s  core  solvency  ratio  was  158.19%,  an  increase  of  14.60 
percentage points from the end of 2022, all continuing to stay at relatively high levels.

Sale of Material Assets and Equity

During the Reporting Period, there was no sale of material assets and equity of the Company.

25

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
RMB million

Registered 
capital

Shareholding

Total  
assets

Net  
assets

Net  
profit

4,000

60%

21,436

18,083

2,876

18,015

7,140

795

3,400

70.74% is 
held by the 
Company, and 
3.53% is held 
by AMC

27,800

40% 145,623

33,823

1,393

21,790

43.686% 3,509,522

276,985

16,019

Major Subsidiaries and Associates of the Company1

Company name

Major business scope

China Life Asset 
Management 
Company Limited

China Life Pension 
Company Limited

China Life Property 
and Casualty 
Insurance Company 
Limited2

China Guangfa Bank 

Co., Ltd.

Management and utilisation of proprietary funds; acting as agent 
or trustee for asset management business; consulting business 
relevant  to  the  above  businesses;  other  asset  management 
business permitted by applicable PRC laws and regulations.

Group pension insurance and annuity; individual pension insurance 
and  annuity;  short-term  health  insurance;  accident  insurance; 
reinsurance of the above insurance businesses; business for the 
use of insurance funds that are permitted by applicable PRC laws 
and  regulations;  pension  insurance  asset  management  product 
business; management of funds in RMB or foreign currency as 
entrusted by entrusting parties for the retirement benefit purpose; 
other businesses permitted by the NFRA.

Property  loss  insurance;  liability  insurance;  credit  insurance 
and  bond  insurance;  short-term  health  insurance  and  accident 
insurance;  reinsurance  of  the  above  insurance  businesses; 
business  for  the  use  of  insurance  funds  that  are  permitted  by 
applicable PRC laws and regulations; other businesses permitted 
by the NFRA.

Taking  public  deposits;  granting  short-term,  mid-term  and  long-
term loans; handling settlements in and out of China; honoring bills 
and offering discounting services; issuing financial bonds; issuing, 
paying for and underwriting government bonds as an agent; sales 
and purchases of negotiable securities such as government bonds 
and financial bonds; engaging in inter-bank borrowings; providing 
letters  of  credit  service  and  guarantee;  engaging  in  bank  card 
business;  acting  as  payment  and  receipt  agent  and  insurance 
agent;  providing  safe  deposit  box  services;  taking  deposits  and 
granting  loans  in  foreign  currency;  foreign  currency  remittance; 
foreign  currency  exchange;  international  settlements;  foreign 
exchange  settlements  and  sales;  inter-bank  foreign  currency 
borrowings; honoring bills of exchange and offering discounting 
services  in  foreign  currency;  granting  foreign  currency  loans; 
granting  foreign  currency  guarantees;  sales  and  purchases  of 
negotiable securities other than shares in a foreign currency for 
itself  and  as  an  agent;  issuing  negotiable  securities  other  than 
shares  in  a  foreign  currency  for  itself  and  as  an  agent;  sales 
and  purchases  of  foreign  exchange  on  its  own  account  and  on 
behalf of its customers; issuing and making payments for foreign 
credit card as an agent; offshore financial operations; assets and 
credit verification, consultation and notarisation businesses; other 
businesses approved by the NFRA and other relevant authorities.

Notes:

1.  For details, please refer to Note 10 and Note 33(b) in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this annual report.

2.  CLP&C has not adopted IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments and IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts. Therefore, the financial data presented in this table is calculated 

in accordance with IFRS 39 – Financial Instruments and IFRS 4 – Insurance Contracts.

26

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysis 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Structured Entities Controlled by the Company

Details  of  structured  entities  controlled  by  the  Company 
are set out in Note 33(b) in the Notes to the Consolidated 
Financial Statements in this annual report.

TECHNOLOGY CAPABILITIES, 
OPERATIONS AND SERVICES

Technology Capabilities

In 2023, following the technological development trend and 
responding to the requirements of high-quality development, 
the  Company  fully  launched  the  FinTech  and  Digitalisation 
Program  to  optimise  technological  capabilities,  strengthen 
technology  empowerment  and  deepen  technological 
innovation,  with  the  aim  to  promote  the  Company’s  high-
quality development with high-quality supply of technological 
capabilities.

Iterative upgrading of technological capabilities. Grasping 
the trend of technology, the Company developed its digital 
infrastructure  with  China  Life  characteristics.  It  created  a 
distributed cloud-based multi-active data center, effectively 
ensuring  the  continuity  of  its  business.  With  the  buildup 
of  the  China  Life  multi-cloud  ecosystem,  the  delivery  of 
computing  and  resources  storage  was  achieved  within 
minutes.  The  cloud-native  transformation  of  key  products 
was realised by utilising cloud-native concepts to innovate 
its application architecture.

Data-driven  value  advancement.  The  Company 
emphasised  on  the  accuracy,  real-time,  consistency  and 
security  of  data,  and  empowered  the  entire  value  chain 
of  its  insurance  business  with  data  factors  as  the  driving 
force.  With  its  terabyte  level  data  processing  capability, 
the  Company  realised  the  whole-process  systematic 
and  automated  generation  of  financial  statements  under 
new  insurance  contracts  standards  with  high  quality,  and 
developed a financial accounting and actuarial measurement 
system under the new accounting standards by using more 
accurate  algorithm,  more  sophisticated  model  and  more 
efficient process, fully ensuring the implementation of the 
new  accounting  standards  in  a  systemic,  complete  and 
accurate manner.

IT  application 

Significant  achievement  of  technological  innovation. 
With  the  full-stack 
innovation  as  a 
breakthrough, a real-time data service platform, which was 
capable of processing data volume at petabytes (PB) level, 
was  constructed  based  on  the  new  proprietary  distributed 
architecture.  China  Life  distributed  hybrid  cloud  was 
awarded  the  special  prize  of  Capital  Financial  Innovation 
Achievements.

Further  strengthened  digital  risk  control.  A  digital  risk 
control system based on the big data analytics was created to 
quickly identify and accurately capture risks in key business 
fields,  realising  the  goals  of  moving  forward  risk  control 
points and dynamic monitoring. The intelligent identification 

and  verification  system  for  anti-money  laundering,  which 
was  the  first  application  innovation  of  “machine  learning 
+  knowledge  graph”  in  the  anti-money  laundering  field  of 
the  life  insurance  industry,  was  awarded  the  second  prize 
of the FinTech Development Awards by the People’s Bank 
of China.

Operations and Services

In  2023,  pursuing  the  “people-centric”  approach  and 
focusing on value improvement and service diversification, 
the  Company  deeply  engaged 
in  developing  more 
centralised,  digitalised  and  intelligent,  and  diversified 
business  operations  and  services,  so  as  to  accelerate  the 
construction of a nationwide integrated system of operations 
and services. It strengthened the protection of consumers’ 
rights  and  interests,  and  devoted  itself  to  advancing  the 
Company’s  high-quality  development  by  capitalising  on  its 
own professional capabilities in operations, aiming to build 
its  core  competitiveness  with  China  Life’s  good  services, 
which are “convenient, quality and caring”.

The  quality  of  operations  was  solidified  due  to 
professional  capabilities.  The  Company  continued  to 
optimise  the  operation  standard  specification  system  that 
covers unified national practices, service standards and job 
description,  laying  a  solid  foundation  of  its  operations  and 
services featured with “standardisation and specialisation”. 
The Company also played an active role in participating in the 
formulation of industry and national standards. As the only 
insurance company involved, it participated in the formulation 
of the national standards for intelligent customer services, 
contributing its wisdom to the standardised development in 
this regard. 95519 has been named as the “Best Customer 
Contact Center in China” by the Customer Contact Center 
Standards  Committee  (CCCS)  for  20  consecutive  years. 
The  Company  deeply  engaged  in  innovating  models  for 
insurance operations. The “Digital Underwriters” achieved 
a  replacement  rate  of  24.9%  for  manual  work  in  six  work 
scenarios.  The  centralised  and  shared  business  mode  of 
operations,  which  was  first  of  its  kind  in  the  industry, 
was  fully  applied  to  the  areas  of  policy  administration, 
underwriting  and  claims  settlement,  and  the  efficiency  of 
these three areas was improved by over 27.0%.

Claims  settlement  services  brought  heart-warming 
protection. The Company kept developing the “convenient 
and  caring”  claims  settlement  services,  with  the  average 
efficiency  for  claims  settlement  being  improved  to  0.38 
day  and  the  claims  acceptance  rate  reaching  99.7%. 
The  coverage  of  convenient  claims  payment  was  further 
expanded.  The  number  of  cases  in  relation  to  “Claims 
Settlement  for  Critical  Illness  within  One  Day”  increased 
by  31.9%  year  on  year.  The  whole-process  non-manual 
claims settlement operation was carried out on a pilot basis, 
and  the  average  efficiency  for  processing  each  claim  case 
rising  by  over  90%.  The  Company  continued  to  reform  its 
model  of  claims  settlement  services,  and  provided  claims 
payments  of  567,000  customer-times  throughout  the  year 
through reminder services on claims notification of electronic 

27

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and Analysisinvoices for medical charges. “Advanced Claims Payment” 
delivered heart-warming protection in advance to customers 
on medical treatments, benefiting 27,800 customers.

Customer experience was improved with more diversified 
services. The coverage of inclusive value-added services was 
expanded to multiple fields such as health, sports, women, 
parenting and aesthetic education, and feedback on life, and 
the number of customers covered by the services grew by 
12.1% year on year. A new and upgraded VIP service system 
was  rolled  out,  and  the  number  of  VIP  customers  and  the 
number of customers being provided with the VIP services 
grew by 11.9% and 26.0%, respectively, year on year. The 
capability of service access through multiple contact points 
was  further  improved.  The  monthly  active  users  of  the 
China  Life  APP  and  the  online  customer  services  grew  by 
15.8% and 126.5%, respectively, year on year. The Company 
created a “green access” for senior people for multi-channel 
services, providing the age-friendly services of 25,683,100 
customer-times throughout the year.

The  Company’s  protection  of  consumers’  rights  and 
interests  led  the  industry.  The  Company  formed  a 
“comprehensive consumer protection” paradigm featuring 
all-employee  participation,  full  coverage  and  whole-chain 
management. A digital and intelligent consumer protection 
platform  was  created  to  enhance  the  effectiveness  of  its 
consumer  protection  management.  Training  programs  on 
consumer  protection  covered  all  employees  within  the 
Company.  The  Company  also  innovated  the  “consumer 
protection  +”  education  and  promotion  model,  and  the 
number  of  consumers  participating  in  related  activities 
throughout the year rose by 64.6% year on year. It ranked 
among the top of the industry in the assessment of protection 
of  consumers’  rights  and  interests  as  conducted  by  the 
industry regulator, and both the life insurance service quality 
and customer satisfaction were maintained at high levels.

FUTURE PROSPECT

Industry Landscape and Development Trends

High-quality  development  is  the  key  theme  of  finance 
and  insurance  in  the  new  era.  China’s  economy  has 
formed  good  and  solid  fundamentals  over  the  long-term 
development, and its vast market size, ample macro-policy 
space and comprehensively deepening reforms bring strong 
development momentum to the domestic economy. Further, 
the growing demands of people for multi-level, high-quality 
healthcare,  medical  and  senior-care  services  also  provide 
and  create  a  huge  market  space  and  potential  for  the 
development of the life insurance industry. The consensus 
that the life insurance industry is at an important stage full 
of  strategic  opportunities  remains  unchanged.  Meanwhile, 
with  the  implementation  of  various  regulatory  rules  and 
regulations  in  the  industry,  the  fundamentals  for  the  long-
term  healthy  development  of  the  market  will  be  further 
consolidated, and the industry will see a stable development 

28

trend with improved quality. As market players are exploring 
new fields and new sectors at an accelerated pace, shaping 
new  advantages  and  new  momentums  for  business 
development,  strengthening  innovation  in  aspects  such 
as  specialisation,  digitalisation  and  ecologicalization,  and 
improving the capability in risk prevention and control, these 
will jointly promote the overall high-quality development of 
the industry.

Development Strategies and Business Plans of the 
Company

In  2024,  the  Company  will  pursue  the  customer-centric 
approach, adhere to the guideline of seeking progress while 
maintaining  stability,  promote  stability  through  progress, 
and  establish  new  growth  drivers  before  abolishing  the 
old  ones.  Specifically  speaking,  the  Company  will  uphold 
the  “three  consistencies”  (strengthening  Party  building, 
promoting  reforms  and  guarding  against  risks),  realise 
the  “three  enhancements”  (stabilising  business  growth, 
increasing business value and emphasising on sales force), 
and  spend  extra  efforts  on  the  “three  breakthroughs” 
(optimising  services,  facilitating  integration  and  cutting 
costs).  As  a  result,  the  Company’s  Party  building,  reforms 
and innovation, and risk prevention and control will continue 
to  be  strengthened;  business  scale,  business  value  and 
profitability, and quality of the sales force will be effectively 
enhanced;  services  optimisation,  integrated  development, 
and  cost  reduction  and  efficiency  improvement  will  see 
major  breakthroughs.  All  these  advancements  will  jointly 
drive a robust growth of the Company in terms of business 
scale, value, profitability and high-performance agents in long 
term, and further consolidate its market leading position.

Potential Risks

China’s  macro  economy  still  faces  difficulties  in  the  short 
term, including insufficient effective demands, overcapacity 
in certain industries, weak social expectations and increasing 
uncertainties  in  the  external  environment,  and  there  will 
still  be  some  uncertainties  in  the  development  of  the  life 
insurance industry. Currently, long-end interest rates remain 
at  historically  low  levels,  the  insufficient  supply  of  quality 
assets  is  likely  to  continue  and  the  equity  market  may 
continue  to  be  volatile,  all  of  which  will  create  significant 
asset-liability  matching  pressures  for  the  Company.  The 
transformation and upgrading of the sales force may witness 
certain challenges, and the buildup of a “product + services” 
model remains at the stage for further exploration. The full 
release of the reform dividend will take time.

The Company anticipates that it will have sufficient capital to 
meet its insurance business expenditures and new general 
investment needs in 2024. At the same time, the Company 
will  make  corresponding  financing  arrangements  based 
on  capital  market  conditions  if  it  plans  to  implement  any 
business development strategies in the future.

Annual Report 2023 | Management Discussion and AnalysisEMBEDDED
VALUE

BACKGROUND

China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited  prepares  financial 
statements  to  public  investors  in  accordance  with  the 
relevant  accounting  standards.  An  alternative  measure  of 
the value and profitability of a life insurance company can be 
provided by the embedded value method. Embedded value is 
an actuarially determined estimate of the economic value of 
the life insurance business of an insurance company based 
on a particular set of assumptions about future experience, 
excluding  the  economic  value  of  future  new  business. 
In  addition,  the  value  of  one  year’s  sales  represents  an 
actuarially determined estimate of the economic value arising 
from new life insurance business issued in one year based 
on a particular set of assumptions about future experience.

China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited  believes  that 
reporting the Company’s embedded value and value of one 
year’s sales provides useful information to investors in two 
respects. First, the value of the Company’s in-force business 
represents  the  total  amount  of  shareholders’  interest  in 
distributable  earnings,  in  present  value  terms,  which  can 
be  expected  to  emerge  over  time,  in  accordance  with  the 
assumptions  used.  Second,  the  value  of  one  year’s  sales 
provides  an  indication  of  the  value  created  for  investors 
by  new  business  activity  based  on  the  assumptions  used 
and  hence  the  potential  of  the  business.  However,  the 

information on embedded value and value of one year’s sales 
should not be viewed as a substitute of financial measures 
under  the  relevant  accounting  basis.  Investors  should  not 
make investment decisions based solely on embedded value 
information and the value of one year’s sales.

It is important to note that actuarial standards with respect to 
the calculation of embedded value are still evolving. There is 
still no universal standard which defines the form, calculation 
methodology or presentation format of the embedded value 
of an insurance company. Hence, differences in definition, 
methodology, assumptions, accounting basis and disclosures 
may  cause  inconsistency  when  comparing  the  results  of 
different companies.

Also,  the  calculation  of  embedded  value  and  value  of  one 
year’s  sales  involves  substantial  technical  complexity  and 
estimates  can  vary  materially  as  key  assumptions  are 
changed. Therefore, special care is advised when interpreting 
embedded value results.

The values shown below do not consider the future financial 
impact of transactions between the Company and CLIC, CLI, 
AMC, Pension Company, CLP&C, and etc.

29

Annual Report 2023 | Embedded ValuePREPARATION AND REVIEW

The  embedded  value  and  the  value  of  one  year’s  sales 
were prepared by China Life Insurance Company Limited in 
accordance with the “CAA Standards of Actuarial Practice: 
Appraisal of Embedded Value” issued by the China Association 
of  Actuaries  (“CAA”).  Deloitte  Consulting  (Shanghai)  Co., 
Ltd.  performed  a  review  of  China  Life’s  embedded  value. 
The  review  statement  is  contained  in  the  “Independent 
Actuaries  Review  Opinion  Report  on  Embedded  Value  of 
China Life Insurance Company Limited” section.

ASSUMPTIONS

Economic  assumptions:  The  calculations  are  based  upon 
assumed  corporate  tax  rate  of  25%  for  all  years.  The 
investment return is assumed to be 4.5% per annum. 17% 
grading to 21% (remaining level thereafter) of the investment 
return  is  assumed  to  be  exempt  from  income  tax.  The 
investment  return  and  tax  exempt  assumptions  are  based 
on the Company’s strategic asset mix and expected future 
returns.  The  risk-adjusted  discount  rate  used  is  8%  per 
annum.

Other  operating  assumptions  such  as  mortality,  morbidity, 
lapses  and  expenses  are  based  on  the  Company’s  recent 
operating experience and expected future outlook.

DEFINITIONS OF EMBEDDED VALUE 
AND VALUE OF ONE YEAR’S SALES

The embedded value of a life insurer is defined as the sum 
of the adjusted net worth and the value of in-force business 
allowing for the cost of required capital.

“Adjusted net worth” is equal to the sum of:

•  Net assets, defined as assets less corresponding policy 

liabilities and other liabilities valued; and

•  Net-of-tax adjustments for relevant differences between 
the market value and the book value of assets, together 
with relevant net-of-tax adjustments to certain liabilities.

The market value of assets can fluctuate significantly over 
time due to the impact of the prevailing market environment. 
Hence  the  adjusted  net  worth  can  fluctuate  significantly 
between valuation dates.

The  “value  of  in-force  business”  and  the  “value  of  one 
year’s  sales”  are  defined  here  as  the  discounted  value  of 
the  projected  stream  of  future  shareholders’  interest  in 
distributable  earnings  for  existing  in-force  business  at  the 
valuation  date  and  for  one  year’s  sales  in  the  12  months 
immediately preceding the valuation date.

The value of in-force business and the value of one year’s 
sales have been determined using a traditional deterministic 
discounted cash flow methodology. This methodology makes 
implicit allowance for the cost of investment guarantees and 
policyholder  options,  asset/liability  mismatch  risk,  credit 
risk,  the  risk  of  operating  experience’s  fluctuation  and  the 
economic cost of capital through the use of a risk-adjusted 
discount rate.

30

Annual Report 2023 | Embedded ValueSUMMARY OF RESULTS

The embedded value as at 31 December 2023, the value of one year’s sales for the 12 months ended 31 December 2023, 
and the corresponding results as at 31 December 2022 are shown below:

Components of Embedded Value and Value of One Year’s Sales

ITEM

A  Adjusted Net Worth
B  Value of In-Force Business before Cost of Required Capital
C  Cost of Required Capital
D  Value of In-Force Business after Cost of Required Capital (B + C)
E  Embedded Value (A + D)

F  Value of One Year’s Sales before Cost of Required Capital
G  Cost of Required Capital
H  Value of One Year’s Sales after Cost of Required Capital (F + G)

Including: Value of One Year’s Sales of Individual Agent Business Sector

Notes:

1.  The corresponding results for the year 2022 have been restated using 2023 EV economic assumptions.

2.  Numbers may not be additive due to rounding.

RMB million

31 December  

31 December  

2023

2022

675,760
648,848
(64,040)
584,807
1,260,567

45,184
(8,324)
36,860
34,646

649,623
617,721
(73,124)
544,596
1,194,220

40,157
(7,213)
32,944
31,385

The new business margin of one year’s sales of individual agent business sector for the 12 months ended 31 December 
2023 is shown below:

New Business Margin of One Year’s Sales of Individual Agent Business Sector

By First Year Premium
By Annual Premium Equivalent

Notes:

31 December  

31 December  

2023

29.9%
31.3%

2022

27.4%
31.0%

1.  The corresponding results for the year 2022 have been restated using 2023 EV economic assumptions.

2.  First Year Premium is the written premium used for calculation of the value of one year’s sales and Annual Premium Equivalent is calculated as the sum 

of 100 percent of first year regular premiums and 10 percent of single premiums.

31

Annual Report 2023 | Embedded Value 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

The following analysis tracks the movement of the embedded value from the start to the end of the Reporting Period:

Analysis of Embedded Value Movement in 2023

ITEM

Investment Experience Variance

A  Embedded Value at the Start of Year
B  Expected Return on Embedded Value
C  Value of New Business in the Period
D  Operating Experience Variance
E 
F  Methodology, Model and Assumption Changes
G  Market Value and Other Adjustments
H  Exchange Gains or Losses
I  Shareholder Dividend Distribution and Capital Changes
J  Others
K  Embedded Value as at 31 December 2023 (sum A through J)

Notes:

1.  Numbers may not be additive due to rounding.

2. 

Items B through J are explained below:

RMB million

1,230,519
83,473
36,860
(624)
(73,807)
(40,643)
37,044
132
(13,850)
1,462
1,260,567

B  Reflects expected impact of covered business, and the expected return on investments supporting the 2023 opening net worth.

C  Value of one year’s sales for the 12 months ended 31 December 2023.

D  Reflects the difference between actual operating experience in 2023 (including mortality, morbidity, lapse, and expenses etc.) and the assumptions.

E  Compares actual with expected investment returns during 2023.

F  Reflects the effects of appraisal methodology and model enhancement, and assumption changes.

G  Change in the market value adjustment from the beginning of year 2023 to 31 December 2023 and other adjustments.

H  Reflects the gains or losses due to changes in exchange rate.

I 

Reflects dividends distributed to shareholders during 2023.

J  Other miscellaneous items.

32

Annual Report 2023 | Embedded Value 
 
 
 
 
 
SENSITIVITY RESULTS

Sensitivity tests were performed using a range of alternative assumptions. In each of the sensitivity tests, only the assumption 
referred to was changed, with all other assumptions remaining unchanged. The results are summarized below:

Sensitivity Results

Base case scenario
1.  Risk discount rate +50bps
2.  Risk discount rate -50bps
3.  10% increase in investment return
4.  10% decrease in investment return
5.  10% increase in expenses
6.  10% decrease in expenses
7.  10% increase in mortality rate for non-annuity products and 

10% decrease in mortality rate for annuity products

8.  10% decrease in mortality rate for non-annuity products and 

10% increase in mortality rate for annuity products

9.  10% increase in lapse rates
10. 10% decrease in lapse rates
11. 10% increase in morbidity rates
12. 10% decrease in morbidity rates
13. Allowing for diversification in calculation of VIF

Using 2022 Economic Assumptions

Embedded Value
Value of One Year’s Sales after Cost of Required Capital

RMB million

Value of In-Force 
Business after Cost  
of Required Capital

Value of One Year’s 
Sales after Cost  

of Required Capital

584,807
555,649
616,352
713,980
456,240
577,127
592,487
580,222

589,427

577,213
592,494
574,794
595,090
629,037

36,860
34,647
39,263
47,644
26,112
33,204
40,516
35,996

37,730

36,081
37,701
35,094
38,628
–

RMB million

31 December  

31 December  

2023

1,293,269
41,035

2022

Change

1,230,519
36,004

5.1%
14.0%

33

Annual Report 2023 | Embedded Value 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
INDEPENDENT ACTUARIES REVIEW 
OPINION REPORT ON EMBEDDED 
VALUE OF CHINA LIFE INSURANCE 
COMPANY LIMITED

China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited  (“China  Life”)  has 
prepared embedded value results as at 31 December 2023 
(“EV Results”). The disclosure of these EV Results, together 
with a description of the methodology and assumptions that 
have been used, are shown in the Embedded Value section.

This report is addressed solely to China Life in accordance 
with  the  terms  of  our  engagement  letter.  To  the  fullest 
extent  permitted  by  applicable  law,  we  do  not  accept  or 
assume any responsibility, duty of care or liability to anyone 
other  than  China  Life  for  or  in  connection  with  our  review 
work, the opinions we have formed, or for any statements 
set forth in this report.

Opinion

Based on the scope of work above, we have concluded that:

China  Life  has  retained  Deloitte  Consulting  (Shanghai) 
Co.,  Ltd.  to  review  its  EV  Results.  The  task  is  undertaken 
by  Deloitte  Actuarial  and  Insurance  Solutions  of  Deloitte 
Consulting  (Shanghai)  Co.,  Ltd.  (“Deloitte  Consulting”  or 
“we”).

•  The  embedded  value  methodology  used  by  China  Life 
is in line with the “CAA Standards of Actuarial Practice: 
Appraisal  of  Embedded  Value”  issued  by  CAA.  This 
method is commonly used by life and health insurance 
companies in China;

•  The economic assumptions used by China Life have taken 
into  account  the  current  investment  market  conditions 
and the investment strategy of China Life;

•  The operating assumptions used by China Life have taken 
into account the past experience and the expectation of 
future experience; and

•  The  embedded  value  results  are  consistent  with  its 
methodology  and  assumptions  used.  The  overall  result 
is reasonable.

For and on behalf of  
Deloitte Consulting (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
Eric Lu 

Yu Jiang

27 March 2024

Scope of Work

Our scope of work covered:

•  a  review  of  the  methodology  used  to  develop  the 
embedded value and value of one year’s sales as at 31 
December 2023, in accordance with the “CAA Standards 
of  Actuarial  Practice:  Appraisal  of  Embedded  Value”, 
issued by the China Association of Actuaries (“CAA”);

•  a  review  of  the  economic  and  operating  assumptions 
used to develop embedded value and value of one year’s 
sales as at 31 December 2023; and

•  a review of China Life’s EV Results, including embedded 
value,  value of  one year’s sales, analysis of embedded 
value movement from 31 December 2022 to 31 December 
2023,  and  the  sensitivity  results  of  value  of  in-force 
business and value of one year’s sales.

Basis of Opinion, Reliance and Limitation

We carried out our review work based on “CAA Standards 
of Actuarial Practice: Appraisal of Embedded Value”, issued 
by CAA. In carrying out our review, we have relied on the 
completeness and accuracy of audited and unaudited data 
and information provided by China Life.

The determination of embedded value is based on a range 
of  assumptions  on  future  operations  and  investment 
performance.  The  future  actual  experiences  are  affected 
by  internal  and  external  factors,  many  of  which  are  not 
entirely  controlled  by  China  Life.  Hence  the  future  actual 
experiences may deviate from these assumptions.

34

Annual Report 2023 | Embedded ValueSIGNIFICANT  
EVENTS

INFORMATION ON DELISTING AND 
DEREGISTRATION OF AMERICAN 
DEPOSITARY SHARES

On  22  August  2022,  the  Company  filed  a  Form  25  with 
the  United  States  Securities  and  Exchange  Commission 
(the  “SEC”)  to  voluntarily  delist  its  American  depositary 
shares (“ADSs”) from the New York Stock Exchange. The 
delisting  became  effective  on  2  September  2022  (Eastern 
Time  in  the  U.S.).  On  13  November  2023,  the  Company 
filed  a  Form  15F  with  the  SEC  to  deregister  the  ADSs 
and  the  underlying  H  Shares  and  terminate  its  reporting 
obligations under the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 
as amended. The deregistration and termination of reporting 
obligations became effective on 12 February 2024 (Eastern 
Time in the U.S.).

MATERIAL LITIGATIONS OR 
ARBITRATIONS

During the Reporting Period, the Company was not involved 
in any material litigation or arbitration.

MAJOR CONNECTED TRANSACTIONS

Continuing Connected Transactions

During  the  Reporting  Period,  the  following  continuing 
connected  transactions  were  carried  out  by  the  Company 
pursuant  to  Rule  14A.76(2)  of  the  Rules  Governing  the 
Listing  of  Securities  on  the  HKSE  (the  “Listing  Rules”), 
including  the  insurance  sales  framework  agreement 
between the Company and CLP&C, the asset management 
agreement between the Company and AMC, the framework 
agreement  between  the  Company  and  China  Life  Capital, 
and the framework agreements entered into by China Life 
AMP with the Company, CLIC and CLI, respectively. These 
continuing  connected  transactions  were  subject  to  the 
reporting,  announcement  and  annual  review  requirements 
but  were  exempt  from  the  independent  shareholders’ 
approval  requirement  under  the  Listing  Rules.  CLIC,  the 
controlling shareholder of the Company, holds 60% of the 
equity  interest  in  CLP&C  and  100%  of  the  equity  interest 
in  CLI  and  China  Life  Capital.  Therefore,  each  of  CLIC, 
CLP&C, CLI and China Life Capital constitutes a connected 
person of the Company. AMC is held as to 60% and 40% 
by  the  Company  and  CLIC,  respectively,  and  is  therefore 
a  connected  subsidiary  of  the  Company.  China  Life  AMP 
is  a  subsidiary  of  AMC,  and  is  therefore  also  a  connected 
subsidiary of the Company.

35

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsDuring  the  Reporting  Period,  the  continuing  connected 
transaction carried out by the Company that was subject to 
the reporting, announcement, annual review and independent 
shareholders’ approval requirements under Chapter 14A of 
the  Listing  Rules  included  the  agreement  for  entrusted 
investment  and  management  and  operating  services  with 
respect  to  alternative  investments  with  insurance  funds 
between  the  Company  and  CLI.  Such  agreement  and 
the  transactions  thereunder  have  been  approved  by  the 
independent shareholders of the Company.

During  the  Reporting  Period,  the  Company  also  carried 
out  certain  continuing  connected  transactions,  including 
the policy management agreement between the Company 
and CLIC, and the asset management agreement between 
CLIC  and  AMC,  which  were  exempt  from  the  reporting, 
announcement, annual review and independent shareholders’ 
approval  requirements  under  Chapter  14A  of  the  Listing 
Rules.

The Company has complied with the disclosure requirements 
under  Chapter  14A  of  the  Listing  Rules  in  respect  of  the 
above continuing connected transactions. When conducting 
the  above  continuing  connected  transactions  during  the 
Reporting  Period,  the  Company  has  followed  the  pricing 
policies  and  guidelines  formulated  at  the  time  when  such 
transactions were entered into.

Policy Management Agreement

The Company and CLIC entered into the 2022-2024 policy 
management agreement on 31 December 2021, with a term 
from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2024. Pursuant to the 
agreement,  the  Company  will  accept  CLIC’s  entrustment 
to  provide  policy  administration  services  relating  to  the 
non-transferred  policies.  The  Company  acts  as  a  service 
provider  under  the  agreement  and  does  not  acquire  any 
rights  or  assume  any  obligations  as  an  insurer  under  the 
non-transferred  policies.  For  details  as  to  the  method  of 
calculation of the service fee, please refer to Note 33 in the 
Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements. The annual 
cap in respect of the service fee to be paid by CLIC to the 
Company for each of the three years ending 31 December 
2024 is RMB491 million.

For the year ended 31 December 2023, the service fee paid 
by CLIC to the Company amounted to RMB463.21 million.

Insurance Sales Framework Agreement

The Company and CLP&C entered into the 2021 insurance 
sales  framework  agreement  on  20  February  2021,  with  a 
term  of  two  years  from  8  March  2021  to  7  March  2023, 
which  could  be  automatically  extended  for  one  year  to  7 
March  2024.  Pursuant  to  the  agreement,  CLP&C  would 
entrust  the  Company  to  act  as  an  agent  to  sell  selected 
insurance  products  within  the  authorised  regions,  and  pay 
an  agency  service  fee  to  the  Company  in  consideration 
of  the  services  provided.  For  details  as  to  the  method  of 
calculation of the agency service fee, please refer to Note 33 
in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements. The 
annual caps for the three years ended 31 December 2023 
were RMB3,500 million, RMB3,830 million and RMB4,240 
million, respectively.

The  Company  and  CLP&C  has  entered  into  the  2024 
insurance sales framework agreement on 23 February 2024, 
with a term of three years from 8 March 2024 to 7 March 
2027.  Pursuant  to  the  agreement,  CLP&C  will  continue  to 
entrust  the  Company  to  act  as  an  agent  to  sell  selected 
insurance  products  within  the  authorised  regions,  and  pay 
an  agency  service  fee  to  the  Company  in  consideration  of 
the services provided. The annual caps for the three years 
ending 31 December 2026 are RMB2,620 million, RMB2,840 
million and RMB3,110 million, respectively.

For  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  CLP&C  paid  the 
Company an agency service fee of RMB1,705.64 million.

Asset Management Agreements

Asset Management Agreement between the Company 
and AMC

The  Company  and  AMC  entered  into  the  2023-2025  asset 
management  agreement  on  1  January  2023,  with  a  term 
from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025. Pursuant to the 
2023-2025 asset management agreement, AMC agreed to 
invest and manage assets entrusted to it by the Company, 
on  a  discretionary  basis,  within  the  scope  granted  by  the 
Company  and  in  accordance  with  the  requirements  of 
applicable  laws  and  regulations,  regulatory  requirements 
and  the  investment  guidelines  given  by  the  Company.  In 
consideration of AMC’s services in respect of investing and 
managing  various  categories  of  assets  entrusted  to  it  by 
the  Company  under  the  agreement,  the  Company  agreed 
to pay AMC a service fee. For details as to the method of 
calculation  of  the  service  fee,  please  refer  to  Note  33  in 
the  Notes  to  the  Consolidated  Financial  Statements.  The 
annual caps for the three years ending 31 December 2025 
are  RMB4,000  million,  RMB5,000  million  and  RMB6,000 
million, respectively.

For the year ended 31 December 2023, the Company paid 
AMC a service fee of RMB3,264.68 million.

36

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsAsset Management Agreement between CLIC and AMC

CLIC and AMC entered into the 2023-2025 asset management 
agreement  on  29  December  2022,  with  a  term  from  1 
January 2023 to 31 December 2025. Pursuant to the 2023-
2025 asset management agreement, AMC agreed to invest 
and manage assets entrusted to it by CLIC, on a discretionary 
basis, subject to the investment guidelines and instructions 
given by CLIC. In consideration of AMC’s services in respect 
of  investing  and  managing  assets  entrusted  to  it  by  CLIC 
under  the  agreement,  CLIC  agreed  to  pay  AMC  a  service 
fee. For details as to the method of calculation of the service 
fee, please refer to Note 33 in the Notes to the Consolidated 
Financial Statements. The annual cap for each of the three 
years ending 31 December 2025 is RMB500 million.

For  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  CLIC  paid  AMC  a 
service fee of RMB140.82 million.

Agreement for Entrusted Investment and Management 
and Operating Services with respect to Alternative 
Investments with Insurance Funds between the 
Company and CLI

As  approved  by  the  First  Extraordinary  General  Meeting 
2021  of  the  Company,  the  Company  and  CLI  entered 
into  the  2022-2024  agreement  for  entrusted  investment 
and  management  and  operating  services  with  respect  to 
alternative  investments  with  insurance  funds  (the  “2022-
2024 Alternative Investment Agreement”) on 27 December 
2021. The 2022-2024 Alternative Investment Agreement was 
for a term from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2023, and 
could be automatically renewed for one year. Pursuant to the 
2022-2024 Alternative Investment Agreement, the Company 
would entrust CLI to perform services including the entrusted 
investment  and  management  and  the  entrusted  operation 
with  respect  to  alternative  investments.  For  the  entrusted 
investment  and  management,  it  covered  the  equity/real 
estate  direct  investments,  equity/real  estate  funds,  non-
standard financial products and quasi-securitisation financial 
products  already  entrusted  by  the  Company  to  CLI  for 
investment  and  management  under  the  existing  projects, 
as  well  as  the  non-standard  financial  products  and  quasi-
securitisation  financial  products  entrusted  for  investment 
under  the  new  projects.  CLI  would  invest  and  manage 
assets  entrusted  to  it  by  the  Company,  on  a  discretionary 
basis, within the scope of utilisation of insurance funds as 
specified  by  the  regulatory  authorities  and  in  accordance 
with  the  requirements  of  applicable  laws  and  regulations 
and  the  investment  guidelines  of  the  Company,  and  the 
Company  would  pay  CLI  the  investment  management 
service fee, product management fee, real estate operation 
management service fee and performance reward in respect 

of  the  investment  and  management  services  provided  by 
CLI to the Company. For the entrusted operation, CLI would 
provide the operating services to the Company with respect 
to the equity/real estate funds invested by the Company at 
its  own  discretion  and  within  the  scope  prescribed  in  the 
agreement, and the Company would pay CLI the entrusted 
operation fee in this regard.

As  approved  by  the  2022  Annual  General  Meeting  of  the 
Company, the Company and CLI entered into the 2023-2025 
agreement for entrusted investment and management and 
operating  services  with  respect  to  alternative  investments 
with insurance funds (the “2023-2025 Alternative Investment 
Agreement”) on 30 June 2023 to modify the type of assets 
entrusted  by  the  Company  to  CLI  for  investment  and 
management  under  the  2022-2024  Alternative  Investment 
Agreement,  and  to  set  forth  the  pricing  principle  for  each 
type of the products. The 2023-2025 Alternative Investment 
Agreement is for a term from 1 July 2023 to 31 December 
2024, and can be automatically renewed for one year. The 
2022-2024  Alternative  Investment  Agreement  has  been 
terminated  and  replaced  by  the  2023-2025  Alternative 
Investment  Agreement  after  the  latter  came  into  effect. 
Pursuant  to  the  2023-2025  Alternative 
Investment 
Agreement, CLI will continue to invest and manage assets 
entrusted  to  it  by  the  Company,  on  a  discretionary  basis, 
within the scope of utilisation of insurance funds as specified 
by  the  regulatory  authorities  and  in  accordance  with  the 
requirements  of  applicable  laws  and  regulations  and  the 
investment  guidelines  of  the  Company,  and  the  Company 
will  pay  CLI  the  investment  management  service  fee, 
product management fee, real estate operation management 
service  fee  and  performance  reward  in  respect  of  the 
investment  and  management  services  provided  by  CLI  to 
the  Company.  The  entrusted  assets  under  the  2023-2025 
Alternative Investment Agreement include insurance asset 
management products, financial products, equity/real estate 
funds and public REITs products (which are mainly conducted 
by way of strategic fund and restrict to the participation in 
strategic placement). In addition, CLI will continue to provide 
the operating services to the Company with respect to the 
equity/real  estate  funds  invested  by  the  Company  at  its 
own discretion and entrusted by it to CLI for operation and 
management, and the Company will pay CLI the entrusted 
operation fee in this regard. For details as to the method of 
calculation of the fees for the investment and management 
services (including the investment management service fee, 
product management fee, real estate operation management 
service  fee  and  performance  reward)  and  the  entrusted 
operation  fee  in  relation  to  the  operating  services,  please 
refer to Note 33 in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial 
Statements.

37

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsFor the three years ending 31 December 2025, the annual 
caps on the contractual amount of assets newly entrusted 
by the Company to CLI for investment and management are 
RMB120,000 million (or its equivalent in foreign currency), 
RMB140,000  million  (or  its  equivalent  in  foreign  currency) 
and  RMB150,000  million  (or  its  equivalent  in  foreign 
currency),  respectively,  and  the  annual  caps  on  the  fees 
for  the  investment  and  management  services  payable  by 
the Company to CLI (including the investment management 
service fee, product management fee, real estate operation 
management service fee and performance reward) and the 
entrusted operation fee in relation to the operating services 
are RMB1,500 million (or its equivalent in foreign currency), 
RMB1,800 million (or its equivalent in foreign currency) and 
RMB2,200  million  (or  its  equivalent  in  foreign  currency), 
respectively. The annual cap on the contractual amount of 
assets  newly  entrusted  for  investment  and  management, 
as  well  as  the  annual  cap  on  the  fees  for  the  investment 
and management services and the entrusted operation fee 
for the year ended 31 December 2023 under the 2022-2024 
Alternative  Investment  Agreement  were  both  revised  as 
the  relevant  annual  caps  under  the  2023-2025  Alternative 
Investment Agreement, after the latter came into effect.

For  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  the  fees  for  the 
investment  and  management  services  (including  the 
investment management service fee, product management 
fee,  real  estate  operation  management  service  fee  and 
performance  reward)  and  the  entrusted  operation  fee  in 
relation  to  the  operating  services  paid  by  the  Company  to 
CLI  amounted  to  RMB770.49  million,  and  the  contractual 
amount of assets newly entrusted by the Company to CLI 
for investment and management was RMB76,764.50 million.

Cooperation Framework Agreement for Investment 
Management with Insurance Funds between the 
Company and China Life Capital

The Company and China Life Capital entered into the 2023-
2025 framework agreement on 28 December 2022, with a 
term from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025. Pursuant 
to the agreement, the Company will subscribe in the capacity 
of the limited partner for the fund products of which China 
Life  Capital  or  any  of  its  subsidiaries  serves  (individually 
and  jointly  with  third  parties)  as  the  general  partner,  and/
or the fund products of which China Life Capital serves as 
the manager (including the fund manager and co-manager). 
For  each  of  the  three  years  ending  31  December  2025, 
the annual cap for the subscription by the Company in the 
capacity of the limited partner of the fund products of which 
China  Life  Capital  or  any  of  its  subsidiaries  serves  as  the 
general  partner  is  RMB5,000  million,  and  the  annual  cap 
for  the  management  fee  charged  by  China  Life  Capital  as 
the general partner or the manager of the fund products is 
RMB500 million.

For  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  the  amount  of 
subscription by the Company in the capacity of the limited 
partner of the fund products of which China Life Capital or 
any  of  its  subsidiaries  serves  as  the  general  partner  was 
RMB4,000.00 million, and the management fee charged by 
China Life Capital as the general partner or the manager of 
the fund products was RMB142.20 million.

Framework Agreements with China Life AMP

Framework Agreement between the Company and 
China Life AMP

The  Company  and  China  Life  AMP  entered  into  the  2023-
2025 framework agreement on 30 December 2022, with a 
term  of  three  years  from  1  January  2023  to  31  December 
2025. Pursuant to the agreement, the Company and China 
Life  AMP  will  conduct  certain  daily  transactions,  including 
the subscription and redemption of fund products and private 
asset  management.  Pricing  of  the  transactions  under  the 
agreement shall be determined by the parties through arm’s 
length  negotiations  with  reference  to  industry  practices. 
For  each  of  the  three  years  ending  31  December  2025, 
the annual cap of the subscription price and corresponding 
subscription  fee  for  the  subscription  of  fund  products  is 
RMB20,000 million, the annual cap of the redemption price 
and  corresponding  redemption  fee  for  the  redemption  of 
fund products is RMB20,000 million, and the annual cap of 
the management fee payable by the Company for the private 
asset management is RMB700 million.

For the year ended 31 December 2023, the subscription price 
and  corresponding  subscription  fee  for  the  subscription  of 
fund products were RMB11,314.00 million, the redemption 
price and corresponding redemption fee for the redemption 
of  fund  products  were  RMB8,130.26  million,  and  the 
management fee paid by the Company for the private asset 
management was RMB26.70 million.

Framework Agreement between CLIC and China Life 
AMP

CLIC  and  China  Life  AMP  entered  into  the  2023-2025 
framework  agreement  on  9  December  2022,  with  a  term 
of three years from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025. 
Pursuant to the agreement, CLIC will subscribe for or redeem 
the fund units of the funds managed by China Life AMP, and 
pay the relevant fees. Pricing of the transactions under the 
agreement shall be determined by the parties through arm’s 
length  negotiations  with  reference  to  industry  practices. 
For  each  of  the  three  years  ending  31  December  2025, 
the annual cap of the subscription price and corresponding 
subscription  fee  for  the  subscription  of  fund  products  is 
RMB2,000  million,  and  the  annual  cap  of  the  redemption 
price and corresponding redemption fee for the redemption 
of fund products is RMB2,000 million.

38

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsFor  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  the  subscription 
price and corresponding subscription fee for the subscription 
of  fund  products  were  RMB0  million,  and  the  redemption 
price and corresponding redemption fee for the redemption 
of fund products were RMB87.91 million.

Framework Agreement between CLI and China Life 
AMP

CLI  and  China  Life  AMP  entered  into  the  2023-2025 
framework agreement on 29 December 2022, with a term 
of three years from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025. 
Pursuant  to  the  agreement,  CLI  and  its  subsidiaries  will 
conduct  certain  daily  transactions  with  China  Life  AMP, 
including the subscription and redemption of fund products 
and private asset management. Pricing of the transactions 
under  the  agreement  shall  be  determined  by  the  parties 
through  arm’s  length  negotiations  with  reference  to 
industry  practices.  For  each  of  the  three  years  ending  31 
December  2025,  the  annual  cap  of  the  subscription  price 
and  corresponding  subscription  fee  for  the  subscription  of 
fund  products  is  RMB2,000  million,  the  annual  cap  of  the 
redemption price and corresponding redemption fee for the 
redemption of fund products is RMB2,000 million, and the 
annual  cap  of the management fee payable by CLI and its 
subsidiaries  for  the  private  asset  management  is  RMB20 
million.

For  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  the  subscription 
price and corresponding subscription fee for the subscription 
of fund products were RMB140.00 million, the redemption 
price and corresponding redemption fee for the redemption 
of  fund  products  were  RMB140.00  million,  and  the 
management  fee  paid  by  CLI  and  its  subsidiaries  for  the 
private asset management was RMB0 million.

Confirmation by Auditor

The  Board  has  received  a  comfort  letter  from  the  auditor 
of  the  Company  with  respect  to  the  above  continuing 
connected transactions which were subject to the reporting, 
announcement  and/or  independent  shareholders’  approval 
requirements, and the letter stated that during the Reporting 
Period:

•  nothing has come to the auditors’ attention that causes 
them to believe that the disclosed continuing connected 
transactions have not been approved by the Company’s 
Board of Directors;

• 

for  transactions  involving  the  provision  of  goods  or 
services  by  the  Company,  nothing  has  come  to  the 
auditors’  attention  that  causes  them  to  believe  that 
the  transactions  were  not,  in  all  material  respects,  in 
accordance with the pricing policies of the Company;

•  nothing has come to the auditors’ attention that causes 
them to believe that the transactions were not entered 
into,  in  all  material  respects,  in  accordance  with  the 
relevant agreements governing such transactions; and

•  nothing has come to the auditors’ attention that causes 
them  to  believe  that  the  amounts  of  the  continuing 
connected transactions have exceeded the total amount 
of the annual caps set by the Company.

Confirmation by Independent Directors

The  Company’s  Independent  Directors  have  reviewed 
the  above  continuing  connected  transactions  which  were 
subject to the reporting, announcement and/or independent 
shareholders’ approval requirements, and confirmed that:

• 

• 

• 

the  transactions  were  entered  into  in  the  ordinary  and 
usual course of business of the Company;

the transactions were conducted on normal commercial 
terms;

the  transactions  were  entered  into  in  accordance  with 
the  agreements  governing  those  continuing  connected 
transactions, and the terms are fair and reasonable and 
in  the  interests  of  shareholders  of  the  Company  as  a 
whole; and

• 

the amounts of the above transactions have not exceeded 
the relevant annual caps.

Other Major Connected Transactions

Investment in Jiangxi Jiaotou Expressway 
Investment Fund (Limited Partnership)

As approved by the twenty-second meeting of the seventh 
session  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Company,  the 
Company  contributed  RMB3,000,000,000  to  the  equity 
investment  plan  established  by  CLI  and  entered  into  an 
entrustment  contract  with  CLI  on  27  April  2023  for  such 
purpose. All funds under the equity investment plan would 
be used for the subscription of limited partnership interest 
in  Jiangxi  Jiaotou  Expressway  Investment  Fund  (Limited 
Partnership).  The  partnership  would  primarily  invest  in 
highway projects in Jiangxi Province, the PRC. CLI had, on 
behalf of the equity investment plan and as a limited partner, 
entered  into  a  partnership  agreement  with  Jiangxi  Jiaotou 
Jinshi Transportation and Investment Management Co., Ltd. 
(“Jiaotou  Jinshi”)  (as  the  general  partner  and  managing 
partner), and Jiangxi Communications Investment Group Co., 
Ltd. and Jiangxi Transportation Development Fund (Limited 
Partnership)  (each  as  a  limited  partner)  in  relation  to  the 
formation of the partnership on 24 November 2022. China 
Life Jinshi Asset Management Company Limited (“China Life 
Jinshi”) served as the manager of the partnership.

39

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsInvestment  in  Jicang  (Tianjin)  Logistics  Equity 
Investment Fund Partnership (Limited Partnership)

Investment in Beijing MTR Equity Investment Fund 
Partnership (Limited Partnership)

As  approved  by  the  twenty-third  meeting  of  the  seventh 
session  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Company,  the 
Company  contributed  RMB999,000,000  to  the  equity 
investment  plan  established  by  CLI  and  entered  into  an 
entrustment  contract  with  CLI  on  8  May  2023  for  such 
purpose. All funds under the equity investment plan would 
be used for the subscription of limited partnership interest in 
Jicang (Tianjin) Logistics Equity Investment Fund Partnership 
(Limited  Partnership).  The  partnership  would,  directly  or 
through one- or multi-level investment vehicles, make equity 
investment in certain project companies which are engaged 
in the operation of logistics real estate located in the PRC 
and  which  are  held  or  to  be  acquired  by  Cainiao  Network 
Technology  Co.,  Ltd.  and  its  designated  affiliates.  Such 
logistics  real  estate  would  be  the  completed  projects  for 
high-standard  modernised  warehouses  with  sophisticated 
operation that are located in the areas of important logistics 
node cities  in  the Yangtze River Delta where supplies and 
demands  are  relatively  healthy.  CLI  had,  on  behalf  of  the 
equity investment plan and as a limited partner, entered into 
a  partnership  agreement  with  Hangzhou  Youhu  Enterprise 
Management Limited and China Life Properties Investment 
Management  Company  Limited  (“China  Life  Properties”) 
(each  as  a  general  partner  and  managing  partner),  and 
Zhejiang  Cainiao  Supply  Chain  Management  Co.,  Ltd., 
Manulife-Sinochem  Life  Insurance  Co.,  Ltd.  and  Chasing 
Jixiang Life Insurance Co., Ltd. (each as a limited partner) in 
relation to the formation of the partnership on 23 February 
2023.  China  Life  Capital  served  as  the  manager  of  the 
partnership.

As  approved  by  the  twenty-third  meeting  of  the  seventh 
session  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Company,  the 
Company  and  CLP&C  contributed  RMB5,000,000,000  and 
RMB1,000,000,000, respectively, to the equity investment 
plan  established  by  CLI.  The  Company  entered  into  an 
entrustment  contract  with  CLI  on  12  May  2023  for  such 
purpose. All funds under the equity investment plan would 
be used for the subscription of limited partnership interest 
in Beijing MTR Equity Investment Fund Partnership (Limited 
Partnership). The partnership would make equity investment 
in  Beijing  MTR  Corporation  Ltd.  and  eventually  invest  in 
the  metro  projects  being  developed  and  operated  and  to 
be developed and operated by such company. CLI had, on 
behalf of the equity investment plan and as a limited partner, 
entered  into  a  partnership  agreement  with  Beijing  Capital 
Chuangxin Enterprise Management Co., Ltd. and China Life 
Industrial Investment Management Co., Ltd. (“CLIIM”) (each 
as  a  general  partner  and  managing  partner),  and  Beijing 
Capital  Group  Co.,  Ltd.  (as  a  limited  partner)  in  relation  to 
the formation of the partnership on 18 April 2023. China Life 
Capital served as the manager of the partnership.

Each  of  CLI,  Jiaotou  Jinshi,  China  Life  Jinshi,  China  Life 
Properties, China Life Capital and CLIIM is an associate of 
CLIC,  and  therefore  a  connected  person  of  the  Company. 
The  above  transactions  constituted  one-off  connected 
transactions  of  the  Company  that  were  subject  to  the 
reporting and announcement requirements but were exempt 
from  the  independent  shareholders’  approval  requirement 
under Rule 14A.76(2) of the Listing Rules.

The Company has complied with the disclosure requirements 
under  Chapter  14A  of  the  Listing  Rules  in  respect  of  the 
above one-off connected transactions.

Statement on Claims, Debt Transactions and 
Guarantees etc. of a Non-operating Nature with 
Related Parties

During the Reporting Period, the Company was not involved 
in claims, debt transactions or guarantees of a non-operating 
nature with related parties.

40

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsMATERIAL CONTRACTS AND THEIR 
PERFORMANCE

During the Reporting Period, the Company neither acted as 
trustee,  contractor  or  lessee  of  other  companies’  assets, 
nor  entrusted,  contracted  or  leased  its  assets  to  other 
companies,  the  profit  or  loss  from  which  accounted  for 
10%  or  more  of  the  Company’s  profits  for  the  Reporting 
Period,  nor  were  there  any  such  matters  that  occurred  in 
previous periods but subsisted during the Reporting Period.

During the Reporting Period, China Life Insurance Company 
Limited  neither  gave  external  guarantees  nor  provided 
guarantees to its holding subsidiaries.

As at the end of the Reporting Period, the external guarantee 
balance  of  the  holding  subsidiaries  of  the  Company  was 
RMB447 million5.

Entrusted  investment  management  during  the  Reporting 
Period or any entrusted investment management occurred 
in  previous  periods  but  subsisted  during  the  Reporting 
Period:  Investment  is  one  of  the  principal  businesses  of 
the  Company.  The  Company  mainly  adopts  the  mode  of 
entrusted  investment  for  management  of  its  investment 
assets,  and  has  established  a  diversified  framework  of 
entrusted investment management with China Life’s internal 
managers  playing  the  key  role  and  the  external  managers 
offering  effective  supports.  The  internal  managers  include 
AMC and its subsidiaries, and CLI and its subsidiaries. The 
external  managers  comprise  both  domestic  and  overseas 
managers, including fund companies, securities companies 
and other professional investment management institutions. 
The Company selected different investment managers based 
on the purpose of allocation of various types of investments, 
their risk features and the expertise of different managers, 
so  as  to  establish  a  great  variety  of  investment  portfolios 
and improve the efficiency of insurance fund utilisation. The 
Company  entered  into  entrusted  investment  management 
agreements  or  asset  management  contracts  with  all 
managers  and  supervised  the  managers’  daily  investment 
performance  through  the  measures  such  as  investment 
guidelines, asset custody and performance appraisals. The 
Company also adopted risk control measures in respect of 
specific investments based on the characteristics of different 
managers and investment products.

Except as otherwise disclosed in this report, the Company 
had no other material contracts during the Reporting Period.

UNDERTAKINGS MADE BY 
THE PARTIES INCLUDING 
THE COMPANY’S EFFECTIVE 
CONTROLLER, SHAREHOLDERS, 
RELATED PARTIES, ACQUIRERS  
AND THE COMPANY WHICH ARE  
EITHER GIVEN OR EFFECTIVE DURING 
THE REPORTING PERIOD

Prior to the listing of the Company’s A Shares (30 November 
2006),  land  use  rights  were  injected  by  CLIC  into  the 
Company during its reorganisation. Out of these, four pieces 
of  land  (with  a  total  area  of  10,421.12  square  meters)  had 
not had its formalities in relation to the change of ownership 
completed. Further, out of the properties injected into the 
Company,  there  were  six  properties  (with  a  gross  floor 
area  of  8,639.76  square  meters)  in  respect  of  which  the 
formalities  in  relation  to  the  change  of  ownership  had  not 
been completed. CLIC undertook to assist the Company in 
completing the above-mentioned formalities within one year 
of the date of listing of the Company’s A Shares, and in the 
event  that  such  formalities  could  not  be  completed  within 
such  period,  CLIC  would  bear  any  potential  losses  to  the 
Company due to the defective ownership.

CLIC strictly followed these commitments. As at the end of 
the Reporting Period, save for the two properties and related 
land  of  the  Company’s  Shenzhen  Branch,  the  ownership 
registration  formalities  of  which  had  not  been  completed 
due  to  historical  reasons,  all  other  formalities  in  relation 
to  the  change  of  land  and  property  ownership  had  been 
completed. The Shenzhen Branch of the Company continues 
to use such properties and land, and no other parties have 
questioned or hindered the use of such properties and land 
by the Company.

The Company’s Shenzhen Branch and the other co-owners 
of  the  properties  have  issued  a  letter  to  the  governing 
department  of  the  original  owner  of  the  properties  in 
respect of the confirmation of ownership of the properties, 
requesting  it  to  report  the  ownership  issue  to  the  State-
owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission 
of the State Council (“SASAC”), and requesting the SASAC 
to  confirm  the  respective  shares  of  each  co-owner  in  the 
properties and to issue written documents in this regard to 
the  department  of  land  and  resources  of  Shenzhen,  so  as 
to assist the Company and the other co-owners to complete 
the  formalities  in  relation  to  the  division  of  ownership  of 
the properties.

5 

The guarantee occurred before the company became a holding subsidiary of the Company in 2023, and did not involve the provision of guarantee for the 
Company’s shareholders, effective controller or their related parties.

41

Annual Report 2023 | Significant EventsRESTRICTION ON MAJOR ASSETS

The major assets of the Company are financial assets. During 
the  Reporting  Period,  there  was  no  major  asset  of  the 
Company  being  seized,  detained  or  frozen  that  is  subject 
to the disclosure requirements.

OTHER MATTERS

The  “Resolution  on  the  Issue  of  Capital  Supplementary 
Bonds  by  the  Company”  was  considered  and  approved 
at  the  First  Extraordinary  General  Meeting  2023  of  the 
Company,  pursuant  to  which  the  Company  intended  to 
issue capital supplementary bonds in the PRC with a  total 
amount  of  no  more  than  RMB35  billion  in  one  or  more 
tranches,  depending  on  market  conditions.  The  proceeds 
from  the  issue  of  the  capital  supplementary  bonds  will  be 
used  for  replenishing  the  supplementary  tier  1  capital  of 
the  Company  in  accordance  with  applicable  laws  and  the 
approvals from regulatory authorities, so as to support the 
sustained  and  steady  development  of  its  business.  The 
issue is still subject to the approval by regulatory authorities. 
Investors are advised to pay attention to the announcements 
made by the Company in its listed jurisdictions for the further 
development in this regard.

Given  that  the  change  of  ownership  of  the  above  two 
properties and related land use rights were directed by the 
co-owners,  and  all  formalities  in  relation  to  the  change  of 
ownership were proceeded slowly due to reasons such as 
issues  rooted  in  history  and  government  approvals,  CLIC, 
the  controlling  shareholder  of  the  Company,  made  further 
commitment  as  follows:  CLIC  will  assist  the  Company 
in  completing,  and  urge  the  co-owners  to  complete,  the 
formalities in relation to the change of ownership in respect 
of the above two properties and related land use rights as 
soon  as  possible.  If  the  formalities  cannot  be  completed 
due  to  the  reasons  of  the  co-owners,  CLIC  will  take  any 
other legally practicable measures to resolve the issue and 
will bear any potential losses suffered by the Company as 
a result of the defective ownership.

ALLEGED VIOLATION OF LAWS 
AND REGULATIONS BY, PENALTIES 
IMPOSED ON AND RECTIFICATION 
OF THE COMPANY AND ITS 
CONTROLLING SHAREHOLDERS, 
EFFECTIVE CONTROLLER, 
DIRECTORS, SUPERVISORS OR 
SENIOR MANAGEMENT

During  the  Reporting  Period,  the  Company  was  not 
investigated for suspected crimes according to law, and none 
of its controlling shareholders, effective controller, Directors, 
Supervisors  and  senior  management  were  subject  to  any 
compulsory  measures  for  suspected  crimes  according  to 
law. The Company or its controlling shareholders, effective 
controller,  Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management 
were not subject to any criminal punishment, investigation 
by  the  CSRC  for  alleged  violation  of  laws  and  regulations, 
administrative penalty by the CSRC, or material administrative 
penalty  by  other  competent  authorities,  nor  were  they 
detained  by  the  disciplinary  inspection  and  supervision 
authorities  for  alleged  serious  violation  of  disciplines  or 
laws  or  duty-related  crimes  which  had  an  impact  on  their 
performance  of  duties.  None  of  the  Company’s  Directors, 
Supervisors  and  senior  management  were  subject  to  any 
compulsory  measures  by  other  competent  authorities  for 
alleged violation of laws and regulations which had an impact 
on their performance of duties.

42

Annual Report 2023 | Significant Events 
CORPORATE  
GOVERNANCE

REPORT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Directors of the Company during the Reporting Period and up to the date of this report were as follows:

EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTORS

Bai Tao (Chairman)
Li Mingguang
Zhao Peng

NON-EXECUTIVE 
DIRECTORS

Wang Junhui
Zhuo Meijuan

INDEPENDENT 
DIRECTORS

Lam Chi Kuen
Zhai Haitao
Huang Yiping
Chen Jie

(resigned on 4 August 2023 due to the adjustment of work arrangements)

(appointed on 21 June 2023)

43

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
From left to right:

Mr. Huang Yiping, Mr. Lam Chi Kuen, Mr. Wang Junhui, Mr. Bai Tao, Mr. Li Mingguang, Ms. Zhuo Meijuan, Mr. Zhai Haitao, Ms. Chen Jie

PRINCIPAL BUSINESS

Environmental and Social Responsibilities

The Company is a leading life insurance company in China 
and possesses an extensive distribution network comprising 
exclusive agents, direct sales representatives, and dedicated 
and non-dedicated agencies, providing products and services 
such  as  individual  and  group  life  insurance,  accident  and 
health  insurance.  The  Company  is  one  of  the  largest 
institutional  investors  in  China,  and  becomes  one  of  the 
largest  insurance  asset  management  companies  in  China 
through its controlling shareholding in AMC. The Company 
also has controlling shareholding in Pension Company.

BUSINESS REVIEW

Overall  Operation  of  the  Company  during  the 
Reporting Period

For details of the overall operation of the Company during 
the Reporting Period, the future development of its business 
and  the  principal  risks  faced  by  it,  please  refer  to  the 
sections  headed  “Management  Discussion  and  Analysis” 
and “Internal Control and Risk Management” in this annual 
report.  These  discussions  form  part  of  the  “Report  of  the 
Board of Directors”.

Work on Green Finance

To  consistently  carry  out  the  national  decisions  and 
arrangements with respect to promoting green development, 
the Company established a green finance system with China 
Life characteristics, promoting the high-quality development 
of  green  insurance  business.  It  continued  to  step  up  its 
support  to  green,  low-carbon  and  circular  economy,  and 
consistently  enhanced  the  quality  and  effectiveness  of 
green  insurance  business  in  serving  the  green  transition 
of  economy  and  society.  Focusing  on  key  fields  and 
major  industries  of  ecological  civilisation  construction,  the 
Company  safeguarded  the  high-quality  development  in  a 
green and low-carbon way. In 2023, the Company improved 
its  capability  in  supplying  green  insurance  products, 
providing  insurance  protection  of  RMB603,165  million  to 
customers  from  the  green  industries.  It  also  incorporated 
ESG  concept  into  investment  management  and  practices. 
As at 31 December 2023, its green investments amounted 
to RMB462,788 million.

44

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceWork on Low-carbon Operation

With  the  incorporation  of  the  overall  environmental  goal 
of  “ensuring  a  healthy  and  friendly  environment  for  the 
accomplishment  of  ‘carbon  neutrality’”  into  all  aspects 
of  its  operations,  the  Company  effectively  proceeded 
with  various  tasks  such  as  energy  saving  and  emission 
reduction,  green  operation  and  green  office,  prioritising 
eco-environmental  conservation  and  green  development 
with steadfast efforts. In 2023, the Company continued to 
improve its online, intensive and intelligent operations and 
services,  as  a  result  of  which  over  6,000  tonnes  of  paper 
were saved. The “Measures for the Administration of Energy 
Saving  and  Emission  Reduction  of  China  Life  Insurance 
Company Limited” was revised to strengthen the planning, 
organisation, adjustment and control and management of the 
energy supply and entire energy process, and a number of 
office buildings were awarded LEED platinum certification. 
With  the  construction  of  a  sustainable  supply  chain  as  its 
goal, the Company considered environmental performance 
as one of the key factors for assessment of its suppliers, and 
gave priority to the procurement of energy-saving products 
and equipments as well as new energy vehicles, practising 
an eco-friendly, low-carbon operational model.

Work on Social Responsibility

The Company integrated the concept of “performing social 
responsibilities”  into  its  core  values,  gave  full  play  to  the 
advantages  of  the  insurance  industry,  and  shouldered 
corporate  social  responsibilities  in  serving  the  “National 
Priorities”. The Company continued to improve its capability 
in  inclusive  financing  services  and  established  a  senior-
care service supply mode featuring “one main model with 
several complementary models”. As at 31 December 2023, 
the  Company  carried  out  over  200  supplementary  major 
medical expenses insurance programs, covering nearly 350 
million people. It also implemented over 120 city-customised 
commercial  medical  insurance  projects  accumulatively, 
covering over 40 million people. Meanwhile, it undertook over 
70 long-term care insurance programs, providing services to 
more than 38 million people. The third-pillar private pension 
business  ranked  among  the  top  of  the  industry,  with  its 
investment  in  the  senior-care  field  amounting  to  nearly 
RMB10  billion.  Adhering  to  the  aspiration  of  sharing  the 
achievements  of  corporate  development  with  the  society, 
the Company devoted itself to public welfare and charitable 
undertakings,  and  organised  charitable  activities  such  as 
“Art Education Program – Children’s Charity Spring Festival 
Gala” and “Caring for Women and Protecting their Health”. 
It donated RMB36 million to China Life Foundation as well 
as  public  welfare  insurance  policies  to  776,700  people-
times. The Company organised volunteer service teams to 
take part in volunteer service activities such as “Civilisation 
100+”, formed over 320 service teams consisting of youth 
volunteers, with more than 2,800 registered youth volunteers, 
and offered volunteer services of over 540 times.

Specific  Work  on  Consolidation  of  Achievements  in 
Poverty Alleviation and Rural Revitalisation Undertakings

In  2023,  the  Company  strengthened 
its  corporate 
responsibility,  coordinated  joint  forces  from  all  fronts  to 
offer  assistance,  and  continued  to  improve  its  long-term 
mechanism  for  assistance,  so  as  to  make  every  effort  to 
enhance the quality and efficiency of finance and insurance 
serving  rural  revitalisation.  The  Company  dispatched  980 
cadres staying at villages for assistance, undertook projects 
in  1,171  assistance  localities,  and  devoted  assistance 
funds of RMB33.66 million for the year, helping farmers to 
improve both production and income. The Company made 
substantial efforts to develop insurance business in response 
to the demands of rural residents for diversified insurance 
protection  and  offered  risk  protection  of  RMB30.71  trillion 
for  280  million  rural  residents  within  the  year.  The  claims 
payment of RMB15,858 million were made to 4.35 million 
people,  which  helped  guard  against  the  bottom  line  of 
poverty.  Based  on  the  characteristics  of  people  lifted  out 
of  poverty,  the  Company  commenced  targeted  insurance 
business  in  relation  to  rural  revitalisation  and  developed 
four new exclusive products to provide multi-level insurance 
protections, offering risk protection of RMB1.53 trillion for 
the  year,  a  year-on-year  increase  of  43%.  The  Company 
strived to make innovation in assistance measures, expanded 
the  coverage  for  assistance,  learned  and  practiced  the 
experience  acquired  from  “Ten  Million  Projects”,  so  as 
to  enhance  the  effectiveness  of  assistance  initiatives  and 
facilitate rural revitalisation in all aspects.

Compliance  by  the  Company  with  the  Relevant 
Laws and Regulations that have a Significant Impact

The  Company  adhered  to  the  code  of  conduct  of  “being 
trustworthy,  assuming  risks,  emphasising  on  services  and 
being legal compliant” and promoted the compliance culture 
and  concepts  of  “being  compliant  on  a  proactive  basis, 
and creating value from compliance”, thereby creating the 
compliance environment of “starting from the top level and 
having responsibility for all to be compliant”. The Company 
strictly  observed  and  effectively  implemented  applicable 
laws and regulations and regulatory requirements, such as 
the Insurance Law, the Company Law, the Securities Law, 
the “Personal Information Protection Law”, the “Regulations 
on  Preventing  and  Dealing  with  Illegal  Fund-raising”,  the 
“Provisions on the Administration of Insurance Companies”, 
the  “Measures  of  the  China  Banking  and  Insurance 
Regulatory  Commission  on  Administrative  Punishment”, 
the  “Measures  for  the  Administration  of  the  Utilisation  of 
Insurance  Funds”,  the  “Provisions  on  the  Supervision  and 
Administration  of  Insurance  Agents”,  the  “Rules  for  the 
Information Disclosure of Personal Insurance Products with a 
Term of One Year or More”, the “Standards for the Corporate 
Governance  of  Banking  and  Insurance  Institutions”,  the 
“Provisions on the Administration of Solvency of Insurance 
Companies”, the “Solvency Regulatory Rules II for Insurance 

45

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceCompanies”,  the  “Notice  on  Optimising  the  Solvency 
Regulatory  Standards  for  Insurance  Companies”,  the 
“Measures for the Administration of Connected Transactions 
of Banking and Insurance Institutions”, and the “Measures 
for the Administration of Banking and Insurance Supervision 
and  Statistics”,  consistently  improved  its  systems  and 
mechanisms,  and  stringently  implemented  the  spirit  and 
requirements  of major regulatory documents on insurance 
product  development  and  design,  information  disclosure, 
insurance  agents  management, 
sales  management, 
protection of consumers’ rights and interests and customers’ 
information, corporate governance, fund utilisation, solvency 
management,  connected 
transactions  management, 
reinsurance  management  and  data  governance,  etc.,  as 
released  by  the  NFRA,  for  the  purpose  of  further  carrying 
out  compliance  management  responsibilities  at  all  levels 
and  in  various  lines.  The  Company  consistently  optimised 
the compliance management framework of “three lines of 
defense” to ensure that the three lines of defense performed 
their  own  functions  and  responsibilities  and  collaborated 
with each  other, which formed a joint force in compliance 
management. The Company also consolidated its foundation 
in  all  aspects  for  its  steady  and  healthy  development  and 
firmly  held  on  to  the  bottom  line  of  the  systematic  risk, 
which guaranteed the healthy and high-quality development 
of the Company on an ongoing basis.

Relationship  between  the  Company  and 
Customers

its 

Being  customer-centric  all  along,  the  Company  was 
committed  to  offering  high-quality  services  to  customers, 
and  provided  insurance  services  and  value-added  services 
for more than 500 million customers on a cumulative basis.

The Company consistently implemented various regulatory 
requirements  by  integrating  the  protection  of  consumers’ 
rights and interests into every aspect of corporate governance 
and business operation and management, further optimised 
the  development  of  the  systems  and  mechanisms  for  the 
protection of consumers’ rights and interests, promoted the 
effective operation of various mechanisms for the protection 
of  consumers’  rights  and  interests  such  as  consumer 
protection  review  and  assessment,  internal  training  and 
internal  audit,  etc.,  and  took  active  actions  in  transition 
from after-event management and control to practising the 
consumer protection concept along the whole chain, so as to 
create a “comprehensive consumer protection” paradigm. In 
2023, the Company carried out over 15,000 educational and 
promotion activities in total, with the number of consumers 
involved reaching approximately 290 million.

Please also refer to the “Technology Capabilities, Operations 
and  Services”  in  the  section  headed  “Management 
Discussion and Analysis” in this annual report.

46

Relationship  between  the  Company  and 
Employees

its 

The  Company  created  a  harmonious  labour  relationship 
according  to  law  and  entered  into  employment  contracts 
with  its  employees  in  a  timely  manner.  The  Company 
strengthened the management of employees in all aspects 
by  establishing  the  following  mechanisms:  an  employee 
management  mechanism  with  the  characteristics  of  focus 
on  grass  roots,  combination  of  training  and  working  of 
employees, hierarchical responsibility and unified standard; 
a performance management mechanism that was strategy-
based and result-oriented, adopted hierarchical classification, 
and focused on application; and a remuneration distribution 
mechanism  that  was  based  on  the  principles  of  salary 
determined  by  position,  remuneration  paid  based  on 
performance,  emphasis  on  incentives  and  preference  to 
the  grass  roots,  and  was  compatible  with  the  high-quality 
development requirements of the Company. The Company 
also  emphasised  on  the  cultivation  and  development  of 
employees by building and optimising a “four-in-one” talent 
training system on an ongoing basis, pursued classification 
of  employees  for  training  with  an  equal  emphasis  on  full 
coverage,  strived  to  apply  cultivation  and  training  in  the 
entire  process  of  growth  of  cadres  and  employees,  and 
continued to focus on empowerment. The Company attached 
importance to humanistic concern by constantly improving 
the  mechanism  for  communication  with  employees, 
safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of employees 
in a practical manner and encouraging employees to arrange 
vacations and annual leave in a scientific way, with an aim 
to achieve work-life balance.

The  Company  actively  promoted  the  construction  of  a 
corporate democratic management system with employee 
representative  meetings  as  its  basic  form  to  protect  the 
democratic  rights  of  employees  and  to  facilitate  the  joint 
development  between  employees  and  the  Company.  The 
Company and its provincial branches have fully established 
the  system  of  employee  representative  meetings, 
safeguarded  the  right  to  know,  right  to  propose,  right  to 
decide  and  right  to  vote  at  such  meetings  according  to 
law,  and  inspected  and  monitored  the  implementation 
of  any  resolutions  adopted  by  employee  representative 
meetings,  thus  carrying  out  the  function  of  supervising 
the  implementation  of  proposals  in  a  serious  manner  and 
constantly  improving  democratic  management.  In  2023, 
the  Company  held  employee  representative  meetings  for 
all  employees  twice,  during  which  the  “Report  on  the  By-
election  of  Representatives  of  the  Third  Session  of  the 
Employee  Representative  Meeting  of  the  Company”,  the 
“Report on the Review of the Representatives’ Qualification”, 
the  “Report  on  the  Candidates  for  Additional  Employee 
Representative  Supervisors  of  the  Seventh  Session  of  the 
Board  of  Supervisors”,  the  “Report  on  the  Amendments 
to  the  Provisions  for  Handling  of  Violations  of  Regulations 

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governanceby  Employees  of  China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited 
(Revised  in  2023)”,  the  “Duty  Report  of  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  of  China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited 
for  the  Year  2022”,  the  “Report  on  the  Amendments  to 
the  Measures  for  Supplementary  Commercial  Insurance 
Protection for Employees of Branches of China Life Insurance 
Company  Limited”,  and  the  “Report  on  the  Provisional 
Measures for the Administration of Professional Personnel 
of China Life Insurance Company Limited” were considered 
and approved, respectively.

For details regarding the Company’s employees (including the 
number of employees, professional composition, education 
levels, employee diversity, remuneration policy and training 
plans),  please  refer  to  the  section  headed  “Directors, 
Supervisors,  Senior  Management  and  Employees”  in  this 
annual report.

For  information  during  the  Reporting  Period  such  as  the 
environmental and social responsibilities of the Company, the 
relationship between the Company and its customers, and 
the relationship between the Company and its employees, 
please also refer to the full text of the 2023 Environmental, 
Social  and  Governance  &  Social  Responsibility  Report 
separately disclosed by the Company on the website of the 
SSE (www.sse.com.cn) and the HKExnews website of Hong 
Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (www.hkexnews.hk) 
simultaneously.

FORMULATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF 
PROFIT DISTRIBUTION POLICY

In  accordance  with  Article  217  of  the  Articles  of 
Association, the Basic Principles of the Company’s 
Profit Distribution Policy are as follows:

•  The  Company  shall  take  the  investment  return  for 
investors  into  full  account  and  allocate  the  required 
percentage  of  the  Company’s  realised  distributable 
profits to shareholders as dividends each year;

•  The  Company  shall  maintain  a  sustainable  and  steady 
profit distribution policy and at the same time take into 
consideration the Company’s long-term interest, general 
interest  of  all  the  shareholders  and  the  sustainable 
development of the Company;

•  The Company shall give priority to cash dividends as its 

profit distribution manner.

In  accordance  with  Article  218  of  the  Articles  of 
Association,  the  Company’s  Profit  Distribution 
Policy is as follows:

•  Profit  distribution  modes:  The  Company  may  distribute 
dividends in the form of cash or shares or a combination 
of  cash  and  shares.  If  practicable,  the  Company  may 
distribute  interim  dividends.  The  Company’s  dividends 
shall  not  bear  interest,  save  in  the  case  where  the 
Company  fails  to  distribute  the  dividends  to  the 
shareholders  on  the  day  when  dividends  were  due  to 
have been distributed;

•  Conditions  for  and  percentage  of  distribution  of  cash 
dividends: If the Company makes profits in a given year 
and  the  cumulative  undistributed  profit  is  positive,  the 
Company  shall distribute dividends in the form  of cash 
and  the  cumulative  profits  distributed  in  cash  over  the 
past three years by the Company shall be no less than 
thirty percent (30%) of the average annual distributable 
profits in recent three years;

•  Conditions  for  distribution  of  share  dividends:  If  the 
Company’s operation is sound and the Board of Directors 
is  of  the  opinion  that  share  dividends  distribution  is  in 
the interest of all the Company’s shareholders since the 
Company’s stock price does not match the Company’s 
share  capital,  the  Company  may  propose  a  share 
dividends  distribution  plan  if  the  conditions  for  cash 
dividends listed above are satisfied.

In  addition,  the  Company’s  profit  distribution  is  required 
to  comply  with  relevant  regulatory  requirements.  If  the 
Company’s core solvency ratio or comprehensive solvency 
ratio  does  not  meet  the  minimum  requirements,  the 
regulatory  authorities  may  adopt  regulatory  measures 
against the Company due to its failure to meet the minimum 
requirements, which may restrict the Company’s  ability to 
distribute dividends to its shareholders.

In  accordance  with  Article  219  of  the  Articles  of 
Association,  the  Procedures  of  Reviewing  the 
Company’s  Profit  Distribution  Proposal  are  as 
follows:

The Company’s profit distribution proposal shall be reviewed 
by the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors shall have 
a  sufficient  discussion  of  the  reasonableness  of  the  profit 
distribution proposal. After a special resolution regarding the 
proposal  is  reached  and  independent  opinions  have  been 
given by the Company’s Independent Directors, the proposal 
shall  be  submitted  to  the  Company’s  general  meeting  for 
approval.  In  reviewing  the  profit  distribution  proposal,  the 
Company  shall  provide  online  voting  mechanism  to  the 
shareholders.  When  deliberating  on  specific  cash  dividend 
proposal by the Company’s general meeting, the Company 

47

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governanceshall  make  active  communication  with  shareholders, 
especially  small-  and  medium-sized  shareholders,  through 
various  channels.  The  Company  shall  also  fully  solicit 
opinions  and  appeals  from  shareholders,  and  give  timely 
reply to concerns of small- and medium-sized shareholders.

Profit  Distribution  Plan  and  Public  Reserves 
Capitalisation Plan for the Year 2023

In  accordance  with  the  profit  distribution  plan  for  the  year 
2023  approved  by  the  Board  on  27  March  2024,  with  the 
appropriation  to  its  discretionary  surplus  reserve  fund  of 
RMB1,753  million  (10%  of  the  net  profit  for  2023),  the 
Company,  based  on  28,264,705,000  shares  in  issue, 
proposed  to  distribute  cash  dividends  amounting  to 
approximately RMB12,154 million (representing 58% of the 
net  profit  attributable  to  equity  holders  of  the  Company 
in  the  consolidated  statements)  to  all  shareholders  of  the 
Company  at  RMB0.43  per  share  (inclusive  of  tax).  The 
foregoing  profit  distribution  plan  is  subject  to  the  approval 
by  the  2023  Annual  General  Meeting.  Dividends  payable 
to  domestic  shareholders  are  declared,  valued  and  paid  in 
RMB. Dividends payable to shareholders of the Company’s 
overseas-listed  foreign  shares  are  declared  and  valued  in 
RMB and paid in the currency of the jurisdiction in which the 
overseas-listed foreign shares are listed (if the Company is 
listed in more than one jurisdiction, dividends shall be paid 
in  the  currency  of  the  Company’s  principal  jurisdiction  of 
listing as determined by the Board). The Company shall pay 
dividends to shareholders of overseas-listed foreign shares 
in conformity with the PRC regulations on foreign exchange 
control.  If  no  such  regulations  are  in  place,  the  applicable 
exchange  rate  is  the  average  closing  rate  published  by 
the  People’s  Bank  of  China  one  week  before  the  date  of 
declaration of the distribution of dividends.

No public reserve capitalisation is provided for in the profit 
distribution plan for the year.

The profit distribution policy of the Company complied with 
the Articles of Association and the examination and approval 
procedures  of  the  Company,  clearly  defined  the  dividend 
distribution  standards  and  percentage  and  the  decision-
making  procedures  and  system.  Small-  and  medium-sized 
shareholders of the Company have sufficient opportunities 
to express their opinions and appeals, and their legitimate 
rights have been well protected. The Independent Directors 
diligently  considered  the  profit  distribution  policy  and 
expressed their independent opinions in this regard.

DISTRIBUTABLE RESERVES

As  at  the  end  of  31  December  2023,  the  distributable 
reserves of the Company was RMB207,030 million.

PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

Details of the movement in property, plant and equipment 
of  the  Company  are  set  out  in  Note  7  in  the  Notes  to  the 
Consolidated Financial Statements in this annual report.

SHARE CAPITAL

Details  of  the  movement  in  share  capital  of  the  Company 
are  set  out  in  Note  34  in  the  Notes  to  the  Consolidated 
Financial Statements in this annual report.

MANAGEMENT CONTRACTS

No management or administration contracts for the whole 
or  substantial  part  of  any  business  of  the  Company  were 
entered into during the Reporting Period.

PENSION PLAN

Full-time employees of the Company are covered by various 
government-sponsored  pension  plans,  under  which  the 
employees are entitled to a monthly pension based on certain 
formulae.  These  government  agencies  are  responsible  for 
the  pension  liability  to  these  employees  upon  retirement. 
The  Company  contributes  on  a  monthly  basis  to  these 
pension plans for full-time employees. All contributions made 
under  the  government-sponsored  pension  plans  described 
above  are  fully  attributable  to  employees  of  the  Company 
at  the  time  of  the  payment  and  the  Company  is  unable 
to  forfeit  any  amounts  contributed  by  it  to  such  plans. 
In  addition  to  the  government-sponsored  pension  plans, 
the  Company  established  an  employee  annuity  fund  plan 
pursuant  to  the  relevant  laws  and  regulations  in  the  PRC, 
whereby the Company is required to contribute to the plan 
at fixed rates of the employees’ salary costs. Contributions 
made  by the Company under  the annuity fund plan that  is 
forfeited  in  respect  of  those  employees  who  resign  from 
their positions prior to the full vesting of the contributions 
will be recorded in the public account of the annuity fund and 
shall not be used to offset any contributions to be made by 
the Company in the future. All funds in the public account 
will be attributed to the employees whose accounts are in 
normal status after the approval procedures are completed 
as required. Under these plans, the Company has no legal 
or constructive obligation for retirement benefit beyond the 
contributions made.

48

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceINTEREST-BEARING LOANS AND OTHER 
BORROWINGS

As at the end of the Reporting Period, the interest-bearing 
loans  and  other  borrowings  of  the  Company  included  a 
five-year bank loan of GBP275 million with a maturity date 
on  25  June  2024,  which  is  fixed  rate  bank  loan.  Interest-
bearing loans and other borrowings also included a five-year 
bank  loan  of  USD970  million  with  a  maturity  date  on  27 
September 2024, a three-year bank loan of EUR330 million 
with  a  maturity  date  on  8  March  2024,  and  an  eighteen-
month bank loan of EUR98 million with a maturity date on 
8  March  2024,  all  of  which  are  floating  rate  bank  loans. 
Details  of  the  interest-bearing  loans  and  other  borrowings 
of the Company are set out in Note 15 in the Notes to the 
Consolidated Financial Statements in this annual report.

CHARITABLE DONATIONS

The  total  amount  of  charitable  donations  made  by  the 
Company  during  the  Reporting  Period  was  approximately 
RMB37.59 million.

INFORMATION OF TAX DEDUCTION FOR 
HOLDERS OF LISTED SECURITIES

Shareholders  of  the  Company  are  taxed  and/or  enjoy  tax 
relief for the dividend income received from the Company 
in  accordance  with  the  “Individual  Income  Tax  Law  of 
the  People’s  Republic  of  China”,  the  “Enterprise  Income 
Tax  Law  of  the  People’s  Republic  of  China”,  and  relevant 
administrative rules, governmental regulations and regulatory 
documents. Please refer to the announcement published by 
the Company on the website of the SSE on 7 July 2023 for 
the  information  on  income  tax  in  respect  of  the  dividend 
distributed  to  A  Share  shareholders  during  the  Reporting 
Period,  and  the  announcement  published  by  the  Company 
on  the  HKExnews  website  of  Hong  Kong  Exchanges  and 
Clearing  Limited  on  28  June  2023  for  the  information  on 
income tax in respect of the dividend distributed to H Share 
shareholders during the Reporting Period.

PURCHASE, SALE OR REDEMPTION OF THE 
COMPANY’S SECURITIES

During the Reporting Period, the Company and its subsidiaries 
did not purchase, sell or redeem any of the Company’s listed 
securities.

H SHARE STOCK APPRECIATION RIGHTS

No H Share stock appreciation rights of the Company were 
granted  or  exercised  in  2023.  The  Company  will  deal  with 
such rights and related matters in accordance with the PRC 
governmental policies.

DAY-TO-DAY OPERATIONS OF THE BOARD

Details of the Board meetings and the Board’s performance 
of its duties during the Reporting Period are set out in the 
section  headed  “Report  of  Corporate  Governance”  in  this 
annual report.

DIRECTORS’ AND SUPERVISORS’ SERVICE 
CONTRACTS

None of the Directors or Supervisors has entered into any 
service contracts with the Company and its subsidiaries that 
are not terminable within one year or can only be terminated 
by the Company with payment of compensation (other than 
statutory compensation).

INTERESTS OF DIRECTORS AND SUPERVISORS 
(AND THEIR CONNECTED ENTITIES) IN 
MATERIAL TRANSACTIONS, ARRANGEMENTS 
OR CONTRACTS

None of the Directors or Supervisors (and their connected 
entities) is or was materially interested, directly or indirectly, 
in any transaction, arrangement or contract of significance 
entered into by the Company or its controlling shareholders 
or any of their respective subsidiaries at any time during the 
Reporting  Period  or  subsisted  at  the  end  of  the  Reporting 
Period.

DIRECTORS’ AND SUPERVISORS’ RIGHTS TO 
ACQUIRE SHARES

No  arrangements  to  which  the  Company,  any  of  its 
subsidiaries or holding companies, or any subsidiary of the 
Company’s holding companies is a party, and whose objects 
are,  or  one  of  whose  objects  is,  to  enable  Directors  or 
Supervisors (including their spouses and children under the 
age of 18) to acquire benefits by means of the acquisition 
of  shares  in,  or  debentures  of,  the  Company  or  any  other 
body corporate, subsisted at any time during the Reporting 
Period or at the end of the Reporting Period.

49

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceDISCLOSURE OF INTERESTS OF DIRECTORS, 
SUPERVISORS AND THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE IN 
THE SHARES OF THE COMPANY

As at the end of the Reporting Period, none of the Directors, 
Supervisors  and  the  chief  executive  of  the  Company  had 
any  interests  or  short  positions  in  the  shares,  underlying 
shares  or  debentures  of  the  Company  or  its  associated 
corporations (within the meaning of Part XV of the Securities 
and  Futures  Ordinance  (Chapter  571  of  the  Laws  of  Hong 
Kong) (the “SFO”)) that were required to be recorded in the 
register of the Company pursuant to Section 352 of the SFO 
or which had to be notified to the Company and the HKSE 
pursuant to the Model Code for Securities Transactions by 
Directors  of  Listed  Issuers  (the  “Model  Code”)  as  set  out 
in Appendix C3 to the Listing Rules. In addition, the Board 
has  created  a  code  of  conduct  in  relation  to  the  sale  and 
purchase  of  the  Company’s  securities  by  Directors  and 
Supervisors, which is no less stringent than the Model Code. 
Upon  specific  inquiry  by  the  Company,  the  Directors  and 
Supervisors have confirmed observation of the Model Code 
and the Company’s own code of conduct in the year of 2023.

PERMITTED INDEMNITY PROVISION

The Company made appropriate insurance arrangement with 
respect to legal actions that might be faced by its Directors 
in connection with corporate activities, and such insurance 
arrangement was in force during the Reporting Period and 
up to the date of this report.

PRE-EMPTIVE RIGHTS AND ARRANGEMENTS 
FOR SHARE OPTIONS

According  to  the  Articles  of  Association  and  relevant  PRC 
laws, there is no provision for any pre-emptive rights of the 
shareholders of the Company. At present, the Company does 
not have any arrangement for share options.

RESPONSIBILITY STATEMENT OF DIRECTORS 
ON FINANCIAL REPORTS

The Directors are responsible for overseeing the preparation 
of the financial report for each financial period which gives 
a  true  and  fair  view  of  the  Company’s  financial  position, 
performance results and cash flows for that period. To the 
best  knowledge  of  the  Directors,  there  was  no  event  or 
condition  during  the  Reporting  Period  that  might  have  a 
material  adverse  effect  on  the  continuing  operation  of  the 
Company.

BOARD’S STATEMENT ON INTERNAL CONTROL

In  accordance  with  the  requirements  of  the  “Standard 
Regulations  on  Corporate  Internal  Control”,  the  Board 
conducted an assessment on internal control relating to the 
Company’s financial reporting functions, and confirmed that 
its internal control was effective as at 31 December 2023.

MAJOR CUSTOMERS

In  2023,  the  gross  written  premiums  received  from  the 
Company’s five largest customers accounted for less than 
5% of the Company’s gross written premiums for the year. 
There  is  no  related  party  of  the  Company  among  the  five 
largest customers.

SUFFICIENCY OF PUBLIC FLOAT

Based on the information publicly available to the Company 
and within the knowledge of the Directors as at the latest 
practicable date (27 March 2024), not less than 25% of the 
issued  share  capital  of  the  Company  (being  the  minimum 
public  float  applicable  to  the  shares  of  the  Company)  was 
held in public hands.

50

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceAUDITORS

Zhong 

As  considered  and  approved  by  the  shareholders  at 
the  2022  Annual  General  Meeting  of  the  Company, 
PricewaterhouseCoopers 
and 
PricewaterhouseCoopers  have  been  appointed  as  the 
domestic and overseas auditors of the Company for the year 
2023, who will hold office until the conclusion of the 2023 
Annual  General  Meeting.  PricewaterhouseCoopers  Zhong 
Tian  LLP  and  PricewaterhouseCoopers  have  been  serving 
as the Company’s auditors for three consecutive years.

Tian 

LLP 

Remuneration  paid  by  the  Company  to  the  auditors  is 
subject to the approval at the shareholders’ general meeting, 
pursuant  to  which  the  Board  is  authorised  to  determine 
the  amount  and  make  payment.  Audit  fees  paid  by  the 
Company  to  the  auditors  will  not  affect  the  independence 
of the auditors.

Remuneration paid by the Company to PricewaterhouseCoopers  
Zhong Tian LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers in 2023 was 
as follows:

Service/Nature

Audit, review and agreed-upon  

procedures fee
Including: Internal control audit fee
Non-audit services fee (tax services and 

consultation services)

Total

RMB million

Fees

64.18

4.00
0.55

64.73

The remuneration paid by the Company to PricewaterhouseCoopers  
Zhong  Tian  LLP  and  PricewaterhouseCoopers  in  2023 
increased by 25.5% year on year from 2022. The increase 
of  the  audit  fee  was  attributable  to  the  increased  audit 
workload as the Company continued to implement the former 
standards on insurance contracts and financial instruments 
under ASBE, and adopted the new standards on insurance 
contracts and financial instruments for the first year for the 
preparation  and  disclosure  of  financial  reports  and  related 
information under IFRSs in 2023.

The  Company  is  taking  active  actions  to  proceed  with 
the  selection  and  appointment  of  its  auditors  for  the 
year  2024,  and  investors  are  advised  to  pay  attention  to 
the  announcements  made  by  the  Company  in  its  listed 
jurisdictions for the further development in this regard.

By Order of the Board
Bai Tao
Chairman

27 March 2024

51

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
REPORT OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

From left to right:

Mr. Lai Jun, Mr. Cao Weiqing, Mr. Niu Kailong, Ms. Ye Yinglan

Pursuant to the Company Law and the Articles of Association, 
the  Company  has  established  a  Board  of  Supervisors. 
The  Board  of  Supervisors  performs  the  following  duties 
in  accordance  with  the  Company  Law,  the  Articles  of 
Association  and  the  “Procedural  Rules  for  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  Meetings”:  to  examine  the  finances  of  the 
Company; to monitor whether the Directors, President, Vice 
Presidents  and  other  senior  management  of  the  Company 
have  acted  in  contravention  of  laws,  regulations,  the 
Articles of Association and resolutions of the shareholders’ 
general meetings when discharging their duties; to review 
the  financial  information  of  the  Company  such  as  financial 
reports,  results  reports  and  profit  distribution  plans  to 
be  approved  by  the  Board;  to  propose  the  convening  of 
extraordinary  shareholders’  general  meetings,  to  propose 
resolutions at shareholders’ general meetings and to perform 
any other duties under the laws, regulations and regulatory 
rules of the Company’s listed jurisdictions.

The  Board  of  Supervisors  consists  of  Non-employee 
Representative  Supervisors,  such  as  shareholder 
representatives, and Employee Representative Supervisors, 
of  which  the  Employee  Representative  Supervisors  shall 
not  be  less  than  one-third  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors. 
Non-employee  Representative  Supervisors,  such  as 
shareholder representatives, shall be elected and removed 
by  a  shareholders’  general  meeting  while  Employee 
Representative  Supervisors  shall  be  elected  and  removed 
by employees of the Company in a democratic manner.

52

The Board of Supervisors is accountable to the shareholders 
and  reports  its  work  to  the  shareholders’  general  meeting 
according  to  relevant  laws.  It  is  also  responsible  for 
appraising  the  Company’s  operations,  financial  reports, 
connected transactions and internal control, etc. during the 
Reporting Period.

Meetings  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  are  convened  by 
the  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors.  According  to 
the  Articles  of  Association,  the  Company  formulated  the 
“Procedural Rules for the Board of Supervisors Meetings” 
and  established  protocols  for  the  Board  of  Supervisors 
meetings.  Board  of  Supervisors  meetings  are  categorised 
as regular or ad-hoc meetings in accordance with the degree 
of  pre-planning  involved.  There  are  at  least  three  regular 
meetings  each  year,  mainly  to  adopt  and  review  financial 
reports  and  periodic  reports,  and  examine  the  financial 
condition  and  internal  control  of  the  Company.  Ad-hoc 
meetings are convened when necessary.

Currently, the seventh session of the Board of Supervisors of 
the Company comprises Mr. Cao Weiqing, Mr. Niu Kailong, 
Mr.  Lai  Jun  and  Ms.  Ye  Yinglan,  with  Mr.  Cao  Weiqing 
acting  as  the  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors.  Mr. 
Niu Kailong is a Non-employee Representative Supervisor, 
whereas Mr. Cao Weiqing, Mr. Lai Jun and Ms. Ye Yinglan 
are  Employee  Representative  Supervisors.  In  June  2023, 
Ms. Wang Xiaoqing and Ms. Hu Zhijun resigned from their 
positions as Supervisors of the Company, respectively, due 
to the adjustment of work arrangements.

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMEETINGS AND ATTENDANCE

ACTIVITIES OF THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

During the Reporting Period, five meetings were held by the 
Board of Supervisors of the Company. Attendance records 
of individual Supervisors are as follows:

Number of  
meetings attended  
in person/Number  
of meetings  

Name of Supervisor

required to attend

Number of  
meetings attended  
by proxies/Number  
of meetings 
required to attend

Cao Weiqing
Niu Kailong
Lai Jun
Ye Yinglan

5/5
5/5
4/5
2/3

0/5
0/5
1/5
1/3

Attendance  records  of  the  resigned  Supervisors  at  the 
meetings of the Board of Supervisors are as follows:

Number of  
meetings attended  
in person/Number  
of meetings  

Name of Supervisor

required to attend

Number of  
meetings attended  
by proxies/Number  
of meetings 
required to attend

Wang Xiaoqing
Hu Zhijun

Notes:

2/2
2/2

0/2
0/2

1.  The number of meetings attended in person includes meetings attended 

on-site and by way of telephone or video conference.

2.  Supervisors  who  were  unable  to  attend  any  meeting  of  the  Board  of 
Supervisors  authorised  other  Supervisors  to  attend  and  vote  at  the 
meeting on their behalf.

Attending  meetings  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  and 
diligently discharging their duties. Pursuant to the regulatory 
requirements  of  the  jurisdictions  where  the  Company  is 
listed, the Articles of Association and the “Procedural Rules 
for  the  Board  of  Supervisors  Meetings”  of  the  Company, 
and in accordance with the work arrangement of the Board 
of  Supervisors,  the  Board  of  Supervisors  convened  its 
regular meetings in a timely manner, at which it considered 
and  approved  proposals  in  relation  to  the  Company’s 
financial  reports,  periodic  reports,  internal  control  and  risk 
management,  etc.  In  2023,  the  Board  of  Supervisors  held 
five  meetings  in  total,  at  which  the  Supervisors  earnestly 
expressed their views, actively participated in discussions and 
diligently discharged their duties, thereby providing valuable 
advice for the business development of the Company.

Attending and participating in corporate governance meetings 
and  actively  exercising  their  supervisory  role.  In  2023,  the 
Board  of  Supervisors  attended  the  2022  Annual  General 
Meeting and the First Extraordinary General Meeting 2023 
of  the  Company,  and  participated  in  the  meetings  of  the 
Board. All members of the Board of Supervisors participated 
in  the  meetings  of  the  Audit  Committee,  the  Nomination 
and  Remuneration  Committee,  the  Risk  Management  and 
Consumer  Rights  Protection  Committee,  the  Strategy  and 
Assets  and  Liabilities  Management  Committee,  and  the 
Connected  Transactions  Control  Committee,  respectively, 
in accordance with the work allocation among Supervisors 
determined by the Board of Supervisors. By attending these 
meetings, all Supervisors diligently discharged their duties, 
oversaw the procedures for convening meetings, carefully 
listened  to  the  matters  considered  at  the  meetings,  and 
participated in discussions when necessary, thus proactively 
pushing  forward  the  further  enhancement  of  corporate 
governance.

53

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Attending investigation and research activities and training 
courses  and  constantly  enhancing  performance  of  duties 
by the Supervisors. In 2023, according to the work plan of 
the  Board  of  Supervisors  of  the  Company,  the  members 
of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  conducted  investigation  and 
research  on  Zhejiang  Branch  and  Huzhou  Branch  with 
respect  to,  among  others,  the  business  development  of 
the  Company,  expansion  of  senior-care  and  healthcare 
businesses, risk prevention and control, and governance of 
“Five Weaknesses”, carried out an on-site inspection of “city 
center”  retirement  apartments  project  in  Hangzhou,  and 
communicated  in  person  with  relevant  business  lines  and 
sales representatives of branches at the provincial, city and 
country levels for exchange of ideas, which offered support 
to the enhancement of performance of duties by the Board 
of Supervisors and its decision-making in a scientific manner. 
In 2023, the members of the Board of Supervisors further 
developed and refreshed their knowledge reserve by actively 
attending various special training courses organised by the 
securities exchanges of the Company’s listed jurisdictions, 
listed companies associations and the Company itself, so as 
to enhance their performance of duties. All members of the 
Board of Supervisors attended the training programs of the 
Company  on  anti-money  laundering.  Mr.  Cao  Weiqing  and 
Mr. Niu Kailong attended a training course on “Performance 
of Duties by Supervisors of Listed Companies: Regulations, 
Cases  and  Recommendations”  as  organised  by  China 
Association  for  Public  Companies.  Mr.  Cao  Weiqing,  Mr. 
Niu  Kailong,  Mr.  Lai  Jun  and  Ms.  Ye  Yinglan  attended  a 
special training course on the rules of independent directors 
of listed companies as organised by the Listed Companies 
Association of Beijing for listed companies within Beijing. Mr. 
Cao Weiqing and Ms. Ye Yinglan attended training courses 
of the SSE for the first-time directors, supervisors and senior 
management of listed companies  in 2023 (Sessions II  and 
V), respectively.

Keeping abreast of the business operations of the Company 
on a regular basis and paying attention to any major solvency 
risks that might arise in the course of its business operations. 
Members  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  kept  abreast  of  the 
business operations of the Company on a regular basis by 
reviewing the financial reports of the Company, supervised its 
financial operation and paid attention to any major solvency 
risks that might arise in the course of its business operations. 
Through their participation in meetings of the Board and the 
specialised  Board  committees,  all  Supervisors  understood 
the  management  of  solvency  risks  of  the  Company  and 
performed  their  supervisory  function  with  respect  to  the 
decision-making of the Company on solvency risks.

Supervising  the  performance  of  duties  by  the  Board  and 
senior  management  in  reputational  risk  management. 
Members of the Board of Supervisors listened to an annual 
reputational risk management report prepared by the senior 
management  through  participation  in  the  meetings  of  the 
Board  and  the  Risk  Management  and  Consumer  Rights 
Protection Committee, so as to supervise the performance 
of duties by the Board in reputational risk management.

Organising the evaluations of the performance of duties by 
Directors and Supervisors. In 2023, the Board of Supervisors 
commenced the evaluations of the performance of duties by 
Directors and Supervisors in accordance with the “Measures 
for the Evaluation of the Performance of Duties by Directors 
and Supervisors” of the Company. Based on the performance 
of duties by Directors and Supervisors in 2023, the members 
of the Board of Supervisors evaluated and scored each of the 
Directors  of  the  Company  by  reference  to  the  information 
regarding the performance of duties by Directors obtained 
during  their  participation  of  meetings  of  the  Board  and 
various  specialised  Board  committees,  and  evaluated  and 
scored each of the Supervisors of the Company through a 
combination of self-assessment by and mutual assessment 
among  Supervisors,  and  eventually  formed  evaluation 
opinions  on  individual  Directors  and  Supervisors,  which 
therefore improved the mechanism for the supervision and 
evaluation of duty performance of Directors and Supervisors. 
All members of both the Board and the Board of Supervisors 
of  the  Company  were  evaluated  as  competent  in  their 
performance of duties in 2023.

54

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceINDEPENDENT OPINION OF THE BOARD OF 
SUPERVISORS ON CERTAIN MATTERS

During  the  Reporting  Period,  the  Board  of  Supervisors  of 
the Company performed its supervisory duties in a diligent 
manner in accordance with the requirements of the Company 
Law, the Articles of Association and the “Procedural Rules 
for  the  Board  of  Supervisors  Meetings”.  The  Board  of 
Supervisors  had  no  objection  in  respect  of  the  matters 
under its supervision during the Reporting Period.

The Company’s operations in compliance with law. During 
the  Reporting  Period,  the  Company’s  operations  were  in 
compliance  with  the  law.  The  Company’s  operations  and 
decision-making  procedures  were  in  compliance  with  the 
Company Law and the Articles of Association. All Directors 
and  senior  management  of  the  Company  observed  the 
principles  of  diligence  and  integrity  and  performed  their 
duties  conscientiously.  The  Board  of  Supervisors  is  not 
aware  of  any  of  them  having  violated  any  law,  regulation, 
or  any  provision  in  the  Articles  of  Association  or  harmed 
the interests  of  the Company in the course of discharging 
their duties.

The  authenticity  of  the  financial  report.  The  Company’s 
annual financial report truly reflected the Company’s financial 
position  and  operating  results.  PricewaterhouseCoopers 
Zhong Tian LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers have performed 
audits  and  have  issued  standard  and  unqualified  auditors’ 
reports  in  respect  of  the  financial  statements  for  the  year 
2023  in  accordance  with  the  China  Standards  on  Auditing 
of  PRC  Certified  Public  Accountants  and  the  International 
Standards on Auditing, respectively.

Acquisition and sale of assets. During the Reporting Period, 
the prices for acquisition and sale of assets by the Company 
were  fair  and  reasonable.  The  Board  of  Supervisors  is  not 
aware of any insider trading, any acts harming the interests 
of  shareholders  or  incurring  any  loss  to  the  Company’s 
assets.

Connected  transactions.  During  the  Reporting  Period,  the 
connected transactions of the Company were on commercial 
terms.  The  Board  of  Supervisors  is  not  aware  of  any  acts 
harming the interests of the Company.

Internal control system and self-evaluation report on internal 
control. During the Reporting Period, the Company sought 
to  improve  its  internal  control  system,  and  continued  to 
enhance  the  effectiveness  of  such  system.  The  Board  of 
Supervisors  of  the  Company  reviewed  the  self-evaluation 
report on the Company’s internal control and did not raise 
any objection against the self-evaluation report of the Board 
regarding the Company’s internal control.

Information  disclosure.  The  Company  performed  its 
obligation  of  information  disclosure  in  strict  compliance 
with  the  regulatory  requirements,  seriously  implemented 
various  information  disclosure  management  systems,  and 
disclosed information in a timely and fair manner. The Board 
of  Supervisors  is  not  aware  of  any  false  representations, 
misleading  statements  or  material  omissions  during  the 
Reporting Period.

By Order of the Board of Supervisors
Cao Weiqing
Chairman of the Board of Supervisors

27 March 2024

55

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceCHANGES IN ORDINARY SHARES AND SHAREHOLDERS INFORMATION

CHANGES IN SHARE CAPITAL

During  the  Reporting  Period,  there  was  no  change  in  the  total  number  of  shares  and  the  share  capital  structure  of  the 
Company.

ISSUE AND LISTING OF SECURITIES

As  at  the  end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  the  Company  had  not  issued  any  securities  in  the  last  three  years.  During  the 
Reporting Period, there was no change in the total number of shares and the share structure of the Company due to bonus 
issues or placings, nor were there any internal employees’ shares.

INFORMATION ON SHAREHOLDERS AND EFFECTIVE CONTROLLER

Total Number of Shareholders and their Shareholdings

Total  number  of  ordinary 
share  shareholders  as  at   
the  end  of  the  Reporting 
Period

No. of A Share shareholders: 
107,594 
No. of H Share shareholders: 
24,368

Total  number  of  ordinary 
share  shareholders  as  at 
the end of the month prior 
to  the  disclosure  of  the 
annual report

No. of A Share shareholders: 
99,815 
No. of H Share shareholders: 
24,280

Particulars of Top Ten Shareholders of the Company 

Unit: Shares

Name of shareholder

Nature of shareholder

Percentage of 
shareholding

Number of 
shares held as 
at the end of 
the Reporting 
Period

Increase/
decrease 
during the 
Reporting 
Period

Number of 
shares subject 
to selling 
restrictions

Number 
of shares 
pledged or 
frozen

China Life Insurance (Group) Company

State-owned legal person

68.37% 19,323,530,000

–

HKSCC Nominees Limited

Overseas legal person

25.92% 7,327,523,802

+1,830,411

China Securities Finance Corporation Limited

State-owned legal person

2.51%

708,240,246

Central Huijin Asset Management Limited

State-owned legal person

0.41%

117,165,585

–

–

Hong Kong Securities Clearing Company 

Limited

Overseas legal person

0.16%

44,354,939

+2,694,922

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China 

Limited – SSE 50 Exchange Traded Index 
Securities Investment Fund

Other

Guosen Securities Co., Ltd. – Founder Fubon 

CSI Insurance Theme Index Securities 
Investment Fund

Other

0.07%

20,306,703

+6,446,000

0.05%

13,701,912

–7,164,617

Industrial and Commercial Bank of China 
Limited – Huatai-PineBridge CSI 300 
Exchange Traded Index Securities  
Investment Fund

Other

0.04%

12,402,733

+5,682,600

National Social Security Fund Portfolio 114

Other

0.04%

12,000,000

+12,000,000

China National Nuclear Corporation Capital 

Holdings Co., Ltd.

State-owned legal person

0.04%

11,108,837

+11,108,837

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

56

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Notes:

1.  The above shares are tradable shares not subject to selling restrictions and do not include shares lent through refinancing.

2.  HKSCC Nominees Limited is a company that holds shares on behalf of the clients of the Hong Kong stock brokers and other participants of the CCASS 
system. The relevant regulations of the HKSE do not require such persons to declare whether their shareholdings are pledged or frozen. Hence, HKSCC 
Nominees Limited is unable to calculate or provide the number of shares that are pledged or frozen.

3. 

Industrial  and  Commercial  Bank  of  China  Limited  –  SSE  50  Exchange  Traded  Index  Securities  Investment  Fund  and  Industrial  and  Commercial  Bank  of 
China Limited – Huatai-PineBridge CSI 300 Exchange Traded Index Securities Investment Fund have Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited as 
their fund depositary. Save as above, the Company was not aware of any connected relationship and concerted parties as defined by the “Measures for 
the Administration of the Takeover of Listed Companies” among the top ten shareholders of the Company.

4.  As at the end of the Reporting Period, the number of the Company’s shares lent through refinancing and not yet returned by Industrial and Commercial 
Bank  of  China  Limited  –  SSE  50  Exchange  Traded  Index  Securities  Investment  Fund  were  154,200  shares,  and  the  number  of  Company’s  shares  held 
in  its  general  accounts  and  credit  accounts,  together  with  the  number  of  the  Company’  shares  lent  through  refinancing  and  not  yet  returned,  totalled 
20,460,903  shares.  The  number  of  the  Company’s  shares  lent  through  refinancing  and  not  yet  returned  by  Industrial  and  Commercial  Bank  of  China 
Limited – Huatai-PineBridge CSI 300 Exchange Traded Index Securities Investment Fund were 20,300 shares, and the number of Company’s shares held 
in  its  general  accounts  and  credit  accounts,  together  with  the  number  of  the  Company’  shares  lent  through  refinancing  and  not  yet  returned,  totalled 
12,423,033 shares.

Information relating to the Controlling Shareholder and Effective Controller

The controlling shareholder of the Company is CLIC, and its relevant information is set out below:

Name of company

China Life Insurance (Group) Company

Legal representative

Bai Tao

Date of incorporation

Major businesses

22 August 1996 (CLIC’s predecessor was PICC (Life) Co., Ltd. incorporated in August 1996. 
It  was  renamed  as  China  Life  Insurance  Company,  a  company  approved  for  formation 
by  the  State  Council  in  January  1999.  With  the  approval  of  the  former  China  Insurance 
Regulatory Commission in 2003, China Life Insurance Company was restructured as CLIC.)

Insurance services including receipt of premiums and payment of benefits in respect of 
the in-force life, health, accident and other types of personal insurance business, and the 
reinsurance business; holding or investing in domestic and overseas insurance companies 
or other financial insurance institutions; funds application business permitted by PRC laws 
and regulations or approved by the State Council of the PRC; other businesses approved 
by insurance regulatory agencies.

Shareholdings in other 
subsidiaries and affiliates 
listed in China or abroad 
during the Reporting Period

As at 31 December 2023, CLIC held 1,785,098,644 H shares of Town Health International 
Medical Group Limited (which is one of the companies listed in China or abroad in which 
CLIC has over 5% of the total share capital), representing 26.35% of its total shares.

The  effective  controller  of  the  Company  is  the  Ministry  of  Finance.  The  equity  and  controlling  relationship  between  the 
Company and its effective controller is set out as below:

Ministry of Finance of the PRC

National Council for Social
Security Fund

90%

10%

China Life Insurance
(Group) Company

68.37%

China Life Insurance
Company Limited

During the Reporting Period, there was no change to the controlling shareholder and the effective controller of the Company. 
As at the end of the Reporting Period, there was no other corporate shareholder holding more than 10% of the shares in 
the Company.

57

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
INTERESTS AND SHORT POSITIONS IN THE SHARES AND UNDERLYING SHARES OF THE COMPANY 
HELD BY SUBSTANTIAL SHAREHOLDERS AND OTHER PERSONS UNDER HONG KONG LAWS AND 
REGULATIONS

So  far  as  is  known  to  the  Directors,  Supervisors  and  the  chief  executive  of  the  Company,  as  at  31  December  2023,  the 
following  persons  (other  than  the  Directors,  Supervisors  and  the  chief  executive  of  the  Company)  had  interests  or  short 
positions in the shares or underlying shares of the Company which would fall to be disclosed to the Company under the 
provisions of Divisions 2 and 3 of Part XV of the SFO, or which were recorded in the register required to be kept by the 
Company pursuant to Section 336 of the SFO, or as otherwise notified to the Company and the HKSE:

Name of substantial 
shareholder

China Life Insurance  
(Group) Company

Capacity

Class of shares

Number of  
shares held

Percentage of  
the respective  
class of shares

Percentage of 
the total number 
of shares in 
issue

Beneficial owner

A Shares

19,323,530,000 (L)

92.80%

68.37%

FMR LLC  (Note 1)

Interest in controlled 
corporation

H Shares

449,298,275 (L)

6.04%

1.59%

BlackRock, Inc.  (Note 2)

Interest in controlled 
corporation

H Shares

436,647,392 (L) 
5,692,000 (S)

5.87% 
0.08%

1.54% 
0.02%

The letter “L” denotes a long position. The letter “S” denotes a short position.

(Note 1):  FMR  LLC  was  interested  in  a  total  of  449,298,275  H  shares  of  the  Company  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  Part  XV  of  the  SFO.  Of  these 
shares, Fidelity Management & Research Company LLC, Fidelity Institutional Asset Management Trust Company and FIAM LLC were interested in 
293,895,801 H shares, 46,313,968 H shares and 62,011,759 H shares, respectively. All of these entities are either controlled or indirectly controlled 
subsidiaries of FMR LLC.

(Note 2):  BlackRock, Inc. was interested in a total of 436,647,392 H shares of the Company in accordance with the provisions of Part XV of the SFO. Of these 
shares, BlackRock Investment Management, LLC, BlackRock Financial Management, Inc., BlackRock Institutional Trust Company, National Association, 
BlackRock Fund Advisors, BlackRock Advisors, LLC, BlackRock Japan Co., Ltd., BlackRock Asset Management Canada Limited, BlackRock Investment 
Management (Australia) Limited, BlackRock Asset Management North Asia Limited, BlackRock (Netherlands) B.V., BlackRock Advisors (UK) Limited, 
BlackRock  Asset  Management  Ireland  Limited,  BLACKROCK  (Luxembourg)  S.A.,  BlackRock  Investment  Management  (UK)  Limited,  BlackRock 
Asset Management Deutschland AG, BlackRock Fund Managers Limited, BlackRock Life Limited, BlackRock (Singapore) Limited, BlackRock Asset 
Management Schweiz AG and Aperio Group, LLC were interested in 3,201,000 H shares, 7,992,070 H shares, 91,902,736 H shares, 190,345,000 
H shares, 268,000 H shares, 8,860,583 H shares, 1,766,000 H shares, 3,354,000 H shares, 15,876,451 H shares, 17,474,402 H shares, 6,958,196 
H  shares,  58,125,917  H  shares,  639,000  H  shares,  9,154,628  H  shares,  466,000  H  shares,  11,221,030  H  shares,  684,432  H  shares,  5,021,000  H 
shares,  101,000  H  shares  and  3,235,947  H  shares,  respectively.  All  of  these  entities  are  either  controlled  or  indirectly  controlled  subsidiaries  of 
BlackRock, Inc. Of these 436,647,392 H shares, 30,070 H shares were cash settled unlisted derivatives.

BlackRock, Inc. held by way of attribution a short position as defined under Part XV of the SFO in 5,692,000 H shares (0.08%). Of these 5,692,000 
H shares, 4,794,000 H shares were cash settled unlisted derivatives.

Save  as  disclosed  above,  the  Directors,  Supervisors  and  the  chief  executive  of  the  Company  are  not  aware  of  any  other 
party who, as at 31 December 2023, had an interest or short position in the shares and underlying shares of the Company 
which was recorded in the register required to be kept by the Company pursuant to Section 336 of the SFO.

58

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
DIRECTORS, SUPERVISORS, SENIOR MANAGEMENT AND EMPLOYEES

DIRECTORS, SUPERVISORS AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT

Current Directors, Supervisors and Senior Management

Name

Position

Gender

Date of birth

Term

Salary/
Remuneration 
paid in RMB 
ten thousands

Other benefits, 
social insurance, 
housing  
provident  
fund and 
enterprise  
annuity  
fund paid by  
the Company  
in RMB  
ten thousands

Total  
emoluments 
received from  
the Company 
during  
the Reporting 
Period in RMB  
ten thousands 
(before tax)

Whether  
received 
emolument  
from connected 
parties of  
the Company

Bai Tao

Chairman of the Board
Executive Director

Li Mingguang

Executive Director
President

Male

March 1963

Since 31 May 2022

–

–

–

Male

July 1969

since 16 August 2019,

41.77

13.45

55.22

Appointed as an Executive Director 

President since November 2023

Wang Junhui

Non-executive Director

Male

July 1971

Since 16 August 2019

Zhuo Meijuan

Non-executive Director

Female

July 1964

Since 21 June 2023

Lam Chi Kuen

Independent Director

Male

April 1953

Since 29 June 2021

Zhai Haitao

Independent Director

Male

January 1969

Since 14 October 2021

Huang Yiping

Independent Director

Male

March 1964

Since 13 July 2022

Chen Jie

Independent Director

Female

April 1970

Since 13 July 2022

–

–

42.00

42.00

42.00

42.00

–

–

0

0

0

0

–

–

42.00

42.00

42.00

42.00

Cao Weiqing

Chairman of the Board of 

Supervisors

Niu Kailong

Non-employee 
Representative Supervisor

Lai Jun

Ye Yinglan

Employee Representative 

Supervisor

Employee Representative 

Supervisor

Male

September 1965

Since 4 November 2022

126.79

37.71

164.50

Male

September 1974

Since 14 October 2021

–

–

–

Male

May 1964

Since 14 October 2021

102.19

34.35

136.54

Female

October 1974

Since 21 June 2023

46.51

15.67

62.18

Liu Hui

Vice President
Chief Investment Officer

Female

February 1970

Ruan Qi

Vice President
Chief Risk Officer
Chief Network Security 

Officer

Male

July 1966

Appointed as a Vice President since 

July 2023, 

Chief Investment Officer since 

December 2023

Appointed as a Vice President since 

April 2018, 

Chief Risk Officer since December 

2022, 

Chief Network Security Officer since 

March 2024

52.21

15.79

68.00

125.30

40.67

165.97

No

59

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

No

No

No

Yes

No

No

No

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Name

Position

Gender

Date of birth

Term

Salary/
Remuneration 
paid in RMB 
ten thousands

Other benefits, 
social insurance, 
housing  
provident  
fund and 
enterprise  
annuity  
fund paid by  
the Company  
in RMB  
ten thousands

Total  
emoluments 
received from  
the Company 
during  
the Reporting 
Period in RMB  
ten thousands 
(before tax)

Whether  
received 
emolument  
from connected 
parties of  
the Company

Zhao Guodong

Vice President
Board Secretary

Appointed as a Vice President since 

Male

November 1967

August 2023, 

114.86

38.26

153.12

Board Secretary since February 2023

Bai Kai

Vice President

Xu Chongmiao

Compliance Officer

Male

Male

June 1974

Since August 2023

October 1969

Since July 2018

Hu Zhijun

Person in Charge of Audit Female

July 1971

Since November 2023

Hou Jin

Chief Actuary

Female

January 1980

Since November 2023

Yuan Ying

Temporary Person in 
Charge of Finance

Female

February 1978

Since March 2024

114.86

96.01

6.25

5.29

–

38.72

30.93

3.58

3.42

–

153.58

126.94

9.83

8.71

–

Total

/

/

/

/

1,000.04

272.55

1,272.59

No

No

No

No

No

No

/

Notes:
1.  None of the current Directors, Supervisors and senior management of the Company held any shares of the Company during the Reporting Period.
2.  According  to  the  “Procedural  Rules  for  the  Board  Meetings  of  China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited”,  Directors  of  the  Company  serve  for  a  term  of 
three  years  and  may  be  re-elected.  However,  Independent  Directors  may  not  serve  for  more  than  six  years.  According  to  the  Articles  of  Association, 
Supervisors of the Company serve for a term of three years and may be re-elected.

3.  The positions of the Directors, Supervisors and senior management in this report reflect their positions as at the date of this report. The emoluments are 

calculated based on their terms of office during the Reporting Period.

4.  According to the requirements of the relevant remuneration policies of the Company, the final amount of emoluments of the current Directors, Supervisors 
and senior management of the Company is currently subject to review and approval. The result of the review will be disclosed when the final amount is 
confirmed.

5.  As elected by the Third Extraordinary General Meeting 2022 of the Company and upon approval by the NFRA, Ms. Zhuo Meijuan served as a Non-executive 
Director of the seventh session of the Board of Directors from 21 June 2023. On 20 July 2023, Ms. Zhuo Meijuan had obtained the legal advice referred 
to in Rule 3.09D of the Listing Rules, and confirmed that she understood her obligations as a director of the Company.

6.  As  elected  by  the  tenth  extraordinary  meeting  of  the  third  session  of  the  employee  representative  meeting  of  the  Company  and  upon  approval  by  the 
NFRA,  Ms.  Ye  Yinglan  served  as  an  Employee  Representative  Supervisor  of  the  seventh  session  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  of  the Company  from  21 
June 2023.

7.  As considered and approved by the twenty-seventh meeting of the seventh session of the Board of Directors of the Company and upon approval by the 

NFRA, Mr. Li Mingguang served as the President of the Company from 10 November 2023.
As considered and approved by the twentieth meeting of the seventh session of the Board of Directors of the Company and upon approval by the NFRA, 
Ms. Liu Hui served as a Vice President of the Company from 27 July 2023. As considered and approved by the thirty-third meeting of the seventh session 
of the Board of Directors of the Company, Ms. Liu Hui served as the Chief Investment Officer of the Company from 15 December 2023.
As  considered  and  approved  by  the  thirty-sixth  meeting  of  the  seventh  session  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Company,  Mr.  Ruan  Qi  served  as  the 
Chief Network Security Officer of the Company from 27 March 2024.
As considered and approved by the twenty-seventh meeting of the seventh session of the Board of Directors of the Company, Mr. Zhao Guodong and 
Mr. Bai Kai served as Vice Presidents of the Company from 4 August 2023.
As considered and approved by the eighteenth meeting of the seventh session of the Board of Directors of the Company and upon approval by the NFRA, 
Mr. Zhao Guodong served as the Board Secretary of the Company from 24 February 2023.
As considered and approved by the twenty-seventh meeting of the seventh session of the Board of Directors of the Company and upon approval by the 
NFRA, Ms. Hu Zhijun served as the Person in Charge of Audit of the Company from 28 November 2023.
As considered and approved by the twenty-seventh meeting of the seventh session of the Board of of Directors of the Company and upon approval by 
the NFRA, Ms. Hou Jin served as the Chief Actuary of the Company from 28 November 2023.
Ms.  Yuan  Ying  was  appointed  as  the  Person  in  Charge  of  Finance  of  the  Company  at  the  thirty-sixth  meeting  of  the  seventh  session  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  of  the  Company  and  her  qualification  as  the  Person  in  Charge  of  Finance  of  the  Company  is  subject  to  the  approval  by the  NFRA.  The  Board 
has designated Ms. Yuan Ying as a temporary Person in Charge of Finance of the Company before the approval on her qualification is obtained.

8.  Due to the adjustment of work arrangements, Mr. Li Mingguang ceased to be the Board Secretary of the Company from 24 February 2023, a Vice President 
of the Company from May 2023, and the Chief Actuary of the Company from August 2023. Mr. Li Mingguang received remuneration from the Company 
during the period from January 2023 to April 2023.

60

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Resigned and Retired Directors, Supervisors and Senior Management

Name

Previous position

Gender

Date of birth

Term

Zhao Peng

Executive Director

President

Male

April 1972

28 October 2022  

– 4 August 2023

October 2022 – August 2023

Salary/
Remuneration 
paid in RMB ten 
thousands

Other benefits, 
social insurance, 
housing 
provident fund 
and enterprise 
annuity fund paid 
by the Company 
in RMB  
ten thousands

Total 
emoluments 
received from the 
Company during 
the Reporting 
Period in RMB 
ten thousands 
(before tax)

Whether 
received 
emolument 
from connected 
parties of the 
Company

–

–

–

Yes

Wang Xiaoqing

Employee Representative 

Supervisor

Female

October 1965

27 December 2019  
– 21 June 2023

45.23

16.25

61.48

Hu Zhijun

Employee Representative 

Supervisor

Female

July 1971

13 July 2022 – 29 June 2023

Zhan Zhong

Vice President

Male

April 1968

July 2019 – June 2023

48.54

62.65

15.02

20.27

63.56

82.92

Yang Hong

Vice President

Female

February 1967

July 2019 – March 2024

125.30

38.38

163.68

Zhang Di

Assistant to the President

Chief Investment Officer

Female

January 1968

December 2021 – January 2023

January 2022 – January 2023

–

–

–

Liu Fengji

Person in Charge of Audit

Male

October 1969

December 2021 – August 2023

36.12

14.24

50.36

No

No

No

No

No

No

Hu Jin

Person in Charge of Finance

Female

November 1971

February 2023 – March 2024

70.74

26.33

97.07

Yes

Reason for changes

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Resigned due to personal 
reasons

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Resigned due to the 
adjustment of work 
arrangements

Total

/

/

/

/

388.58

130.49

519.07

/

/

Notes:

1.  None  of  the  resigned  or  retired  Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management  of  the  Company  held  any  shares  of  the  Company  during  the  Reporting 

Period.

2.  This table sets out the information of Directors, Supervisors and senior management who resigned or retired during the period from the beginning of the 

Reporting Period to the date of this report.

3.  The emoluments are calculated based on the terms of office of the resigned and retired Directors, Supervisors and senior management during the Reporting 

Period.

4.  According to the requirements of the relevant remuneration policies of the Company, the final amount of emoluments of the resigned and retired Directors, 
Supervisors and senior management of the Company is currently subject to review and approval. The result of the review will be disclosed when the final 
amount is confirmed.

61

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Personal Profile of Current Directors, Supervisors, Senior Management and Company Secretary

DIRECTORS

Mr. Bai Tao, born in 1963, Chinese
Mr. Bai became the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company in May 2022. He 
has been the Secretary of the Party Committee of China Life Insurance (Group) Company 
since January 2022 and the Chairman of China Life Insurance (Group) Company since 
March 2022. From 2016 to 2022, he served as a member of the Party Committee and 
the  Deputy  General  Manager  of  China  Investment  Corporation,  the  Deputy  Secretary 
of the Party Committee, the Vice Chairman, the President and an Executive Director of 
The People’s Insurance Company (Group) of China Limited, and the Chairman and the 
Secretary  of  the  Leading  Party  Members’  Group  of  State  Development  &  Investment 
Corp., Ltd. Mr. Bai graduated from Renmin University of China with a doctoral degree 
in economics, and is a senior economist.

Mr. Li Mingguang, born in 1969, Chinese
Mr. Li became an Executive Director of the Company in August 2019. He has been the 
Secretary  of  the  Party  Committee  of  the  Company  since  July  2023  and  the  President 
of the Company since November 2023. He has been a member of the Party Committee 
and  a  Vice  President  of  China  Life  Insurance  (Group)  Company  since  April  2023  and 
November  2023,  respectively.  He  has  been  the  Chairman  of  China  Life  Investment 
Management Company Limited since July 2023. Mr. Li joined the Company in 1996 and 
successively served as the Responsible Actuary, the General Manager of the Actuarial 
Department, the Chief Actuary, the Board Secretary, a Vice President and the temporary 
Person in Charge of the Company. He graduated from Shanghai Jiaotong University with 
a bachelor’s degree in 1991, Central University of Finance and Economics with a master’s 
degree  in  1996  and  Tsinghua  University  with  an  EMBA  in  2010.  Mr.  Li  is  a  Fellow  of 
the China Association of Actuaries (FCAA) and a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of 
Actuaries (FIA). He was the Chairman of the first session of the China Actuarial Working 
Committee and the Secretary-general of both the first and the second sessions of the 
China Association of Actuaries. He is currently the Vice Chairman of the China Association 
of Actuaries. Mr. Li receives a special government allowance from the State Council.

Mr. Wang Junhui, born in 1971, Chinese
Mr.  Wang  became  a  Non-executive  Director  of  the  Company  in  August  2019.  He  has 
been the Chairman of China Life Pension Company Limited since November 2023 and 
the  Chief  Investment  Officer  of  China  Life  Insurance  (Group)  Company  since  August 
2016.  He  has  been  the  Chairman  of  China  Life  AMP  Asset  Management  Company 
Limited since December 2016 and a Director of China United Network Communications 
Limited since March 2021. From 2004 to 2023, he successively served as an Assistant 
to the President, a Vice President and the President of China Life Asset Management 
Company Limited, and the President of China Life Investment Holding Company Limited. 
Mr.  Wang  graduated  from  the  School  of  Computer  Science  of  Beijing  University  of 
Technology with a bachelor’s degree in software in 1995 and from Chinese Academy of 
Fiscal Sciences of the Ministry of Finance of the PRC with a doctoral degree in finance 
in 2008, and is a senior economist.

62

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMs. Zhuo Meijuan, born in 1964, Chinese
Ms. Zhuo became a Non-executive Director of the Company in June 2023. She is the 
Senior  Director  of  the  Strategic  Planning  Department  (General  Office  for  Deepening 
Reforms)/Office of the Board of Directors/China Life Institute of Finance of China Life 
Insurance  (Group)  Company.  From  2016  to  2023,  she  served  as  the  Deputy  General 
Manager (at the department general manager level) and General Manager of the Business 
Management Department of China Life Insurance (Group) Company. She served as the 
Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Committee and the Deputy General Manager (at the 
department general manager level of the head office) of Tianjin Branch of the Company 
from  2013  to  2016,  and  the  Deputy  General  Manager  of  the  Business  Management 
Department  of  China  Life  Insurance  (Group)  Company  from  2006  to  2013.  Ms.  Zhuo 
successively graduated from Fujian Agricultural College and the Open University of Hong 
Kong with a master’s degree in business administration, and is a senior economist.

Mr. Lam Chi Kuen, born in 1953, Chinese
Mr. Lam became an Independent Director of the Company in June 2021. He is currently 
an Independent Non-executive Director of each of China Cinda Asset Management Co., 
Ltd. and Luks Group (Vietnam Holdings) Company Limited. He served as an Independent 
Non-executive Director of China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd. from 2013 to 2019. 
Mr.  Lam,  a  practicing  certified  public  accountant  in  Hong  Kong  for  approximately  35 
years,  was  a  partner  and  senior  consultant  of  Ernst  &  Young  from  1992  to  2013  and 
has  extensive  experience  in  accounting,  auditing  and  financial  management.  Mr.  Lam 
received a Higher Diploma in Accounting from the Hong Kong Polytechnic College (the 
current Hong Kong Polytechnic University). He is a member of the Hong Kong Institute 
of  Certified  Public  Accountants  and  a  senior  member  of  the  Association  of  Chartered 
Certified Accountants.

Mr. Zhai Haitao, born in 1969, Chinese
Mr.  Zhai  became  an  Independent  Director  of  the  Company  in  October  2021.  He  is 
the  President  and  Founding  Partner  of  Primavera  Capital  Group,  and  an  Independent 
Non-executive  Director  of  each  of  China  Everbright  Environment  Group  Limited  and 
China  Everbright  Water  Limited.  From  2000  to  2009,  Mr.  Zhai  worked  at  and  held 
various positions in Goldman Sachs Group, including the Managing Director, the Chief 
Representative  of  its  Beijing  Office,  the  Director  of  the  Strategic  Cooperation  Office 
between Goldman Sachs Group and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, and the 
Credit Rating Consultant of the Ministry of Finance of the PRC and China Development 
Bank. From 1995 to 1998, he was the Deputy Representative of the People’s Bank of 
China Representative Office for the Americas based in New York. From 1990 to 1995, 
Mr. Zhai worked at the International Department of the People’s Bank of China. Mr. Zhai 
holds  a  master’s  degree  in  international  affairs  from  Columbia  University,  a  master’s 
degree  in  business  administration  from  New  York  University  and  a  bachelor’s  degree 
in economics from Peking University.

63

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMr. Huang Yiping, born in 1964, Chinese
Mr. Huang became an Independent Director of the Company in July 2022. He is the Dean 
of the National School of Development, Boya Chair Professor, and the Director of the 
Institute of Digital Finance of Peking University. Currently, Mr. Huang also concurrently 
serves  as  a  contract  research  fellow  of  the  Counsellors’  Office  of  The  People’s  Bank 
of China, an Executive Director and the Deputy Secretary-general of the China Society 
for  Finance  and  Banking,  a  member  of  each  of  China  Finance  40  Forum  and  Chinese 
Economists 50 Forum, and the Deputy Editor in Chief of Asian Economic Policy Review. 
Mr. Huang has been an Independent Director of Ant Group Co., Ltd. since August 2020. 
He  served  as  a  member  of  the  Monetary  Policy  Committee  of  The  People’s  Bank  of 
China  from  June  2015  to  June  2018,  the  Managing  Director  of  the  Emerging  Market 
Headquarters/the Chief Economist of Asian Emerging Markets of Barclays Capital Asia 
from August 2011 to June 2013, the Managing Director/the Chief Economist of the Asia-
Pacific region of Citigroup Inc. from May 2000 to February 2009, and a senior lecturer 
and the Director of China’s economic projects of The Australian National University from 
August 1993 to April 2000. Mr. Huang obtained a master’s degree in economics from 
Renmin  University  of  China  and  a  doctoral  degree  in  economics  from  The  Australian 
National University.

Ms. Chen Jie, born in 1970, Chinese
Ms.  Chen  became  an  Independent  Director  of  the  Company  in  July  2022.  She  is  the 
Director  and  a  researcher  of  the  Commercial  Law  Research  Unit  of  the  Institute  of 
Law,  a  professor  and  doctoral  tutor  of  Chinese  Academy  of  Social  Sciences.  She  is 
a  member  of  the  Chinese  Legal  System  Committee  of  China  Democratic  League,  as 
well  as  the  Vice  Chairman  of  China  Business  Law  Society,  an  Executive  Director  of 
each  of  the  Institute  of  Commercial  Law  and  the  Institute  of  Securities  Law  of  China 
Law  Society,  and  a  Director  of  the  Institute  of  Insurance  Law  of  China  Law  Society. 
Ms.  Chen  is  also  a  member  of  the  Appeal  Review  Committee  of  Shenzhen  Stock 
Exchange, a member of the Expert Advisory Committee of Beijing Financial Court, and 
an arbitrator of each of Beijing Arbitration Commission/Beijing International Arbitration 
Center,  Shenzhen  Court  of  International  Arbitration,  China  International  Economic  and 
Trade  Arbitration  Commission,  Shanghai  International  Economic  and  Trade  Arbitration 
Commission and Shanghai Arbitration Commission. Ms. Chen has been an Independent 
Director of Deppon Logistics Co., Ltd. since October 2022. She served as an Independent 
Director of Central China Land Media Co., Ltd. from December 2010 to April 2017, an 
Independent Director of BOMESC Offshore Engineering Company Limited from January 
2016 to January 2019, and an Independent Director of Sino Geophysical Co., Ltd. from 
November 2015 to November 2021. Ms. Chen obtained a bachelor’s degree in law from 
East China College of Political Science and Law, a master’s and doctoral degrees in law 
from  Peking  University,  and  a  post-doctoral  qualification  from  the  Institute  of  Law  of 
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

64

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceSUPERVISORS

Mr. Cao Weiqing, born in 1965, Chinese
Mr. Cao became the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of the Company in November 
2022.  He  has  been  a  member  and  the  Deputy  Secretary  of  the  Party  Committee  of 
the  Company  since  2022.  He  successively  served  as  the  Secretary  of  the  Discipline 
Inspection Committee, the Chairman of the Board of Supervisors and a Vice President 
of  China  Life  Asset  Management  Company  Limited  from  2016  to  2022.  He  served  as 
the Deputy General Manager (at the general manager level of the provincial branches) 
of  Hebei  Branch  of  the  Company  from  2014  to  2016,  and  concurrently  acted  as  the 
Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Committee and the Chairman of the Labour Union 
of  such  branch.  From  2002  to  2014,  he  successively  served  as  the  Deputy  General 
Manager of the Personnel Department of China Life Insurance Company, as well as the 
Deputy  General  Manager  and  General  Manager  of  the  Strategic  Planning  Department 
and the General Manager of the Equity Management Department of China Life Insurance 
(Group) Company. Mr. Cao graduated from Nankai University with a master’s degree in 
economics, and is a senior economist.

Mr. Niu Kailong, born in 1974, Chinese
Mr.  Niu  became  a  Supervisor  of  the  Company  in  October  2021.  He  has  been  the 
General  Manager  and  the  President  of  the  Strategic  Planning  Department  (General 
Office  for  Deepening  Reforms)/Office  of  the  Board  of  Directors/China  Life  Institute 
of  Finance  of  China  Life  Insurance  (Group)  Company  since  December  2022.  Mr.  Niu 
successively served as the Person in Charge of the Strategy and Investment Management 
Department of China Life Healthcare Investment Company Limited, the Deputy General 
Manager (responsible for daily operations) of the Strategic Planning Department of China 
Life  Insurance  (Group)  Company,  and  the  General  Manager  of  the  Strategic  Planning 
Department/Office of the Board of Directors (in preparation) and the President of China 
Life  Institute  of  Finance  of  China  Life  Insurance  (Group)  Company  from  June  2020  to 
December 2022. He successively served as the Deputy General Manager of the Strategic 
Planning Department of The People’s Insurance Company (Group) of China Limited, as 
well as a Supervisor, the Deputy General Manager (responsible for daily operations) of 
the  Strategic  Planning  Department,  and  the  Deputy  General  Manager  (responsible  for 
daily operations) of the Strategic Planning Department/Office of the Board of Directors 
of PICC Reinsurance Company Limited from April 2017 to June 2020. Mr. Niu graduated 
from Nankai University with a doctoral degree in finance. He is an associate researcher 
(social science) and senior economist.

65

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMr. Lai Jun, born in 1964, Chinese
Mr. Lai became a Supervisor of the Company in October 2021. He is the General Manager 
of the Human Resources Department of the Company. Mr. Lai joined the Company in 
1984,  and  successively  served  as  the  Deputy  General  Manager  and  the  Secretary  of 
the Discipline Inspection Committee of Xinjiang Branch of the Company, the Person in 
Charge, the Deputy General Manager (responsible for daily operations) and the General 
Manager  of  Hainan  Branch,  as  well  as  the  General  Manager  of  Xinjiang  Branch  of 
the  Company  from  2002  to  2021.  Mr.  Lai  graduated  from  Party  School  of  the  Central 
Committee of CPC, majoring in economics and management, and is a senior economist.

Ms. Ye Yinglan, born in 1974, Chinese
Ms. Ye became a Supervisor of the Company in June 2023. She has been the General 
Manager  of  the  Integrated  Finance  Department  of  the  Company  since  June  2023  and 
concurrently served as the General Manager of the Asset Management Department of the 
Company since November 2023. Ms. Ye joined the Company in 1999 and successively 
served  as  an  Assistant  to  the  General  Manager  and  the  Deputy  General  Manager  of 
the  Finance  Department,  the  Deputy  General  Manager,  the  Deputy  General  Manager 
(responsible for daily operations) and the General Manager of the Finance Management 
Department,  and  the  General  Manager  of  the  Fund  Sales  Management  Department 
of  the  Company  from  2009  to  2023.  Ms.  Ye  graduated  from  Wuhan  University  with  a 
doctoral degree in economics.

66

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceSENIOR MANAGEMENT

Mr. Li Mingguang, please see the section “Directors” for his personal profile.

Ms. Liu Hui, born in 1970, Chinese
Ms. Liu became a Vice President of the Company in July 2023. She has been the Chief 
Investment Officer of the Company since December 2023. She has been a Director of 
the  China  Guangfa  Bank  Co.,  Ltd.  since  January  2024,  a  Director  of  China  Life  Asset 
Management Company Limited since August 2023, and a Director of China Life Franklin 
Asset Management Company Limited since April 2023. She was a Director of Wonders 
Information  Co.,  Ltd.  from  July  2023  to  January  2024.  From  2014  to  2022,  Ms.  Liu 
successively  served  as  a  Vice  President  of  China  Life  Investment  Holding  Company 
Limited,  and  an  Executive  Director  and  a  Vice  President  of  China  Life  Investment 
Management Company Limited, and concurrently served as an Executive Director and a 
Vice President of Sino-Ocean Group Holding Limited, the President and Chairman of China 
Life  Capital  Investment  Company  Limited,  and  an  Executive  Director  and  the  General 
Manager  of  China  Life  Real  Estate  Co.,  Limited.  She  served  as  the  General  Manager 
of the Investment Management Department of the Company from 2009 to 2014, and 
successively  acted  as  an  Assistant  to  the  General  Manager  of  the  Enterprise  Annuity 
Department,  the  Deputy  General  Manager  of  the  Pension  and  Institutional  Business 
Department and the General Manager of the Transaction Management Department of 
China Life Asset Management Company Limited from 2005 to 2009. She worked at the 
Head Office of China Construction Bank from 1992 to 2005. Ms. Liu successively obtained 
a  bachelor’s  degree  in  economics  from  Renmin  University  of  China  and  a  master’s 
degree in business administration from Tsinghua University, and is a senior economist.

Mr. Ruan Qi, born in 1966, Chinese
Mr. Ruan became a Vice President of the Company in April 2018. He has been the Chief 
Risk  Officer  of  the  Company  since  December  2022,  and  the  Chief  Network  Security 
Officer of the Company since March 2024. Mr. Ruan has been the temporary Person in 
Charge and a Director of China Life Ecommerce Company Limited since January 2024 
and  May  2023,  respectively.  He  has  been  the  Chairman  of  Wonders  Information  Co., 
Ltd.  since  July  2023.  He  successively  served  as  the  General  Manager  (at  the  general 
manager level of the provincial branches) of the Information Technology Department and 
the Chief Information Technology Officer of the Company from 2016 to 2018. Mr. Ruan 
served as the General Manager of China Life Data Center and the General Manager (at 
the  general  manager  level  of  the  provincial  branches)  of  the  Information  Technology 
Department of the Company from 2014 to 2016, and the Deputy General Manager and 
the General Manager of the Information Technology Department of the Company from 
2004  to  2014.  He  successively  served  as  the  Deputy  Division  Chief  of  the  Computer 
Division,  the  Deputy  Manager  (responsible  for  daily  operations)  and  the  Manager  of 
the  Information  Technology  Department  of  Fujian  Branch  of  the  Company  from  2000 
to  2004.  Mr.  Ruan  graduated  from  Beijing  Institute  of  Posts  and  Telecommunications 
in  August  1987,  majoring  in  computer  science  and  communications  with  a  bachelor’s 
degree in engineering, and from Xiamen University with a master’s degree in business 
administration  for  senior  management  (EMBA)  in  December  2007,  and  is  a  senior 
engineer.

67

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMr. Zhao Guodong, born in 1967, Chinese
Mr.  Zhao  became  a  Vice  President  of  the  Company  in  August  2023.  He  has  been  the 
Board  Secretary  of  the  Company  since  February  2023.  He  was  an  Assistant  to  the 
President of the Company from October 2019 to July 2023. He successively served as 
the Deputy General Manager (responsible for daily operations) and the General Manager 
of Chongqing Branch, the General Manager of Hunan Branch and the General Manager 
of  Jiangsu  Branch  of  the  Company  from  2016  to  2022,  the  Deputy  General  Manager 
of  each  of  Fujian  Branch  and  Hunan  Branch  of  the  Company  from  2007  to  2016,  and 
the  Deputy  General  Manager  of  Changde  Branch  and  the  General  Manager  of  Yiyang 
Branch  in  Hunan  province  of  the  Company  from  2001  to  2007.  Mr.  Zhao  graduated 
from Hunan Computer School in 1988, majoring in computer software, and from China 
Central  Radio  and  Television  University  in  2006,  majoring  in  business  administration, 
and is a principal senior economist.

Mr. Bai Kai, born in 1974, Chinese
Mr.  Bai  became  a  Vice  President  of  the  Company  in  August  2023.  He  successively 
served as the Deputy General Manager, the Deputy General Manager (responsible for 
daily  operations)  and  the  General  Manager  of  Hubei  Branch,  and  an  Assistant  to  the 
President of the Company from 2017 to 2023, and the General Manager of Huanggang 
Branch  in  Hubei  province  and  the  Deputy  General  Manager  of  Qingdao  Branch  of  the 
Company  from  2011  to  2017.  Mr.  Bai  graduated  from  Party  School  of  the  CPC  Hubei 
Provincial Committee, majoring in economics and management, and was a postgraduate.

Mr. Xu Chongmiao, born in 1969, Chinese
Mr. Xu became the Compliance Officer of the Company in July 2018. He has been the 
General Manager of the Legal and Compliance Department and the Legal Officer of the 
Company  since  September  2014.  From  2006  to  2014,  he  successively  served  as  the 
Deputy General Manager of the Legal Affairs Department, the Deputy General Manager 
of the Legal and Compliance Department and the Legal Officer at the general manager 
level of the Company. From 2000 to 2006, he successively served as the Deputy Division 
Chief  of  the  Regulations  Division  of  the  Development  and  Research  Department  and 
a  senior  regulations  researcher  of  the  Legal  Affairs  Department  of  the  Company.  Mr. 
Xu graduated from Fudan University in August 1991, majoring in economic law with a 
bachelor’s  degree  in  law,  and  from  Renmin  University  of  China  in  July  1996  and  July 
2005, respectively, majoring in economic law with master’s and doctoral degrees in law. 
Mr. Xu is admitted as a lawyer and certified public accountant in the PRC.

68

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMs. Hu Zhijun, born in 1971, Chinese
Ms. Hu became the Person in Charge of Audit of the Company in November 2023. She 
has been the General Manager of the Audit Department of the Company since October 
2022.  She  was  a  Supervisor  of  the  Company  from  July  2022  to  June  2023.  Ms.  Hu 
joined  the  Company  in  2006  and  successively  served  as  an  Assistant  to  the  General 
Manager and the Deputy General Manager of Tianjin Branch, the Deputy General Manager 
and  the  Secretary  of  the  Discipline  Inspection  Committee  of  Beijing  Branch,  and  the 
General  Manager  of  the  Asset  Management  Department  of  the  Company  from  2009 
to October 2022. Prior to joining the Company, she worked at China Packing Import & 
Export Tianjin Company and other companies. Ms. Hu graduated from Tianjin Institute 
of Finance and Economics in 1993, majoring in accounting with a bachelor’s degree in 
economics, and from Nankai University in 2006, majoring in corporate management with 
a master’s degree in management. Ms. Hu is admitted as a certified public accountant in 
the PRC. She is a principal senior accountant and the national leading accounting talent 
recognised by the Ministry of Finance of the PRC in the first session of its assessment 
and selection, and was listed in the “Financial Talent Pool” of the Ministry of Finance 
of the PRC.

Ms. Hou Jin, born in 1980, Chinese
Ms. Hou became the Chief Actuary of the Company in November 2023. She has been 
the  General  Manager  of  the  Actuarial  Department  of  the  Company  since  September 
2023  and  concurrently  served  as  the  General  Manager  of  the  Product  Department  of 
the Company since November 2023. Ms. Hou successively served as a senior actuary 
(Grade  III),  an  Assistant  to  the  General  Manager  and  the  Deputy  General  Manager  of 
the Actuarial Department and the temporary Chief Actuary of the Company from 2017 
to 2023. Ms. Hou successively graduated from Southwestern University of Finance and 
Economics  and  Nankai  University,  with  a  bachelor’s  degree  and  a  master’s  degree  in 
economics, and is a full member of the China Association of Actuaries and a member 
of the Society of Actuaries.

Ms. Yuan Ying, born in 1978, Chinese
Ms. Yuan became the temporary Person in Charge of Finance of the Company in March 
2024. She has been the Deputy General Manager (responsible for daily operations) of the 
Finance Department of the Company since December 2023. She successively served as 
an Assistant to the General Manager of the Accounting Department, and an Assistant 
to  the  General  Manager  and  the  Deputy  General  Manager  of  the  Finance  Department 
of the Company from 2018 to 2023. Ms. Yuan graduated from Peking University with 
a master’s degree in management.

69

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceCOMPANY SECRETARY

Mr. Heng Victor Ja Wei, born in 1977, British
Mr.  Heng  is  the  managing  partner  of  Morison  Heng.  He  holds  a  Master  of  Science 
degree of the Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, the University of 
London,  and  is  a  member  of  The  Hong  Kong  Institute  of  Certified  Public  Accountants 
and a fellow of The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants. Mr. Heng has over 
20 years of experience in accounting and auditing for private and public companies and 
financial consultancy. He serves as an Independent Non-executive Director of each of 
Lee  &  Man  Chemical  Company  Limited,  Matrix  Holdings  Limited,  Best  Food  Holding 
Company Limited, TradeGo Fintech Limited and Veson Holdings Limited, all of which are 
listed on the main board of the HKSE, as well as an Independent Non-executive Director 
of Bacui Technologies International Ltd., which is listed on the Singapore Exchange.

Positions Held by Current Directors, Supervisors and Senior Management in Shareholders of the 
Company

Name

Bai Tao

Name of shareholders

Position

Term

China Life Insurance (Group) Company Chairman

Li Mingguang

China Life Insurance (Group) Company

Vice President

Since March 2022

Since November 2023

Wang Junhui

China Life Insurance (Group) Company Chief Investment Officer

Since August 2016

Zhuo Meijuan

China Life Insurance (Group) Company

Niu Kailong

China Life Insurance (Group) Company

Senior Director of the Strategic 
Planning Department (General 
Office for Deepening Reforms)/
Office of the Board of Directors/
China Life Institute of Finance

General Manager and President of 
the Strategic Planning Department 
(General Office for Deepening 
Reforms)/Office of the Board of 
Directors/China Life Institute of 
Finance

Since September 2023

Since December 2022

70

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Remuneration of Directors, Supervisors and Senior 
Management

Decision-making procedures for the remuneration of Directors, 
Supervisors and senior management: The remuneration of 
Directors  and  Supervisors  are  approved  by  shareholders 
at  general  meetings,  whereas  the  remuneration  of  senior 
management is approved by the Board of Directors.

Basis  for  determination  of  the  remuneration  of  Directors, 
Supervisors  and  senior  management:  The  remuneration 
of  Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management  are 
determined based on the operating results of the Company 
and  the  performance  appraisal  conducted  by  the  Board  of 
Directors,  and  in  accordance  with  the  measures  for  the 
administration of remunerations of the Company.

Actual  payment  of  remuneration  to  Directors,  Supervisors 
and  senior  management:  During  the  Reporting  Period,  the 
remuneration actually received by all Directors, Supervisors 
and senior management (including the resigned and retired 
Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management)  from  the 
Company  totalled  RMB17.9166  million.  In  accordance 
with  the  relevant  requirements  of  the  measures  for  the 
administration  of  remunerations  of  the  Company,  the 
standard  for  performance-based  bonus  (as  part  of  the 
remuneration) payable to Directors, Supervisors and senior 
management  of  the  Company  in  2023  has  not  yet  been 
determined.

Abstention  from  voting  by  Directors  during  the  discussion 
of their remuneration at Board meetings: The “Proposal in 
relation  to  the  Remuneration  of  Directors  and  Supervisors 
of  the  Company  for  the  Year  2022”  was  considered  and 
approved at the thirty-third meeting of the seventh session 
of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Company.  The  Board  of 
Directors  agreed  to  submit  the  proposal  to  the  general 
meeting for approval, and all Directors abstained from voting 
during the discussion of their remuneration.

Specific  recommendations  given  by  the  Nomination  and 
Remuneration Committee with respect to the remuneration 
of  Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management:  The 
“Proposal in relation to the Remuneration of Directors and 
Supervisors of the Company” and the “Proposal in relation to 
the Remuneration of Senior Management of the Company” 
were considered and approved at the ninth meeting of the 
Nomination  and  Remuneration  Committee  of  the  seventh 
session of the Board of Directors of the Company. Having 
been fully reviewed by the Directors present at the meeting, 
the Nomination and Remuneration Committee unanimously 
approved the proposals and agreed to submit the same to 
the Board of Directors for review.

71

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceEMPLOYEES AND BRANCHES

Employee Diversity

Employees

Number of employees of the Company
Number of employees of the Company’s 

major subsidiaries

Employees in total
Retired employees of the Company and 
its major subsidiaries for which extra 
costs have to be incurred

The Company attached great importance to the enhancement 
of  its  development  and  competitiveness  arising  from  the 
diversity of its employees. As at 31 December 2023, there 
were five female members in the senior management of the 
Company, accounting for 50% of the senior management; 
the  percentage  of  female  employees  of  the  Company  and 
its major subsidiaries was 57%.

98,065
1,935

100,000
60

Remuneration Policy for Employees

The Company has established a remuneration and incentive 
system  with  reference  to  employee’s  positions,  the 
Company’s performance and market conditions.

Training Plans

In 2023, the Company effectively proceeded with the “Party 
Building Foundation Program” and the “Talent Development 
Program”. Under the classification system and plan for talent 
training, the Company regularly launched training courses for 
leading cadres at the headquarters, provincial, municipal and 
county levels before and during their employment, continued 
to  offer  enhanced  training  programs  to  young  cadres  and 
new employees, and further nourished professional talents 
from  various  business  lines  and  sectors.  The  Company 
also  consistently  solidified  the  foundation  for  training 
development, made tremendous efforts to develop a team of 
full-time and part-time lecturers and a training management 
team, optimised training methods and approaches through 
innovation, and strived to enhance training efficiency, which 
ensured the continuous supply of talents for the high-quality 
development of the Company.

Branches

As at 31 December 2023, the Company had approximately 
18,300  branches  (including  branches  at  the  provincial  or 
prefecture  level,  sub-branches,  sales  offices  and  sales  & 
services offices).

As  at  the  end  of  the  Reporting  Period,  the  composition  of 
the  employees  of  the  Company  and  its  major  subsidiaries 
is as follows:

Class of professional composition

Management and administration
Sales and sales management
Finance and auditing
Insurance verification, claim processing 

and customer services

Other expertise and technicians
Others

Total

Class of education level

Master and above
Bachelor
College diploma
Secondary school
Others

Total

Number of 
employees

19,341
44,187
4,545
22,559

5,783
3,585

100,000

Number of 
employees

6,758
69,799
20,582
953
1,908

100,000

72

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
REPORT OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

OVERVIEW OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The Company implements good corporate governance policies and strongly believes that through fostering sound corporate 
governance,  further  enhancing  its  transparency  and  establishing  an  effective  system  of  accountability,  the  Company  can 
operate in a more systematic manner, make decisions in a more scientific way, and boost the confidence of investors.

Shareholders’
General Meeting

Board of
Directors

Board of
Supervisors

Audit
Committee

Nomination
and
Remuneration 
Committee

Risk Management
and
Consumer Rights
Protection
Committee

Strategy and
Assets and
Liabilities
Management
Committee

Connected
Transactions
Control
Committee

(Corporate Governance Structure Chart)

Board Secretary
Company Secretary
Board of Directors’ Office/
Investor Relations 
Department

With the establishment of a corporate governance system 
with  reasonably  designed  structure,  well-developed 
mechanism,  strict  rules  and  regulations,  as  well  as  high 
efficiency in operation as its core objectives, the Company 
constantly  promotes  the  development  of  its  corporate 
governance,  strictly  performs  its  obligation  of  information 
disclosure,  enhances  its  transparency  and  actively  serves 
the interest of public investors so as to enhance its image 
and position in the capital market.

The Company has set up a corporate governance structure 
with  well-defined  duties  and  responsibilities  strictly  in 
accordance  with  relevant  laws,  regulations  and  regulatory 
requirements, including the Company Law and the Securities 
Law.  The  corporate  governance  structure  of  the  Company 
generally  meets  the  regulatory  requirements  of  its  listed 
jurisdictions and the relevant provisions. The Company has 
carried  out  its  corporate  governance  procedures  strictly  in 
accordance  with  relevant  laws,  regulations  and  regulatory 
requirements, including the Company Law and the Securities 
Law, as well as the requirements of its Articles of Association 
and procedural rules. Shareholders’ general meeting, Board 
of Directors and Board of Supervisors of the Company have 
been functioning independently and coordinately.

In accordance with the regulatory requirements of its listed 
jurisdictions  and  the  relevant  provisions  of  its  Articles  of 
Association,  the  Company  has  continuously  improved  the 
decision-making  mechanism  of  the  Board.  The  Board  is 
accountable to shareholders of the Company with respect to 
the assets and resources entrusted to it by the shareholders, 
and performs its duties on corporate governance. All members 
of the Board have taken initiatives to look into the Company’s 
affairs and have had a comprehensive understanding of the 
Company’s businesses. They have devoted sufficient time 
in performing their duties as Directors with due care and in 
a diligent and efficient manner. By setting up mechanisms 
including  regular  reporting  of  business  development 
strategies  and  marketing  tactics,  the  management  of  the 
Company  can  periodically  report  the  business  operations, 
development strategies and marketing tactics to the Board, 
which provides a basis for the Board’s decision-making.

73

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceThe  Company  has  applied  the  principles  of  the  Corporate 
Governance Code (the “CG Code”) as set out in Appendix 
C1 to the Listing Rules of the HKSE. Save for code provision 
F.2.2 of Part 2 of the CG Code, the Company has complied 
with all code provisions of the CG Code during the Reporting 
Period. Mr. Bai Tao, the Chairman of the Board of Directors 
of  the  Company,  was  unable  to  attend  the  2022  Annual 
General  Meeting  of  the  Company  as  required  by  code 
provision  F.2.2  due  to  other  business  arrangements.  Mr. 
Zhao  Peng,  the  then  Executive  Director  of  the  Company, 
was elected by the Board to preside over the meeting, and 
communicated with shareholders in an effective manner.

During  the  Reporting  Period,  the  Company  was  awarded 
the  “Best  Practice  Case  of  the  Board  of  Directors’  Office 
of  Listed  Companies  for  the  Year  2023”  by  the  China 
Association  for  Public  Companies.  It  was  also  awarded, 
among  others,  Grade  A  in  the  assessment  by  the  SSE  of 
information disclosure of listed companies for the year 2022-
2023,  as  well  as  the  “Top  50  in  the  Market  Capitalisation 
List (Full List) of Chinese Listed Companies” and the “Top 
5 of the Insurance Industry” by Wind.

SHAREHOLDERS’ GENERAL MEETING

The  shareholders’  general  meeting,  as  an  organ  of  the 
highest authority of the Company, exercises its duties and 
functions  in  accordance  with  relevant  laws.  Its  duties  and 
powers  include  the  election,  appointment  and  removal  of 
Directors  and  Non-employee  Representative  Supervisors, 
review and approval of the reports of the Board of Directors 
and  the  Board  of  Supervisors,  review  and  approval  of  the 
annual  budget  and  final  accounts  of  the  Company,  and 
any  other  matters  required  by  the  Articles  of  Association 
to  be  approved  by  way  of  resolution  of  the  shareholders’ 
general meeting. The Company ensures that all shareholders 
are  equally  treated  so  as  to  ensure  that  the  rights  of  all 
shareholders are protected, including the right of access to 
information in relation to, and the right to vote in respect of, 
major matters of the Company. The Company has the ability 
to  operate  and  manage  its  business  autonomously,  and  is 
separate  and  independent  from  its  controlling  shareholder 
in  its  business  operations,  personnel,  assets  and  financial 
matters.

The  Company  has  actively  promoted  the  development  of 
corporate governance, continuously improved its corporate 
governance  structure  and  enhanced  its  scientific  decision-
making  ability.  In  order  to  improve  the  decision-making 
efficiency of the specialised Board committees, the Board 
has  established  five  specialised  Board  committees,  i.e. 
the  Audit  Committee,  the  Nomination  and  Remuneration 
Committee,  the  Risk  Management  and  Consumer  Rights 
Protection Committee, the Strategy and Assets and Liabilities 
Management Committee, and the Connected Transactions 
Control  Committee.  These  specialised  Board  committees 
conduct  studies  on  specific  matters,  hold  meetings  both 
on  a  regular  and  an  ad-hoc  basis,  communicate  with  the 
management, provide advice and recommendations for the 
Board’s  consideration,  and  deal  with  matters  entrusted  or 
authorised by the Board, for the purposes of improving the 
Board’s efficiency and intensifying the Board’s functions.

The  Board  of  Supervisors  of  the  Company  has  carried  out 
its  work  and  performed  its  duties  in  accordance  with  the 
Articles  of  Association  and  the  “Procedural  Rules  for  the 
Board of Supervisors Meetings”. Members of the Board of 
Supervisors  attended  the  shareholders’  general  meetings 
and  the  Board  of  Supervisors  meetings,  participated  in 
the  Board  meetings  and  the  meetings  of  the  specialised 
Board  committees  based  on  their  work  allocation,  and 
conducted  investigations  on  local  branches  to  have  an  in-
depth understanding of the implementation of the decisions 
made by the Board, so as to diligently perform their role of 
supervision.

The Company has made information disclosure in a timely, 
open and transparent manner pursuant to the requirements 
of  the  listing  rules  of  its  listed  jurisdictions.  The  Company 
has  continuously  improved  its  management  of  investor 
relations and enriched its communication with investors in 
both form and substance, thus ensuring that all shareholders 
enjoy equal rights and have access to information about the 
Company in an open, fair, true and accurate manner.

The Company has intensified its management of subsidiaries 
on  an  ongoing  basis  to  optimise  the  management 
mechanism. In 2023, the Company revised the “Measures 
for  the  Administration  of  Non-wholly  Owned  Subsidiaries 
and  Major  Associates”  to  strengthen  its  management  of 
performance  of  duties  by  the  Directors,  Supervisors  and 
senior  management  designated  to  non-wholly  owned 
subsidiaries and major associates, as well as its support to 
their duty performance, thereby increasing the Company’s 
management and control of non-wholly owned subsidiaries 
in corporate governance.

74

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceShareholders’ general meetings convened during the Reporting Period are as follows:

Session of the meeting

Date of the meeting

Index for websites on which 
resolutions were published

Date of publication of 
resolutions

2022 Annual General Meeting

28 June 2023

First Extraordinary General 

Meeting 2023

15 December 2023

www.sse.com.cn 
www.hkexnews.hk 
www.e-chinalife.com

www.sse.com.cn 
www.hkexnews.hk 
www.e-chinalife.com

28 June 2023

15 December 2023

Eight  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Report  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the  Company  for  the 
Year  2022”,  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Report  of  the 
Board  of  Supervisors  of  the  Company  for  the  Year  2022” 
and the “Proposal in relation to the Financial Report of the 
Company for the Year 2022”, were considered and approved 
by a combination of on-site and online voting, and the “Duty 
Report  of  the  Independent  Directors  of  the  Company  for 
the  Year  2022”  and  the  “Report  on  the  Overall  Status  of 
Connected Transactions of the Company for the Year 2022” 
were  debriefed  and  reviewed  at  the  2022  Annual  General 
Meeting held in Beijing on 28 June 2023.

Five  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Election  of  Ms.  Liu  Hui  as  an  Executive  Director  of  the 
Seventh Session of the Board of Directors of the Company”, 
the “Proposal in relation to Project Huizhi” and the “Proposal 
in relation to the Issue of Capital Supplementary Bonds by the 
Company”, were considered and approved by a combination 
of on-site and online voting at the First Extraordinary General 
Meeting 2023 held in Beijing on 15 December 2023.

Attendance  records  of  the  current  Directors  at  the 
shareholders’  general  meetings  convened  during  the 
Reporting Period are as follows:

Name of Director

Type of Director

Number of 
shareholders’ 
general 
meetings 
required to 
attend for  
the year

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person

Bai Tao
Li Mingguang
Wang Junhui
Zhuo Meijuan
Lam Chi Kuen
Zhai Haitao
Huang Yiping
Chen Jie

Executive Director
Executive Director
Non-executive Director
Non-executive Director
Independent Director
Independent Director
Independent Director
Independent Director

2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2

1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2

Attendance  record  of  the  resigned  Director  at  the 
shareholders’  general  meetings  convened  during  the 
Reporting Period is as follows:

Name of Director

Type of Director

Number of 
shareholders’ 
general 
meetings 
required to 
attend for  
the year

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person

Zhao Peng

Executive Director

1

1

75

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In 2023, Independent Directors of the Board of the Company 
possessed  extensive  experience  in  various  fields,  such  as 
macro  economy,  financial  management,  legal  compliance, 
accounting and auditing. The Company also complies with 
the requirement of the Listing Rules of the HKSE that at least 
one of its Independent Directors has appropriate professional 
qualifications or accounting qualifications or related financial 
management expertise. As required under the Listing Rules 
of  the  SSE  and  the  HKSE,  the  Company  has  obtained  a 
written confirmation from each of its Independent Directors in 
respect of their independence. The Company is of the opinion 
that all of the Independent Directors are independent of the 
Company  and  strictly  perform  their  duties  as  Independent 
Directors. Pursuant to the Articles of Association, Directors 
shall be elected at the shareholders’ general meeting for a 
term of three years and may be re-elected on expiry of the 
three-year term. However, Independent Directors may not 
serve for more than six years.

The Company has developed a well-established procedure 
for  nomination  and  election  of  Directors,  under  which  the 
Board  shall,  when  nominating  Directors,  consider  their 
professional ability and conduct, and also take into account 
the  requirement  for  diversity  of  the  Board  members. 
Complementarity  among  the  Board  members  in  aspects 
including but not limited to gender, age, culture, educational 
background, professional experience, skills and expertise will 
be considered in the selection of candidates for Directors. The 
Company will also take into account factors based on its own 
business model and specific needs from time to time. The 
ultimate decision will be based on merit and contribution that 
the selected candidates will bring to the Board. The Board 
and the Nomination and Remuneration Committee will from 
time to time discuss the measurable objective for achieving 
diversity  of  the  Board.  In  relation  to  gender  diversity,  the 
Company sets its phased objective for 2024 as having three 
female Directors to serve on the Board. The above objective 
of  gender  diversity  is  expected  to  be  achieved  in  the  near 
future. The Company will also continue to take active actions 
in identifying female Directors and management members. 
The Company believes that the gender diversity in the Board 
would bring more inspiration to the Board and enhance the 
business development of the Company. Currently, the Board 
of the Company comprises eight members with extensive 
experience in various fields, such as financial management, 
macro economy, financial accounting, law and management. 
The diversified composition of the Board is as follows:

BOARD

The  Board  is  the  standing  decision-making  body  of  the 
Company  and  its  main  duties  include:  performing  the 
function of corporate governance of the Company, convening 
shareholders’  general  meetings,  implementing  resolutions 
passed at such meetings, improving the Company’s corporate 
governance policies, approving the Company’s development 
strategies and operation plans, formulating and supervising 
the Company’s financial policies, annual budgets and financial 
reports, providing an objective evaluation on the Company’s 
operating results in its financial reports and other disclosure 
documents,  dealing  with  senior  management  personnel 
matters,  arranging  for  Directors  and  senior  management 
to attend various training courses, attaching importance to 
the  enhancement  of  their  professional  quality,  reviewing 
the  compliance  policies  of  the  Company,  assessing  the 
internal  control  systems  of  the  Company  and  reviewing 
the  compliance  by  the  Company  with  the  CG  Code.  The 
day-to-day  management  and  operation  of  the  Company 
are  delegated  to  the  management.  The  responsibilities  of 
Non-executive Directors and Independent Directors include, 
without limitation, regularly attending meetings of the Board 
and  the  specialised  Board  committees  of  which  they  are 
members, providing opinions at meetings of the Board and 
the  specialised  Board  committees,  resolving  any  potential 
conflict  of  interest,  serving  on  the  Audit  Committee,  the 
Nomination  and  Remuneration  Committee  and  other 
specialised Board committees, and inspecting, supervising 
and  reporting  on  the  performance  of  the  Company.  The 
Board  is  accountable  to  the  shareholders  of  the  Company 
and reports to them.

Currently,  the  Board  of  the  Company  comprises  eight 
members,  including  two  Executive  Directors,  two  Non-
executive  Directors  and  four  Independent  Directors.  The 
number  of  Independent  Directors  complies  with  the 
minimum  requirement  of  three  Independent  Directors  and 
the  requirement  that  at  least  one-third  of  the  Board  be 
represented by Independent Directors under the regulatory 
rules of the industry and its listed jurisdictions. All members 
of  the  Board  have  devoted  sufficient  time  in  dealing  with 
the  affairs  of  the  Board  and  attended  the  relevant  training 
courses organised by external regulatory authorities and the 
Company according to regulatory requirements. They have 
referred  to  regulatory  documents  on  a  regular  basis  so  as 
to keep themselves informed of the regulatory development 
in  a  timely  manner.  The  Company  has  applied  director’s 
liability insurances for its Directors, which provide protection 
to  Directors  for  liabilities  that  might  arise  in  the  course  of 
their  performance  of  duties  according  to  law  and  facilitate 
Directors to fully perform their duties. So far as the Company 
is  aware,  no  financial,  business,  family  or  other  material 
relationship exists among members of the Board of Directors, 
the Board of Supervisors or the senior management.

76

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceDirectors by type

Executive 
Director

Non-executive 
Director

Independent 
Director

Number of Directors

2 persons

2 persons

4 persons

Directors by location

Mainland China

Hong Kong, China

Number of Directors

5 persons

Directors by gender

Male

Number of Directors

6 persons

3 persons

Female

2 persons

Meetings of the Board are held both on a regular and an ad-
hoc basis. Regular meetings are convened at least four times 
a year for the examination and approval of proposals, such 
as  annual  report,  interim  report,  quarterly  reports,  related 
financial reports, and major business operations of the year. 
Meetings are convened by the Chairman of the Board and a 
notice is given to all Directors 14 days before such meetings. 
Agendas  and  related  documents  are  sent  to  the  Directors 
at least 3 days prior to such meetings. In 2023, all notices, 
agendas and related documents in respect of such regular 
Board meetings were sent to Directors in compliance with 

the above requirements. By fully reviewing all the relevant 
proposals,  the  Board  has  confirmed  that  the  information 
contained in its periodic reports and financial reports is true, 
accurate and complete and contains no false representations, 
misleading statements or material omissions, and no event 
or situation which would have material adverse impacts on 
the Company’s ongoing operation has been found.

The  practice  of  obtaining  Board  consent  through  the 
circulation  of  written  resolutions  does  not  constitute  a 
regular  Board  meeting.  An  ad-hoc  Board  meeting  may  be 
convened  in  urgent  situations  if  requisitioned  by  any  of 
the following: shareholders representing over one-tenth of 
voting  shares,  Directors  constituting  more  than  one-third 
of the total number of Directors, the Board of Supervisors, 
more than two Independent Directors, the Chairman of the 
Board  or  the  President  of  the  Company.  If  the  resolution 
to be considered at such ad-hoc Board meetings has been 
circulated  to  all  the  Directors  and  more  than  half  of  the 
Directors  having  voting  rights  approve  such  resolution  by 
signing the resolution in writing, the ad-hoc Board meeting 
need  not  be  physically  convened  and  such  resolution  in 
writing shall become an effective resolution.

77

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Board meetings convened during the Reporting Period are as follows:

Session of the meeting

Date of the meeting

Resolutions adopted at the meeting

Twentieth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

18 January 2023

Twenty-first meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

27 February 2023

Twenty-second meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

29 March 2023

Twenty-third meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

27 April 2023

Twenty-fourth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

25 May 2023

Twenty-fifth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

28 June 2023

Twenty-sixth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

25 July 2023

Twenty-seventh meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

4 August 2023

Twenty-eighth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

23 August 2023

Two  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Nomination  of  Ms.  Liu  Hui  as  a  Vice  President  of  the 
Company”, were considered and approved.

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
‘Product  Tracing  Report  of  the  Company  for  2022’”,  was 
considered and approved.

33  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Financial Report of the Company for the Year 2022”, were 
considered and approved, and eight reports, including the 
“Report on the Business Operations and Management of 
the Company for 2022”, were debriefed.

Nine  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
First  Quarter  Report  of  the  Company  for  2023”  and  the 
“Proposal in relation to the ‘Report of Corporate Governance 
of the Company for the Year 2022’”, were considered and 
approved,  and  four  reports,  including  the  “Report  on  the 
Company’s  Business  Operations  for  the  First  Quarter  of 
2023  and  Work  Arrangement  for  the  Next  Stage”,  were 
debriefed.

Two  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
‘Stress  Test  Report  on  the  Company’s  Solvency  for  the 
Year 2022’”, were considered and approved.

Five  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
‘Capital Planning of the Company for the Years from 2023 
to 2025’”, were considered and approved.

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Solvency  Report  of  the  Company  for  the  Second  Quarter 
of 2023”, was considered and approved.

Eight proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the 
Nomination  of  Mr.  Li  Mingguang  as  the  President  of  the 
Company”, were considered and approved.

Eight proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the 
Financial Report of the Company for the First Half of 2023”, 
were considered and approved, and four reports, including 
the “Report on the Company’s Business Operations for the 
First Half of 2023 and Work Arrangement for the Second 
Half of 2023”, were debriefed.

78

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Session of the meeting

Date of the meeting

Resolutions adopted at the meeting

Twenty-ninth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

21 September 2023

Thirtieth meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

17 October 2023

Thirty-first meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

26 October 2023

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Adjustment to the Composition of Specialised Committees 
of  the  Seventh  Session  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of  the 
Company”, was considered and approved.

One proposal, namely the “Proposal in relation to Matters 
on  the  Post-investment  of  Project  Zhongcheng”,  was 
considered and approved.

Six  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Third  Quarter  Report  of  the  Company  for  2023”,  were 
considered  and  approved,  and  two  reports,  including  the 
“Report  on  the  Company’s  Business  Operations  for  the 
First  Three  Quarters  of  2023  and  Work  Arrangement  for 
the Fourth Quarter of 2023”, were debriefed.

Thirty-second meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

22 November 2023

Two proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to Project 
Huizhi”, were considered and approved.

Thirty-third meeting of  

the seventh session of the Board

15 December 2023

If  a  Director  is  materially  interested  in  a  matter  to  be 
considered by the Board, the Director having such conflict 
of  interest  shall  have  no  voting  right  on  the  matter  to  be 
considered  and  shall  not  be  counted  in  the  quorum  for 
the  Board  meeting.  All  Directors  shall  have  access  to  the 
advice and services of the Board Secretary and the Company 
Secretary.  Detailed  minutes  of  Board  meetings  regarding 
matters  considered  by  the  Board  and  decisions  reached, 
including  any  concerns  raised  by  Directors  or  dissenting 
views expressed, are kept by the Board Secretary. Minutes 
of Board meetings are available upon reasonable notice for 
inspection and comment upon by Directors.

Currently, the seventh session of the Board of the Company 
comprises  the  following  members:  Mr.  Bai  Tao,  the 
Chairman  and  an  Executive  Director,  Mr.  Li  Mingguang, 
an  Executive  Director,  Mr.  Wang  Junhui  and  Ms.  Zhuo 
Meijuan, both being Non-executive Directors, and Mr. Lam 
Chi Kuen, Mr. Zhai Haitao, Mr. Huang Yiping and Ms. Chen 
Jie, all being Independent Directors. Due to the adjustment 
of  work  arrangements,  Mr.  Zhao  Peng  resigned  from  his 
position  of  Executive  Director  and  the  relevant  positions 
in  the  specialised  Board  committees  of  the  Company  in 
August 2023.

In  2023,  all  members  of  the  Board  further  developed  and 
refreshed their information and knowledge in aspects such 
as  laws  and  regulations  of  securities  markets,  regulatory 

16  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the 
Nomination of Ms. Liu Hui as the Chief Investment Officer 
of the Company”, were considered and approved, and one 
report,  namely  the  “Audit  Report  on  the  Solvency  Risk 
Management System of the Company for the Year 2023”, 
was debriefed.

trends, macro economy and the development trend of the 
insurance industry by attending special training courses on 
certain  topics  as  organised  by  the  securities  exchanges 
of  the  Company’s  listed  jurisdictions,  listed  companies 
associations  and  the  Company  itself.  All  members  of  the 
Board  of  the  Company  attended  the  training  programs  on 
anti-money laundering. Ms. Zhuo Meijuan, a Non-executive 
Director, attended a training course of the SSE for the first-
time directors, supervisors and senior management of listed 
companies in 2023 (Session II). Mr. Wang Junhui and Ms. 
Zhuo Meijuan, both being Non-executive Directors, attended 
a special training course on the rules of independent directors 
of listed companies as organised by the Listed Companies 
Association  of  Beijing  for  listed  companies  within  Beijing. 
Mr.  Lam  Chi  Kuen,  Mr.  Zhai  Haitao  and  Ms.  Chen  Jie,  all 
being Independent Directors, attended a follow-up training 
course for independent directors of listed companies in 2023 
(Session VI) as organised by the SSE.

Pursuant  to  the  “Measures  for  the  Evaluation  of  the 
Performance  of  Duties  by  Directors  and  Supervisors”  of 
the Company and other requirements, and after taking into 
account  the  actual  situation  of  its  corporate  governance, 
the Company conducted an evaluation of the performance 
of  duties  by  Directors.  Based  on  the  self-assessment  of 
Directors and the evaluation of the Board of Supervisors, all 
members of the Board of the Company were evaluated as 
competent in their performance of duties in 2023.

79

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Meetings and Attendance

During the Reporting Period, a total of 14 meetings (including five regular Board meetings and nine ad-hoc Board meetings) 
were held by the Board of the Company, of which ten meetings were convened by way of on-site meeting, four meetings 
by way of participation through communication tools. Attendance records of the current individual Directors are as follows:

Name of Director

Type of Director

Bai Tao
Li Mingguang
Wang Junhui
Zhuo Meijuan
Lam Chi Kuen
Zhai Haitao
Huang Yiping
Chen Jie

Executive Director
Executive Director
Non-executive Director
Non-executive Director
Independent Director
Independent Director
Independent Director
Independent Director

Number of 
meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person

Number of 
meetings 
participated 
through 
communication 
tools

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies

Number of 
meetings 
absent

14
14
14
9
14
14
14
14

7
9
7
7
10
10
9
10

4
4
4
2
4
4
4
4

3
1
3
0
0
0
1
0

0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

Attendance record of the resigned Director of the Company at the Board meetings convened during the Reporting Period 
is as follows:

Name of Director

Type of Director

Number of 
meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person

Number of 
meetings 
participated 
through 
communication 
tools

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies

Number of 
meetings 
absent

Zhao Peng

Executive Director

7

3

3

1

0

Note:  Directors who were unable to attend any meeting of the Board authorised other Directors to attend and vote at the meeting on their behalf.

80

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Performance of Duties by Independent Directors

Currently,  a  total  of  four  Independent  Directors  serve  on 
the  Board  of  the  Company,  accounting  for  over  one-third 
of  the  total  number  of  members  of  the  Board  and  being 
in  line  with  the  the  requirements  of  relevant  laws  and 
regulations,  as  well  as  the  Articles  of  Association.  These 
four  Independent  Directors  possess  extensive  experience 
in  various  fields,  such  as  macro  economy,  financial 
management,  legal  compliance,  accounting  and  auditing, 
and serve as the Chairmen/Chairpersons of the specialised 
Board committees. Other than receiving their remuneration 
as  Independent  Directors  of  the  Company,  they  do  not 
have any business or financial interest in the Company and 
its subsidiaries, nor hold any management positions in the 
Company.  The  Company  has  received  annual  confirmation 
letters  for  self-inspection  from  each  of  the  Independent 
Directors  to  confirm  their  independence  and,  after  the 
assessment  of  the  Board,  considered  them  to  satisfy  the 
criteria  for  independent  directors  and  the  requirements  of 
independence under the regulatory rules of the Company’s 
listed jurisdictions.

Attendance of Meetings by Independent Directors

fulfilled 

Independent  Directors  diligently 

All 
their 
responsibilities by attending meetings of the Board and the 
specialised  Board  committees  convened  in  2023,  actively 
participating  in  discussions  and  providing  guiding  opinions 
on the proposals considered and discussed at the meetings, 
and  seriously  examining  and  approving  such  matters  as 
connected  transactions,  nomination  of  Directors  and 
senior management and their remunerations, annual profit 
distribution  plan,  internal  control  assessment,  changes  in 
accounting estimates and appointment of external auditors, 
thus expressing their independent opinions in an objective 
and fair manner. The Independent Directors were engaged 
in  the  work  of  specialised  Board  committees,  providing 
professional  advice  in  respect  of  major  decisions  of  the 
Company.  They  listened  to  the  reports  from  relevant 
personnel,  kept  abreast  of  the  daily  operations  and  any 
possible  operational  risks  of  the  Company  in  a  timely 
manner,  and  expressed  their  opinions  and  exercised  their 
functions  and  powers  at  Board  meetings,  thus  playing  a 
vital role in the decision-making of the Board. In 2023, the 
Independent Directors of the Company gave their consent 
to  the  matters  resolved  by  the  Board  and  the  specialised 
Board committees of the Company.

Communications between Independent Directors and All 
Parties of the Company

In  2023,  Independent  Directors  of  the  Company  held  a 
separate  special  meeting  with  the  Chairman  of  the  Board, 
during which the Independent Directors put forward their own 
views and opinions on various aspects such as the macro-
environment, business development, and risk management, 
etc.,  and  gave  advice  and  recommendations  on  matters 
including the high-quality development, innovation in business 
model, and investment management of the Company. The 
Company attached great importance to opinions and advice 
from Independent Directors, timely submitted the concerns, 
opinions  and  advice  of  the  Independent  Directors  to  the 
management  of  the  Company  and  its  relevant  functional 
departments, adopted their opinions and advice after careful 
deliberation  and  discussion  by  various  departments,  and 
promptly gave feedbacks to Independent Directors in relation 
to the adoption and implementation thereof.

Investigation and Research by Independent Directors and 
the Trainings for Them

In  2023,  the  Independent  Directors  of  the  Company  took 
part  in  two  investigation  and  research  activities  in  relation 
to  China  Life  Science  Park  and  the  customer  experience 
center of Beijing Branch in Zhichun Road, respectively, and 
conducted  physical  inspection,  investigation  and  research 
on  the  two  segments  of  technology  and  operations  of 
the  Company,  for  the  purpose  of  further  understanding 
of  the  “Technology-driven  China  Life”  and  the  business 
operations and management of the Company. In addition, the 
Independent Directors listened to two special reports on the 
“development trends of the life insurance industry and the 
strategy of the Company” and the “investment management 
of the Company”, enhancing their understanding of insurance 
business and the development trends of the industry.

In  the  meanwhile,  the  Independent  Directors  further 
developed  and  refreshed  their  professional  knowledge  by 
actively attending special training courses on certain topics 
as organised by the securities exchanges of the Company’s 
listed  jurisdictions,  listed  companies  associations  and  the 
Company itself. In 2023, the four Independent Directors of 
the Company attended the training programs of the Company 
on anti-money laundering. Mr. Lam Chi Kuen, Mr. Zhai Haitao 
and  Ms.  Chen  Jie  attended  a  follow-up  training  course  for 
independent directors of listed companies in 2023 (Session 
VI) as organised by the SSE.

81

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernancePerformance of Other Duties

CHAIRMAN AND PRESIDENT

In 2023, the Independent Directors of the Company seriously 
listened to the issues that overseas and domestic investors 
were concerned about from results briefings, ensuring the 
communication  and  exchange  of  opinions  with  small-  and 
medium-sized  shareholders.  There  were  no  obstacles 
encountered  by  the  four  Independent  Directors  of  the 
Company during their performance of duties.

In  2023,  the  Company  provided  various  materials 
to  Independent  Directors,  which  facilitated  them  to 
comprehend  information  associated  with  the  insurance 
industry.  Independent  Directors  have  access  to  adequate 
resources  and  may  obtain  external  professional  advice  to 
ensure  the  performance  of  their  duties.  All  Independent 
Directors obtained information relating to the operation and 
management  of  the  Company  through  various  channels, 
which  therefore  formed  the  basis  of  their  scientific  and 
prudent decisions.

The  Company  believes  that  the  composition  of  the  Board 
of  Directors  of  the  Company  (including  the  number  and 
proportion  of  Independent  Directors)  and  the  above 
mechanism  for  the  performance  of  duties  by  Independent 
Directors can ensure that independent views and input are 
available to the Board of Directors.

As at the date of this report, Mr. Bai Tao is the Chairman of 
the Board of the Company. The Chairman of the Board is the 
legal representative of the Company, primarily responsible 
for convening and presiding over Board meetings, ensuring 
the  implementation  of  Board  resolutions,  attending  annual 
general  meetings  and  arranging  attendance  by  Chairmen/
Chairpersons  of  Board  committees  to  answer  questions 
raised  by  shareholders,  signing  securities  issued  by  the 
Company  and  other  important  documents,  providing 
leadership  for  the  Board  to  ensure  that  the  Board  works 
effectively  and  performs  its  responsibilities,  encouraging 
all  Directors  to  make  a  full  and  active  contribution  to  the 
Board’s  affairs,  and  promoting  a  culture  of  openness  and 
debate.  The  Chairman  of  the  Board  is  accountable  to  and 
reports  to  the  Board.  As  at  the  date  of  this  report,  Mr.  Li 
Mingguang is the President of the Company. The President 
is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Company, 
mainly including implementing strategies, policies, operation 
plans  and  investment  schemes  approved  by  the  Board, 
formulating the Company’s internal management structure 
and  fundamental  management  systems,  drawing  up  basic 
rules  and  regulations  of  the  Company,  submitting  to  the 
Board  any  requests  for  appointment  or  removal  of  senior 
management  and  exercising  other  rights  granted  to  him 
under  the  Articles  of  Association  and  by  the  Board.  The 
President is fully accountable to the Board for the operations 
of the Company.

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

The  composition  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  and  the 
profile  of  each  Supervisor  are  set  forth  in  the  section 
headed  “Directors,  Supervisors,  Senior  Management  and 
Employees”  of  this  report,  and  the  details  of  the  duty 
performance  of  the  Board  of  Supervisors  are  set  forth  in 
the section headed “Report of the Board of Supervisors”.

82

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceAUDIT COMMITTEE

The  Company  established  its  Audit  Committee  on  30 
June  2003.  In  2023,  the  Audit  Committee  comprised  only 
Independent  Directors.  Currently,  the  Audit  Committee  of 
the seventh session of the Board of the Company comprises 
Mr.  Lam  Chi  Kuen,  Mr.  Zhai  Haitao  and  Ms.  Chen  Jie,  all 
being Independent Directors, with Mr. Lam Chi Kuen acting 
as the Chairman.

All  members  of  the  Audit  Committee  have  extensive 
experience in financial matters. The principal duties of the 
Audit Committee are to review and supervise the preparation 
of the Company’s financial reports, assess the effectiveness 
of  the  Company’s  internal  control  system,  supervise  the 
Company’s  internal  audit  system  and  its  implementation, 
and  recommend  the  engagement  or  replacement  of 
external auditors and other tasks in relation to internal and 
external  audits.  The  Audit  Committee  is  also  responsible 
for  communications  between  the  internal  and  external 
auditors and the establishment of the internal whistleblowing 
mechanism of the Company.

Meetings and Attendance

During the Reporting Period, five meetings were held by the Audit Committee of the Board of the Company. Attendance 
records of individual members are as follows:

Name of member

Position

Lam Chi Kuen

Zhai Haitao

Chen Jie

Independent Director, Chairman of the Audit 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Audit 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Audit 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

5/5

5/5

5/5

0/5

0/5

0/5

Note:  The number of meetings attended in person includes meetings attended on-site and by way of telephone or video conference.

83

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The meetings convened are as follows:

Meetings convened

Description

28 March 2023 

Eighth meeting of the Audit Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

26 April 2023 

Ninth meeting of the Audit Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

Ten  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Financial 
Report of the Company for the Year 2022”, the “Proposal in relation 
to  the  Relevant  Arrangement  for  New  Accounting  Standards  of 
the  Company”  and  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Appointment 
of  PricewaterhouseCoopers  for  the  Implementation  of  the  Agreed-
upon  Procedures  of  the  Company  for  the  First  Quarter  of  2023”, 
were  considered  and  approved,  and  one  report,  namely  the  “Report 
of  PricewaterhouseCoopers  on  the  Audit  for  the  Year  2022”,  was 
debriefed.

Five  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Financial 
Report of the Company for the First Quarter of 2023” and the “Proposal 
in relation to the Appointment of Auditors of the Company for the Year 
2023”, were considered and approved, and two reports, including the 
“Report  of  PricewaterhouseCoopers  on  the  Results  of  Agreed-upon 
Procedures for the First Quarter of 2023 and the Interim Review Plan 
for 2023”, were debriefed.

22 August 2023 

Tenth meeting of the Audit Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

Two  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Financial 
Report of the Company for the First Half of 2023”, were considered and 
approved, and one report, namely the “Report of PricewaterhouseCoopers 
on the Interim Review for 2023”, was debriefed.

25 October 2023 

Eleventh meeting of the Audit Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Financial 
Report  of  the  Company  for  the  Third  Quarter  of  2023”,  was 
considered  and  approved,  and  one  report,  namely  the  “Report  of 
PricewaterhouseCoopers on the Agreed-upon Procedures for the Third 
Quarter of 2023 and the Annual Review Plan”, was debriefed.

14 December 2023  

Twelfth meeting of the Audit Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Pre-approval  of  the  Scope  of  Additional 
Services of PricewaterhouseCoopers”, was considered and approved.

Performance of Duties by the Audit Committee

In  2023,  the  Audit  Committee  of  the  Board  of  the 
Company  performed  its  relevant  duties  and  functions 
in  strict  compliance  with  the  “Procedural  Rules  for  the 
Audit Committee Meetings”. During meetings of the Audit 
Committee, all members reviewed the proposals in relation 
to,  among  others,  the  audit  of  the  Company,  its  financial 
reports,  appointment  of  external  auditors,  internal  control 
and compliance, and actively participated in discussions at 
the meetings.

Reviewing  and  approving  financial  information  of  the 
Company and the disclosure thereof. The Audit Committee 
of the Board, according to its duties, reviewed and approved 
the Company’s financial reports for the year 2022, the first 
quarter of 2023, the first half of 2023 and the third quarter 

of  2023.  The  Audit  Committee  was  of  the  view  that  the 
financial  reports  of  the  Company  reflected  the  overall 
situation of the Company in a true, accurate and complete 
manner. By reviewing and monitoring the completeness of 
financial  statements,  annual  report  and  accounts,  interim 
report  and  quarterly  reports  of  the  Company,  examining 
significant matters such as financial statements and reports, 
and focusing on changes in accounting estimates, changes 
in major accounting items and compliance with accounting 
standards,  the  Audit  Committee  guaranteed  the  accuracy, 
completeness and consistency of the financial information 
publicly disclosed by the Company.

84

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
NOMINATION AND REMUNERATION COMMITTEE

The  Company  established  the  Management  Training  and 
Remuneration  Committee  on  30  June  2003.  On  16  March 
2006,  the  Board  resolved  to  change  the  name  of  the 
Management Training and Remuneration Committee to the 
Nomination and Remuneration Committee, with a majority 
of Independent Directors on the committee. Currently, the 
Nomination  and  Remuneration  Committee  of  the  seventh 
session of the Board comprises Ms. Chen Jie, an Independent 
Director,  Mr.  Wang  Junhui,  a  Non-executive  Director,  and 
Mr. Lam Chi Kuen, an Independent Director, with Ms. Chen 
Jie acting as the Chairperson.

The  Nomination  and  Remuneration  Committee  is  mainly 
responsible  for  reviewing  the  structure  of  the  Board,  its 
number of members and composition and drawing up plans 
for  the  appointment,  succession  and  appraisal  criteria  of 
Directors  and  senior  management.  The  committee  is  also 
responsible for formulating training and remuneration policies 
for the senior management of the Company. The Nomination 
and  Remuneration  Committee,  as  an  advisor  to  the  Board 
on the nomination of Directors, shall first discuss and agree 
on the list of candidates to be nominated as new Directors, 
following  which  such  candidates  are  recommended  to 
the  Board.  The  Board  shall  then  determine  whether  such 
candidates’ appointments should be proposed for approval 
at  the  shareholders’  general  meeting.  The  major  criteria 
considered by the Nomination and Remuneration Committee 
and  the  Board  are  educational  background,  management 
and  research  experience  in  the  insurance  industry,  and 
the  candidates’  commitment  to  the  Company.  As  to  the 
nomination  of  Independent  Directors,  the  Nomination  and 
Remuneration Committee will give special consideration to 
the independence of the relevant candidates.

The Nomination and Remuneration Committee determines, 
with  delegated  responsibility  by  the  Board,  the  specific 
remuneration  packages  of  all  Executive  Directors  and 
senior  management.  The  fixed  salary  of  the  Executive 
Directors  and  other  members  of  senior  management  are 
determined  in  accordance  with  market  levels  and  their 
respective positions, and the amount of their performance-
related  bonuses  is  determined  according  to  the  results  of 
performance appraisals. Directors’ fees and the volume of 
stock appreciation rights to be granted are determined with 
reference to market levels and the actual circumstances of 
the Company.

Supervising  and  assessing  the  internal  and  external  audits 
of the Company. In 2023, the Audit Committee of the Board 
reviewed the proposals of the Company in relation to, among 
others, the internal audit work for 2022 and the internal audit 
work for the first half of 2023, communicated any matters of 
concern in a timely and effective manner, further understood 
the  duties  of  the  Company’s  audit  departments,  and 
supervised the compliance and effectiveness of the internal 
audit function. The Audit Committee was of the view that the 
internal audit function of the Company was effective during 
the  Reporting  Period.  The  Audit  Committee  strengthened 
communications with external auditors and supervised the 
performance of duties by the external auditors in a diligent 
and  responsible  way.  Besides  regular  meetings,  the  Audit 
Committee convened communication meetings in advance 
with external auditors so as to discuss the annual audit plan 
of the Company, determine the service scope of the annual 
audit, listen to the report given by the auditors with respect 
to the results of the audit on and review of periodic financial 
reports of the Company, and gave opinions and advice on the 
agreed-upon procedures proposed annually and quarterly by 
the external auditors of the Company and the pre-approval of 
the scope of additional services. Prior to the audit conducted 
by the external auditors and the review of the annual report, 
the Audit Committee communicated the relevant situations 
with  the  external  auditors  and  listened  to  the  report  in 
connection  with  the  arrangement  of  the  audit.  Before  an 
audit opinion was issued by the external auditors, the Audit 
Committee commenced in-depth communications with them 
so as to understand whether there were any issues arisen 
during the audit and follow up with the progress of the audit. 
In  the  selection  and  appointment  of  external  auditors,  the 
Audit Committee performed its duty of review in compliance 
with laws.

Supervising  and  assessing  the  effectiveness  of  internal 
control of the Company. The Audit Committee of the Board 
provided guidance to the Company on the management of 
internal control, devised the working plan for internal control 
assessment,  reviewed  the  work  report  on  assessment 
of  internal  control,  and  inspected  the  rectification  of 
problems  identified  in  the  internal  control  pursuant  to  the 
“Standard  Regulations  on  Corporate  Internal  Control”  and 
other  domestic  and  overseas  regulatory  requirements. 
The  Audit  Committee  earnestly  performed  its  duties  and 
responsibilities and monitored the Company to carry out its 
work  in  compliance  with  laws  and  regulations  pursuant  to 
the  relevant  requirements  of  the  NFRA  and  the  securities 
exchanges of the Company’s listed jurisdictions. As required 
by  its  duties  and  responsibilities,  the  Audit  Committee 
reviewed  the  annual  work  report  on  and  working  plan  for 
internal  control  assessment,  and  the  annual  compliance 
report of the Company to ensure that its work was conducted 
strictly according to the relevant regulatory requirements in 
a reasonable and efficient manner.

85

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMeetings and Attendance

During the Reporting Period, six meetings were held by the Nomination and Remuneration Committee of the Board of the 
Company. Attendance records of individual members are as follows:

Name of member

Position

Chen Jie

Wang Junhui

Lam Chi Kuen

Notes:

Independent Director, Chairperson of the 
Nomination and Remuneration Committee of the 
seventh session of the Board

Non-executive Director, member of the Nomination 
and Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Nomination 
and Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

6/6

2/6

6/6

0/6

4/6

0/6

1.  The number of meetings attended in person includes meetings attended on-site and by way of telephone or video conference.

2.  Directors who were unable to attend any meeting of specialised Board committees authorised other Directors to attend and vote at the meeting on their 

behalf.

86

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The meetings convened are as follows:

Meetings convened

18 January 2023 

Eighth meeting of the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Description

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Nomination  of 
Ms.  Liu  Hui  as  a  Vice  President  of  the  Company”,  was  considered 
and approved.

28 March 2023 

Ninth meeting of the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Six proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Remuneration 
of  Directors  and  Supervisors  of  the  Company”  and  the  “Proposal  in 
relation to the Remuneration of Senior Management of the Company”, 
were considered and approved.

26 April 2023 

Tenth meeting of the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

4 August 2023 

Eleventh meeting of the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

25 October 2023 

Twelfth meeting of the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

14 December 2023 

Thirteenth meeting of the Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  ‘Corporate 
Governance Report for the Year 2022’ with respect to the ‘Incentive 
and Restraint Mechanism’”, was considered and approved.

Eight proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Nomination of 
Mr. Li Mingguang as the President of the Company”, were considered 
and approved.

One  proposal,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Performance 
Target Contracts of Senior Management of the Company for the Year 
2023”, was considered and approved.

Four proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Nomination 
of Ms. Liu Hui as the Chief Investment Officer of the Company”, were 
considered and approved.

87

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
Performance  of  Duties  by  the  Nomination  and 
Remuneration Committee

and seriously appraised the performance of Directors in the 
discharge of their duties.

In  2023,  the  Nomination  and  Remuneration  Committee  of 
the Board of the Company performed its relevant duties and 
functions in strict compliance with the “Procedural Rules for 
the  Nomination  and  Remuneration  Committee  Meetings”. 
All  members  of  the  Nomination  and  Remuneration 
Committee  performed  their  obligations  in  a  responsible 
manner  and  reviewed  the  proposals  on  the  nomination  of 
Directors  of  the  seventh  session  of  the  Board  and  senior 
management  of  the  Company,  their  business  objectives 
and  performance  appraisal  results,  the  remuneration  of 
Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management,  and  the 
report  on  the  duty  performance  of  the  Audit  Committee 
and the Nomination and Remuneration Committee. During 
meetings of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee 
of the Board, all members actively participated in discussions 
and gave guiding opinions on the proposals considered and 
discussed at the meetings.

Nomination  and  proposed  appointment  of  Directors  and 
senior management officers of the Company and the Board 
diversity policy. The Company firmly believes that the Board 
diversity may enhance the decision-making capability of the 
Board, and considers the Board diversity as a key factor for 
maintaining  a  sound  corporate  governance  standard  and 
achieving the sustainable development of the Company. In 
accordance with the “Procedural Rules for the Nomination 
and  Remuneration  Committee  Meetings”  and  the  Board 
diversity policy, the Nomination and Remuneration Committee 
seriously  reviewed  the  structure  of  the  Board,  its  number 
of members and composition (including taking into account 
diversity factors, such as gender, age, cultural and educational 
background, skills, expertise and experience), fully reviewed 
the professional qualifications and industrial background of 
the  candidates  for  Directors  and  members  of  the  Board 
committees. It also conducted a careful assessment on the 
qualifications, skills, expertise and experience of candidates 
for senior management to ensure that the candidates met 
the  requirements  set  by  the  Company,  and  submitted  a 
review  opinion  to  the  Board  and  agreed  to  submit  such 
proposals to the Board for consideration.

Proposing  remuneration  policy  of  Directors,  Supervisors 
and  senior  management  of  the  Company.  The  Nomination 
and  Remuneration  Committee  of  the  Board  took  into 
account  various  factors  such  as  business  development 
management, strategic investment decisions, and corporate 
governance  management  and  control,  carefully  examined 
and  determined  the  specific  remuneration  packages  of  all 
Executive Directors and senior management, approved the 
terms of service contracts between the Company and each 
of  the  Executive  Directors,  Non-executive  Directors  and 
Independent  Directors  and  pushed  forward  the  signing  of 
service  contracts  between  the  Company  and  all  Directors, 
defined the rights, obligations and remunerations of Directors, 

88

Carrying  out  the  evaluation  of  the  performance  of  duties 
by  Directors,  Supervisors  and  senior  management  of  the 
Company and their performance appraisal. The Nomination and 
Remuneration Committee of the Board reviewed proposals 
on  the  results  of  evaluating  the  performance  of  duties  by 
Directors  for  the  year  2022,  the  results  of  performance 
appraisal of senior management for the year 2022 and the 
performance target contract of senior management for the 
year 2023, the remunerations of Directors, Supervisors and 
senior  management  of  the  Company  for  the  year  2022, 
and  made  recommendations  to  the  Board  in  respect  of 
matters  such  as  the  determination  of  performance  target, 
performance appraisal procedures and results.

RISK MANAGEMENT AND CONSUMER RIGHTS 
PROTECTION COMMITTEE

The Company established its Risk Management Committee 
on  30  June  2003.  In  December  2019,  the  Board  resolved 
to  rename  the  Risk  Management  Committee  as  the  Risk 
Management and Consumer Rights Protection Committee, 
the additional function of management of consumer rights 
protection was included in the functions of the original Risk 
Management  Committee,  and  corresponding  changes  and 
amendments  were  made  in  such  areas  as  the  functions 
and  responsibilities  of  the  committee  and  the  procedural 
rules  of  the  committee  meetings.  Currently,  the  Risk 
Management  and  Consumer  Rights  Protection  Committee 
of the seventh session of the Board comprises Mr. Huang 
Yiping, an Independent Director, Mr. Wang Junhui and Ms. 
Zhuo Meijuan, both being Non-executive Directors, and Ms. 
Chen Jie, an Independent Director, with Mr. Huang Yiping 
acting as the Chairman.

The  Risk  Management  and  Consumer  Rights  Protection 
Committee  is  mainly  responsible  for  formulating  the 
Company’s system of risk control benchmarks, establishing 
well-developed  risk  management  and  internal  control 
systems and the system for the management of consumer 
rights protection, examining and reviewing the Company’s 
risk  preference,  risk  tolerance  and  the  work  reports  from 
the senior management and the consumer rights protection 
department,  formulating  the  Company’s  risk  management 
policy  and  major  policy  on  consumer  rights  protection, 
reviewing  the  assessment  reports  in  relation  to  the 
Company’s risk management and internal control, studying 
major investigation findings on risk management and internal 
control  matters  and  the  management’s  response  to  these 
findings as delegated by the Board or on its own initiative, 
dealing  with  major  disagreement,  major  risk  emergency 
events or crisis events in risk management, and supervising 
and  directing  the  senior  management  and  the  relevant 
departments  to  resolve  any  issues  identified  during  the 
rectification process in a timely manner.

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMeetings and Attendance

During the Reporting Period, five meetings were held by the Risk Management and Consumer Rights Protection Committee 
of the Board of the Company. Attendance records of individual members are as follows:

Name of member

Position

Huang Yiping

Wang Junhui

Zhuo Meijuan

Chen Jie

Notes:

Independent Director, Chairman of the Risk 
Management and Consumer Rights Protection 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Non-executive Director, member of the Risk 
Management and Consumer Rights Protection 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Non-executive Director, member of the Risk 
Management and Consumer Rights Protection 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Risk 
Management and Consumer Rights Protection 
Committee of the seventh session of the Board

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

3/5

1/5

4/4

5/5

2/5

4/5

0/4

0/5

1.  Mr. Li Mingguang ceased to be a member of the Risk Management and Consumer Rights Protection Committee from September 2023. During the period 
when Mr. Li Mingguang served as a member of the Risk Management and Consumer Rights Protection Committee in 2023, the Risk Management and 
Consumer Rights Protection Committee convened two meetings and Mr. Li Mingguang attended the two meetings in person.

2.  Ms. Zhuo Meijuan became a member of the Risk Management and Consumer Rights Protection Committee in June 2023.

3.  The number of meetings attended in person includes meetings attended on-site and by way of telephone or video conference.

4.  Directors who were unable to attend any meeting of specialised Board committees authorised other Directors to attend and vote at the meeting on their 

behalf.

89

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The meetings convened are as follows:

Meetings convened

Description

28 March 2023 

Ninth meeting of the Risk Management  
and Consumer Rights Protection Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

22 August 2023 

Tenth meeting of the Risk Management  
and Consumer Rights Protection Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

25 October 2023 

Eleventh meeting of the Risk Management  
and Consumer Rights Protection Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

Eleven proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Business 
Plan of the Company for the Years from 2023 to 2025”, the “Proposal 
in relation to the Amendments to the ‘Measures for the Administration 
of  Liquidity  Risks  of  the  Company’”  and  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to 
the ‘Work Report on Consumer Rights Protection of the Company for 
the  Year  2022’”,  were  considered  and  approved,  and  three  reports, 
including the “Report on the Case Prevention of the Company for the 
Year 2022”, were debriefed.

Three proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Amendments 
to  the  ‘Measures  for  the  Administration  of  Strategic  Risks  of  the 
Company’”, were considered and approved.

Two proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Amendments to 
the ‘Measures for the Administration of Market Risks of the Company’”, 
were considered and approved.

22 November 2023 

Twelfth meeting of the Risk Management  
and Consumer Rights Protection Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

Two  proposals,  namely  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  Project  Huizhi” 
and  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Risk  Analysis  on  the  Issue  of 
Capital  Supplementary  Bonds  by  the  Company”,  were  considered 
and approved.

14 December 2023 

Thirteenth meeting of the Risk Management  
and Consumer Rights Protection Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

Eight proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Authorisation 
for the Company’s Investment in Financial Products for the Year 2024”, 
were  considered  and  approved,  and  one  report,  namely  the  “Audit 
Report  on  the  Solvency  Risk  Management  System  of  the  Company 
for the Year 2023”, was debriefed.

90

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
Performance of Duties by the Risk Management and 
Consumer Rights Protection Committee

In  2023,  the  Risk  Management  and  Consumer  Rights 
Protection  Committee  of  the  Board  of  the  Company 
performed  its  duties  and  functions  in  strict  compliance 
with  the  “Procedural  Rules  for  the  Risk  Management 
and  Consumer  Rights  Protection  Committee  Meetings”. 
All  members  of  the  Risk  Management  and  Consumer 
Rights  Protection  Committee  performed  their  obligations 
in  a  responsible  manner  and  reviewed  the  proposals  in 
relation to the internal control system of the Company, its 
risk  management  and  consumer  rights  protection.  During 
meetings  of  the  Risk  Management  and  Consumer  Rights 
Protection  Committee,  all  members  actively  participated 
in discussions and gave guiding opinions on the proposals 
considered and discussed at the meetings.

Reviewing  the  risk  analysis  on  major  matters  concerning 
the business operations and management of the Company. 
The  Risk  Management  and  Consumer  Rights  Protection 
Committee  reviewed  the  risk  analysis  on  major  matters 
concerning  the  business  operations  and  management  of 
the Company, and reviewed and approved the proposals in 
relation to, among others, the business plan of the Company 
for the years from 2023-2025, the risk analysis on the issue 
of  capital  supplementary  bonds  by  the  Company  and  the 
authorisation  for  investment  for  the  year  2024,  and  gave 
guiding opinions on risk control for major matters concerning 
the business operations and management of the Company 
in accordance with the regulatory requirements of the NFRA 
on the China Risk Oriented Solvency System (C-ROSS).

Reviewing  the  assessment  reports  on  business  risk  and 
internal control of the Company. The Risk Management and 
Consumer Rights Protection Committee closely monitored 
and controlled and effectively prevented internal and external 
risks of the Company, and assisted the Board in reviewing 
the assessment reports on business risk and internal control 
of the Company, according to the national and international 
regulatory  requirements.  The  Risk  Management  and 
Consumer Rights Protection Committee reviewed in advance 
the  reports  on  risk  management  such  as  the  annual  and 
quarterly  reports  on  the  enterprise-wide  risk  management 
of the Company, work summary on anti-money laundering 
for the year 2022 and the work plan for the year 2023, the 
report on case prevention for the year 2022, the reputational 
risk  management  report  for  the  year  2022,  the  statement 
on  risk  preference  for  the  year  2023,  the  audit  report  on 
the  solvency  risk  management  system  for  the  year  2023 
and the work report on fraud risk management for the year 
2023,  which  offered  professional  support  to  the  Board’s 
decision-making in a scientific manner.

Reviewing the reports in relation to consumer rights protection 
on a regular basis. In accordance with the “Guiding Opinions 
of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission 
on  Banking  and  Insurance  Institutions  Strengthening  the 
Building of Working Systems and Mechanisms for Protection 
of Consumer Rights and Interests”, the Risk Management 
and  Consumer  Rights  Protection  Committee  reviewed  the 
report  on  the  consumer  rights  protection  of  the  Company 
for the year 2022 and the work proposal for consumer rights 
protection of the Company for the year 2023.

Optimising the system of the Company in relation to internal 
control  and  risk  management.  The  Risk  Management  and 
Consumer Rights Protection Committee assisted the Board in 
optimising the system of the Company in relation to internal 
control  and  risk  management,  considered  the  proposals  in 
relation  to  seven  amendment  rules  on  risk  management 
such  as  the  rules  on  enterprise-wide  risk  management 
of  the  Company,  the  formulation  of  the  measures  for  the 
administration  of  risk  preference  system  of  the  Company 
and the formulation of the measures for the administration 
of  internal  control  of  the  Company.  Further,  the  Company 
regularly  notified  the  Risk  Management  and  Consumer 
Rights  Protection  Committee  of  its  integrated  risk  rating 
results given by the NFRA.

STRATEGY AND ASSETS AND LIABILITIES 
MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

The  Company  established  the  Strategy  Committee  on  30 
June 2003. In October 2010, the proposal to establish the 
Strategy and Investment Decision Committee on the basis 
of  the  Strategy  Committee  was  reviewed  and  approved 
at  the  ninth  meeting  of  the  third  session  of  the  Board. 
In  June  2018,  the  proposal  to  establish  the  Strategy  and 
Assets  and  Liabilities  Management  Committee  on  the 
basis of the Strategy and Investment Decision Committee 
was  reviewed  and  approved  at  the  twenty-fourth  meeting 
of  the  fifth  session  of  the  Board.  Currently,  the  Strategy 
and  Assets  and  Liabilities  Management  Committee  of  the 
seventh session of the Board comprises Mr. Zhai Haitao and 
Mr. Huang Yiping, both being Independent Directors, Mr. Li 
Mingguang,  an  Executive  Director,  and  Mr.  Wang  Junhui, 
a  Non-executive  Director,  with  Mr.  Zhai  Haitao  acting  as 
the Chairman.

The  Strategy  and  Assets  and  Liabilities  Management 
Committee  of  the  Company  is  mainly  responsible  for 
the  drawing-up  of  long-term  development  strategies  of 
the  Company,  conducting  studies  on  important  matters 
concerning  assets  and  liabilities  management  and  the 
relevant policies and systems, the system for the application 
and  management  of  insurance  funds,  major  strategic 
investment  decisions  and  major  asset  strategic  allocation 
plan, and making recommendations in respect thereof.

91

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMeetings and Attendance

During  the  Reporting  Period,  six  meetings  were  held  by  the  Strategy  and  Assets  and  Liabilities  Management  Committee 
of the Board of the Company. Attendance records of individual members are as follows:

Name of member

Position

Zhai Haitao

Huang Yiping

Li Mingguang

Wang Junhui

Independent Director, Chairman of the Strategy 
and Assets and Liabilities Management Committee 
of the seventh session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Strategy and 
Assets and Liabilities Management Committee of 
the seventh session of the Board

Executive Director, member of the Strategy and 
Assets and Liabilities Management Committee of 
the seventh session of the Board

Non-executive Director, member of the Strategy 
and Assets and Liabilities Management Committee 
of the seventh session of the Board

Attendance record of the resigned Director at meetings is as follows:

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

6/6

4/6

2/3

2/6

0/6

2/6

1/3

4/6

Name of member

Zhao Peng

Notes:

Number of meetings 
attended in person/
Number of meetings 
required to attend

Number of meetings 
attended by proxies/
Number of meetings 
required to attend

1/2

1/2

1.  Mr. Zhao Peng ceased to be a member of the Strategy and Assets and Liabilities Management Committee from August 2023.

2.  Mr. Li Mingguang became a member of the Strategy and Assets and Liabilities Management Committee in September 2023.

3.  The number of meetings attended in person includes meetings attended on-site and by way of telephone or video conference.

4.  Directors who were unable to attend any meeting of specialised Board committees authorised other Directors to attend and vote at the meeting on their 

behalf.

92

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The meetings convened are as follows:

Meetings convened

28 March 2023 

Tenth meeting of the Strategy and Assets  
and Liabilities Management Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

26 April 2023 

Eleventh meeting of the Strategy and Assets  
and Liabilities Management Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

22 August 2023 

Twelfth meeting of the Strategy and Assets  
and Liabilities Management Committee  
of the seventh session of the Board

Description

Five  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Business 
Plan  of  the  Company  for  the  Years  from  2023  to  2025”,  were 
considered and approved.

One proposal, namely the “Report on the Situation Relevant to the 
Assets  and  Liabilities  Management  of  the  Company  for  the  Year 
2022”, was considered and approved.

Four proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Results of 
Performance  Appraisal  of  the  Company  for  the  Year  2022”,  were 
considered and approved.

25 October 2023 

Thirteenth meeting of the Strategy and Assets 
and Liabilities Management Committee of  
the seventh session of the Board

One proposal, namely the “Proposal in relation to the Amendments to 
the ‘Measures for the Administration of Investments of the Company’ 
and the ‘Measures for the Administration of Asset Allocation of the 
Company’”, was considered and approved.

22 November 2023 

Fourteenth meeting of the Strategy and Assets 
and Liabilities Management Committee of  
the seventh session of the Board

Two proposals, namely the “Proposal in relation to Project Huizhi” 
and the “Proposal in relation to the Issue of Capital Supplementary 
Bonds by the Company”, were considered and approved.

14 December 2023 

Fifteenth meeting of the Strategy and Assets  
and Liabilities Management Committee of  
the seventh session of the Board

Eight proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Management 
Guidelines on the Investment by China Life Investment Management 
Company  Limited  under  the  Entrustment  of  the  Company  for  the 
Year 2024”, were considered and approved.

93

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
Reviewing the systems of the Company concerning assets 
and  liabilities  management.  The  Strategy  and  Assets  and 
Liabilities  Management  Committee  assisted  the  Board 
in  optimising  the  systems  of  the  Company  concerning 
investments  and  asset  allocation,  reviewed  and  approved 
the  proposals  on  the  statement  of  the  Company  on  risk 
preference for the year 2023, the amendments to the rules 
on  enterprise-wide  risk  management  of  the  Company,  the 
amendments to the measures for the administration of asset 
allocation of the Company, the amendments to the measures 
for the administration of assets and liabilities management of 
the Company, and the formulation of the measures for the 
administration  of  risk  preference  system  of  the  Company, 
etc., and submitted its review opinions to the Board.

CONNECTED TRANSACTIONS CONTROL 
COMMITTEE

The Company established its Connected Transactions Control 
Committee  on  29  October  2019.  In  October  2019,  the 
“Proposal in relation to the Establishment of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the Board of Directors” 
was  reviewed  and  approved  at  the  twentieth  meeting  of 
the  sixth  session  of  the  Board,  pursuant  to  which  a  new 
Connected Transactions Control Committee was established 
under the Board of the Company. Currently, the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the seventh session of 
the Board comprises Ms. Chen Jie, Mr. Lam Chi Kuen, Mr. 
Zhai  Haitao  and  Mr.  Huang  Yiping,  all  being  Independent 
Directors, with Ms. Chen Jie acting as the Chairperson.

The principal duties of the Connected Transactions Control 
Committee are to confirm connected parties of the Company, 
manage,  examine  and  approve  connected  transactions  to 
control  risks  relating  to  connected  transactions,  and  focus 
on  the  compliance,  fairness  and  necessity  of  connected 
transactions, which provide an important basis for the Board’s 
decision-making in connected transactions management.

Performance of Duties by the Strategy and Assets 
and Liabilities Management Committee

In 2023, the Strategy and Assets and Liabilities Management 
Committee  of  the  Board  of  the  Company  performed  its 
relevant duties and functions in strict compliance with the 
“Procedural Rules for the Strategy and Assets and Liabilities 
Management  Committee  Meetings”.  All  members  of  the 
Strategy and Assets and Liabilities Management Committee 
proactively  performed  their  obligations,  reviewed  the 
proposals on the three-year business plan of the Company, 
annual investment plan and authorisation, major investment 
projects, relevant rules on assets and liabilities management, 
and  sustainable  development  strategies  (including  ESG 
and social responsibility report), and listened to the annual 
report on the situation relevant to the assets and liabilities 
management.  Members  of  the  Strategy  and  Assets  and 
Liabilities Management Committee diligently performed their 
duties.  During  meetings  of  the  Strategy  and  Assets  and 
Liabilities  Management  Committee,  all  members  actively 
participated  in  discussions  and  gave  professional  advices 
on the proposals considered and discussed at the meetings.

Reviewing  annual  asset  allocation  plan  and  entrusted 
investments of the Company. The Strategy and Assets and 
Liabilities Management Committee reviewed the proposals 
on  the  asset  allocation  plans  of  the  Company,  including 
the  investment  plan  for  self-use  real  estate  for  the  year 
2023 and related authorisation, the management guidelines 
on  the  investment  by  CLI  under  the  entrustment  of  the 
Company for the year 2024, the authorisation of investment 
in financial products for the year 2024, the authorisation of 
investment  in  equity  investment  funds  for  the  year  2024, 
the authorisation of investment in non self-use real estate 
for the year 2024, the authorisation of investment in single 
asset management plan for the year 2024, and the overseas 
investment plan for the year 2024 and related authorisation 
of investment.

Discussing  the  Company’s  development  plans  and  major 
strategic  projects.  The  Strategy  and  Assets  and  Liabilities 
Management  Committee  reviewed  the  proposals  on  the 
medium-  and  long-term  development  plan  and  sustainable 
development  strategy  of  the  Company,  including  the 
business  plan  of  the  Company  for  the  years  from  2023  to 
2025,  evaluation  report  on  the  outline  of  the  “14th  Five-
Year” development plan of the Company for the year 2022, 
and  the  environmental,  social  and  governance  (ESG)  and 
social  responsibility  report,  as  well  as  the  proposals  on 
Project Huizhi and the issue of capital supplementary bonds 
by the Company.

94

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMeetings and Attendance

During the Reporting Period, five meetings were held by the Connected Transactions Control Committee of the Board of 
the Company. Attendance records of individual members are as follows:

Name of member

Position

Chen Jie

Lam Chi Kuen

Zhai Haitao

Huang Yiping

Notes:

Independent Director, Chairperson of the 
Connected Transactions Control Committee of the 
seventh session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Independent Director, member of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the seventh 
session of the Board

Number of 
meetings 
attended in 
person/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

Number of 
meetings 
attended by 
proxies/Number 
of meetings 
required to 
attend

5/5

5/5

5/5

4/5

0/5

0/5

0/5

1/5

1.  The number of meetings attended in person includes meetings attended on-site and by way of telephone or video conference.

2.  Directors who were unable to attend any meeting of specialised Board committees authorised other Directors to attend and vote at the meeting on their 

behalf.

95

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The meetings convened are as follows:

Meetings convened

Description

28 March 2023 

Tenth meeting of the Connected  
Transactions Control Committee of the  
seventh session of the Board

Four proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Investment 
by the Company in CLI – Xingan No. 1 Equity Investment Plan”, were 
considered  and  approved,  and  one  report,  namely  the  “Report  on 
Confirming  the  List  of  Connected  Parties  of  the  Company  as  of  31 
December 2022”, was debriefed.

26 April 2023 

Eleventh meeting of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the 
seventh session of the Board

Three  proposals,  including  the  “Proposal  in  relation  to  the  Execution 
of  the  ‘Agreement  for  Entrusted  Investment  and  Management  and 
Operating  Services  with  respect  to  Alternative  Investments  with 
Insurance  Funds’  between  the  Company  and  China  Life  Investment 
Management Company Limited”, were considered and approved.

28 June 2023 

Twelfth meeting of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the 
seventh session of the Board

22 August 2023 

Thirteenth meeting of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the 
seventh session of the Board

14 December 2023 

Fourteenth meeting of the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee of the 
seventh session of the Board

Three proposals, including the “Proposal in relation to the Execution of 
the ‘Cooperation Agreement for Business Current Deposits’ between 
the  Company  and  China  Guangfa  Bank  Co.  Ltd.”  and  the  “Proposal 
in  relation  to  the  Execution  of  the  ‘Agreement  Deposit  Contract  for 
RMB’ between the Company and China Guangfa Bank Co. Ltd.”, were 
considered and approved.

One report, namely the “Report on Confirming the List of Connected 
Parties of the Company as of 30 June 2023”, was debriefed.

One proposal, namely the “Proposal in relation to the Execution of the 
‘Agreement  for  Package  Transactions  in  relation  to  the  Entrustment 
of the Company as an Agent to Sell Property and Casualty Insurance 
Products’ between the Company and China Life Property and Casualty 
Insurance Company Limited”, was considered and approved.

96

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate Governance 
 
 
 
 
 
Performance of Duties by the Connected 
Transactions Control Committee

In  2023,  the  Connected  Transactions  Control  Committee 
performed  its  duties  and  functions  in  strict  compliance 
with the “Procedural Rules for the Connected Transactions 
Control  Committee  Meetings”.  All  members  performed 
their obligations in a responsible manner and reviewed the 
proposals  in  relation  to  the  connected  transactions  of  the 
Company. During meetings of the Connected Transactions 
Control  Committee,  all  members  actively  participated  in 
discussions  and  gave  guiding  opinions  on  the  proposals 
considered and discussed at the meetings.

Confirming  connected  parties  of  the  Company.  The 
Connected  Transactions  Control  Committee  reviewed  the 
“Report on Confirming the List of Connected Parties of the 
Company  as  of  31  December  2022”  and  the  “Report  on 
Confirming  the  List  of  Connected  Parties  of  the  Company 
as of 30 June 2023”, and reported to the Board in respect 
thereof.

transactions.  The  Connected 
Approving  connected 
Transactions  Control  Committee  reviewed  the  proposals 
on major connected transactions, such as the investment by 
the Company in CLI – Xingan No. 1 Equity Investment Plan, 
the investment by the Company in CLI – Beijing MTR Equity 
Investment Plan, the investment by the Company in Project 
Huacang, and the capital reduction of National Pipe Network 
Group  Sichuan  East  Natural  Gas  Transmission  Pipeline 
Co.,  Ltd.  by  the  Company,  fully  discussed  the  necessity, 
feasibility  and  major  risks  of  the  connected  transactions, 
and made recommendations to the Board in respect thereof.

Approving  framework  agreements  for  daily  connected 
transactions. The Connected Transactions Control Committee 
reviewed  the  proposals  on  the  framework  agreements  for 
daily connected transactions, such as the execution of the 
“Agreement  for  Entrusted  Investment  and  Management 
and  Operating  Services  with  respect  to  Alternative 
Investments with Insurance Funds” between the Company 
and CLI, the execution of the “Cooperation Agreement for 
Business  Current  Deposits”  and  the  “Agreement  Deposit 
Contract  for  RMB”  between  the  Company  and  CGB,  the 
termination by the Company of the “Cooperation Agreement 
for  Concurrent  Insurance  Agency  Business  (Package 
Transactions Agreement)” with CGB, and the execution of 
the “Agreement for Package Transactions in relation to the 
Entrustment of the Company as an Agent to Sell Property 
and  Casualty  Insurance  Products”  between  the  Company 
and  CLP&C,  and  fully  reviewed  the  necessity,  compliance 
and  fairness  of  the  daily  connected  transactions  of  the 
Company, which offered professional support to the Board’s 
decision-making in a scientific manner.

Reviewing the implementation of the system for connected 
transactions  management.  The  Connected  Transactions 
Control  Committee  reviewed  the  implementation  of  the 
Company’s system for connected transactions management 
and the report on connected transactions, and reviewed the 
report on the overall status of connected transactions of the 
Company for the year 2022.

INDEPENDENCE OF THE COMPANY FROM ITS 
CONTROLLING SHAREHOLDER

Employees:  The  Company  is  independent  in  the  aspects 
of  employment,  human  resources  and  remuneration 
management.

Assets: The Company owns all assets relating to the operation 
of its principal business. At present, the Company does not 
provide any guarantee for its shareholders. The Company’s 
assets are independent, complete, and independent of the 
shareholders of the Company and other related parties.

Finance: The Company has established a separate financial 
department,  and  developed  an  independent  financial 
accounting  system  and  financial  management  system; 
further, the Company makes financial decisions on its own; 
it  employs  separate  financial  personnel,  opens  separate 
accounts  with  banks  and  does  not  share  bank  accounts 
with CLIC; the Company, as a separate taxpayer, pays taxes 
individually according to law.

Organisation: The Company has established a well-developed 
organisational system, under which internal bodies such as 
the Board of Directors and the Board of Supervisors operate 
separately.  There  is  no  subordinate  relationship  between 
such internal bodies and the functional departments of the 
Company’s controlling shareholder.

Business operations: The Company independently develops 
personal insurance businesses, including life insurance, health 
insurance  and  accident  insurance  businesses;  reinsurance 
relating to the above insurance businesses; funds application 
business permitted by applicable PRC laws and regulations 
or  approved  by  the  State  Council;  as  well  as  all  types  of 
personal insurance services, consulting business and agency 
business;  sale  of  securities  investment  funds;  and  other 
businesses  approved  by  the  insurance  administrative  and 
regulatory  authorities  of  the  PRC.  The  Company  currently 
possesses  the  “Insurance  Permit”  (institution  number: 
000005) issued by an insurance administrative and regulatory 
authority.  The  Company  is  independently  engaged  in  the 
businesses  as  prescribed  in  its  business  scope  according 
to  law,  has  separate  sales  and  agency  channels  and  is 
licensed to use licensed trademarks without consideration. 
The  completeness  and  independence  of  the  Company’s 
business  operations  will  not  be  adversely  affected  by  its 
relationship with related parties.

97

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceIn  accordance  with  the  Articles  of  Association,  when  the 
Company  convenes  the  shareholders’  general  meeting, 
shareholders individually or in aggregate holding 3% or more 
of the shares of the Company shall have the right to submit 
proposals  to  the  Company.  The  Company  should  include 
such  matters  that  fall  into  the  scope  of  the  functions  and 
powers of the shareholders’ general meeting in the agenda 
of  the  meeting.  Shareholders  individually  or  in  aggregate 
holding  3%  or  more  of  the  shares  of  the  Company  may 
submit  provisional  proposals  in  writing  to  the  convenor 
sixteen  days  prior  to  the  shareholders’  general  meeting. 
The  provisional  proposals  shall  fall  into  the  scope  of  the 
functions and powers of the shareholders’ general meeting 
and specify explicit topics and specific resolution matters.

Shareholders  may  put  forward  enquiries  to  the  Board 
through the Board Secretary or the Company Secretary, or 
put  forward  proposals  at  shareholders’  general  meetings 
through their proxies. The Company has made available its 
contact  details  in  its  correspondence  with  shareholders  to 
enable such enquiries or proposals to be properly directed.

INFORMATION DISCLOSURE AND INVESTOR 
RELATIONS

The  Company  has  established  a  well-developed,  effective 
and practical information disclosure management system in 
strict compliance with the regulatory laws and regulations, 
relevant  rules  and  self-regulatory  requirements  of  its 
listed  jurisdictions  and  the  insurance  industry,  focused  on 
enhancing the quality of information disclosure on the basis 
of strict compliance with laws and regulations, and continued 
to  improve  the  effectiveness  of  information  disclosure,  so 
as  to  ensure  that  domestic  and  overseas  investors  obtain 
true,  accurate  and  complete  information  in  a  compliant 
and  effective  manner.  The  Company  has  attached  great 
importance to its contact and communication with domestic 
and overseas investors, and proactively developed investor 
relations  by  offering  various  channels  to  facilitate  such 
investors to keep abreast of any major business development 
of the Company in a timely manner.

The Company has  set up  the  “Investor Relations” section 
on  its  official  website  at  www.e-chinalife.com  to  facilitate 
investors  to  access  announcements,  operating  results 
materials  and  other  information  for  public  disclosure  as 
published by the Company on the stock exchanges of its listed 
jurisdictions in the PRC and overseas. In addition, investors 
may call the investor relations hotline of the Company at 86-
10-63631241 or email to the investor relations email address 
at ir@e-chinalife.com if they have any further inquiries. The 
Company will respond to such inquiries in a timely manner.

PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL AND INCENTIVES 
FOR SENIOR MANAGEMENT

The  Company  implements  a  term-of-service  and  target-
related  responsibility  system  for  senior  management. 
Performance target contracts are entered into between the 
Chairman of the Board and the President, and between the 
President  and  other  senior  management  of  the  Company. 
The performance target contract system is an important tool 
in  disassembling  the  strategic  goals  of  the  Company  in  a 
scientific manner, which is conducive towards the breakdown 
of targets and transmission of responsibility, enhancing the 
implementation  capability  of  the  Company  and  ensuring 
the  successful  completion  of  its  annual  business  targets. 
The  performance  appraisal  criteria  listed  in  the  individual 
performance  target  contracts  of  senior  management  are 
partially  linked  to  the  business  targets  of  the  Company 
and  partially  formulated  with  reference  to  the  duties  and 
functions of their respective positions.

The remuneration for senior management mainly comprises 
position  compensation,  performance  rewards,  welfare 
benefits and medium- and long-term incentives. A mechanism 
for  the  recovery  and  deduction  of  performance-based 
remuneration is also established to balance the relationships 
between  the  current  and  long-term  needs  as  well  as  the 
revenue and risk by making full use of remuneration tools.

SHAREHOLDERS’ INTERESTS

To  safeguard  shareholders’  interests,  in  addition  to  the 
right  to  participate  in  the  Company’s  affairs  by  attending 
shareholders’ general meetings, shareholders have the right 
to  convene  extraordinary  shareholders’  general  meetings 
under certain circumstances.

If the number of Directors is less than the number stipulated 
in the Company Law or two-thirds of the number specified by 
the Articles of Association, or the uncovered losses incurred 
amount to one-third of the Company’s total share capital, or 
if the Board or the Board of Supervisors deems necessary, 
or  more  than  half  of  the  Directors  (including  at  least  two 
Independent  Directors)  request,  or  shareholders  holding 
10% or more shares of the Company make a requisition, the 
Board shall convene an extraordinary shareholders’ general 
meeting  within  two  months.  Where  shareholders  holding 
10% or more shares request an extraordinary shareholders’ 
general  meeting,  such  shareholders  shall  make  a  request 
in  writing  to  the  Board  with  a  clear  agenda.  The  Board 
shall,  upon  receipt  of  such  a  written  request,  convene  a 
meeting as soon as possible. If the Board fails to convene 
a  meeting  within  30  days  of  the  receipt  of  such  a  written 
request, shareholders making such a request may convene 
a meeting by themselves at the cost of the Company within 
four months  of the receipt by the Board of such a written 
request.

98

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceIn 2023, the Company continued to improve the effectiveness 
of  disclosure  and  the  transparency  of  information.  For  the 
disclosure  of  provisional  announcements,  the  Company 
promptly  fulfilled  its  obligation  of  information  disclosure 
by  publishing  timely  announcements  with  respect  to  the 
progress  of  such  matters  as  significant  matters,  major 
investments  and  connected  transactions  on  the  websites 
of the stock exchanges in its listed jurisdictions, the media 
satisfying the conditions prescribed by the CSRC, the official 
website  of  the  Company  and  the  website  of  Insurance 
Association  of  China,  etc.  For  the  disclosure  of  periodic 
reports, the Company continued to deeply engage in making 
disclosure  of  information  that  had  significant  impacts  on 
investors’  value  judgment  and  investment  decisions, 
enriched the contents of information for voluntary disclosure 
with its focus primarily on investor concerns, and provided 
the  capital  market  and  investors  with  simple  and  clear, 
more targeted and effective information, for the purpose of 
facilitating investors, especially medium and small investors, 
to better understand the Company’s strategies and business 
highlights.  The  Company  also  regularly  organised  training 
courses  and  promotion  activities  relating  to  the  relevant 
rules  of  information  disclosure  and  corporate  governance. 
It properly arranged information disclosure on the basis that 
the differences between the laws and regulations of its listed 
jurisdictions  in  the  PRC  and  overseas,  and  the  differences 
between the regulatory requirements of its listed jurisdictions 
and the insurance industry, are well defined. The Company 
strictly  managed  its  inside  information  and  carried  out  the 
registration  and  filing  procedures  on  persons  who  have 
knowledge  of  inside  information  in  compliance  with  law, 
strengthened  the  confidentiality  of  inside  information,  and 
safeguarded the legitimate rights and interests of investors, 
with  a  view  to  maintaining  the  fairness,  impartiality  and 
openness of information disclosure of the Company. In 2023, 
the Company was awarded Grade A in the assessment by 
the  SSE  of  information  disclosure  of  listed  companies  for 
the year of 2022-2023.

The  Company  developed  investor  relations  in  a  proactive 
way  with  its  stringent  attitude  and  innovative  thinking.  It 
kept abreast of the pace of technological development and 
consistently  made  innovation  in  its  communications  with 
and  services  to  investors,  which  constantly  enhanced  the 
efficiency  of  communication  between  the  Company  and 
capital  market.  The  works  conducted  by  the  Company  for 
investor  relations  mainly  included  holding  shareholders’ 
general meetings, results briefings and investor presentation 
meetings, organising open days for the Company, embarking 
on  global  non-deal  roadshows,  holding  online  and  offline 
conferences with investors and analysts, attending investors’ 
meetings,  frequently  updating  information  on  its  investor 
relations website, and timely responding to enquiries from 
investors and analysts. In 2023, the Company communicated 
with more than 3,700 investors and analysts, including nearly 
1,200  investors  who  attended  results  briefings  online  and 
offline. The Company held 247 online and offline meetings 
with  more  than  2,500  investors  and  analysts  for  the  year, 
attended  a  total  of  51  offline  investors’  meetings,  and 
convened 39 onsite investigation and research meetings and 
50  telephone  or  video  conferences.  It  also  communicated 
with  investors  by  holding  107  offline  roadshow  meetings 
during  the  non-deal  roadshows  for  annual  and  interim 
results. In addition, the Company focused on the protection 
of  medium  and  small  investors,  actively  responded  to  any 
enquiries  from  them,  kept  in  close  contact  with  investors 
by  various  means  such  as  email,  phone  and  internet,  and 
recorded a clickthrough rate of over 150,000 person-times for 
the live video streaming of results briefings. The Company 
reviews its policy for communication with shareholders once 
a year and considers that such policy remains effective based 
on  the  feedbacks  received  from  investors  and  the  capital 
market on investor relations.

In  2023,  the  Company  won  various  awards,  including 
the  “Best  Practice  of  2022  Annual  Report  Presentation 
Meetings” by the China Association for Public Companies, 
the  “Top  50  in  the  Market  Capitalisation  List  (Full  List)  of 
Chinese Listed Companies” and the “Top 5 of the Insurance 
Industry” by Wind, and the “Best Investor Relations Project” 
and  the  “Best  Leader  Award”  in  the  7th  Excellent  IR  in 
China.

99

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceCHANGES OF THE ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION

During the Reporting Period, no amendment was made to 
the Articles of Association by the Company.

TRAINING OF COMPANY SECRETARY

Mr.  Heng  Victor  Ja  Wei,  the  Company  Secretary,  took  no 
less than 15 hours of relevant professional training in 2023, 
satisfying the requirements under the Listing Rules.

INTERNAL CONTROL AND RISK MANAGEMENT

The  Company  has  consistently  proceeded  with  tasks  in 
compliance  with  the  regulatory  requirements  of  relevant 
regulatory authorities, such as the SSE and the HKSE, with 
respect to corporate internal control.

Internal Control

The Company has been devoting significant effort towards 
the promotion of internal control and the establishment of 
internal  control  related  systems.  In  accordance  with  the 
requirements  of  the  “Standard  Regulations  on  Corporate 
Internal  Control”,  the  “Implementation  Guidelines  for 
Corporate Internal Control”, the “Rules Governing the Listing 
of Securities on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited”, 
and the “Basic Standards of Internal Control for Insurance 
Companies” issued by the NFRA, the Company has carried 
out a lot of work on its internal control system establishment, 
rules implementation and risk management by centering on 
its corporate governance structure. The Company has also 
formulated and issued the “Internal Control Implementation 
Manual  of  China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited  (2023 
Edition)”  to  strengthen  the  implementation  of  internal 
control  standards  and  internal  control  assessments,  and 
actively  promoted  the  culture  and  philosophy  of  internal 
control, thereby continuously enhancing the internal control 
of the Company.

Pursuant  to  the  requirements  of  the  “Notice  on  the 
Proper  Preparation  for  Disclosure  of  2023  Annual  Reports 
of  Companies  Listed  on  the  Main  Board”  and  the  “Self-
Regulatory Guide for Listed Companies No. 2 — Business 
Process” promulgated by the SSE, the Company shall release 
an  internal  control  self-assessment  report  simultaneously 
with the publication of its 2023 annual report. The Company 
has completed internal control self-assessment as required 
by  the  SSE  for  the  year  ended  31  December  2023.  Such 
assessment  is  conducted  on  an  annual  basis  and  in  two 
stages,  namely,  interim  assessment  and  supplementary 
test.  The  Company  has  confirmed  after  the  assessment 
that  the  relevant  internal  controls  were  effective.  The 
Company  has  also  received  from  its  independent  auditors 
an  unqualified  opinion  on  the  effectiveness  of  its  internal 
controls in relation to financial reporting as at 31 December 
2023. The Company’s assessment report and the report of 
its independent auditors will be included as an attachment 
to its annual report to be submitted to the SSE.

It is the responsibility of the Board of the Company to establish 
and effectively implement well-established internal control 
systems, assess their effectiveness and disclose the report 
on the internal control assessment. The Board and its Audit 
Committee are responsible for leading the implementation 
of internal control measures of the Company, and the Board 
of Supervisors supervises the internal control assessments 
performed  by  the  Board.  The  Company  has  established 
the  Risk  Management  Department  in  its  headquarters 
and branches, conducting tests on the management level, 
assessing  the  effectiveness  of  the  establishment  and 
implementation  of  internal  control  systems  in  accordance 
with the regulatory requirements of the jurisdictions where 
the Company is listed, and reporting to the Board, the Audit 
Committee and the management.

In  compliance  with  regulatory  requirements  and  having 
considered  the  characteristics  of 
its  business  and 
management  requirements,  the  Company  has  established 
and implemented a series of internal control measures and 
procedures  with  respect  to  currency  and  funds,  insurance 
business, external investments, physical assets, information 
technology,  financial  reporting  and  information  disclosure 
to  ensure  the  safety  and  integrity  of  its  assets.  By  strictly 
complying  with  relevant  PRC  laws  and  regulations  as  well 
as  the  internal  rules  and  regulations  of  the  Company,  the 
quality of accounting information has been improved.

100

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceA relatively well-developed internal control system has been 
established in terms of team-building, sales and operations, 
and  system  management  for  the  sales  channels,  such  as 
individual  insurance,  bancassurance,  group  insurance  and 
health  insurance.  This  internal  control  system  regulates 
the relevant authorisations and operational workflows, and 
effectively adopts the measures to prevent and manage risks 
relating to the operation of exclusive agents. The Company 
has  promulgated  clear  regulations  for  the  workflows  and 
authorisations relating to the verification of insurance policies, 
insurance claims and insurance preservation. The Company 
has  also  formulated  business  operation  standards  and 
service quality standards, developed systems of business, 
document and file management, and further regulated the 
management  of  business  approval  authority  to  strengthen 
its control over business risk and improve the quality of its 
services.

In  accordance  with  relevant  laws  and  regulations  such  as 
the “Accounting Law of the People’s Republic of China” and 
the “Enterprise Accounting Standards — Basic Standards” 
and  specific  standards  and  taking  into  account  the  needs 
of  the  Company  for  its  business  development,  operation 
and management, the Company has formulated and issued 
the “Accounting System of China Life Insurance Company 
Limited”  and  the  “Accounting  Practices  of  China  Life 
Insurance  Company  Limited”.  The  accounting  units  of  the 
Company  at  all  levels  have  implemented  them  in  strict 
compliance with the requirements of the accounting system 
and  various  basic  systems  to  regulate  works  relating  to 
financial accounting and preparation of financial reports. The 
accounting units of the Company at all levels have assigned 
positions in a reasonable manner, clearly defined duties and 
responsibilities of such positions and their scope of authority 
on  management,  and  strictly  prohibited  employees  from 
serving incompatible positions concurrently, thus exercising 
the control over financial risks in an efficient manner.

The Company has created a rigorous information disclosure 
system  with  well-developed  workflows,  including  the 
provisions  governing  the  basic  responsibilities  of  periodic 
report  disclosures,  the  major  errors  in  periodic  report 
disclosures and the responsibility attribution as set forth in 
the “Measures for the Administration of the Accountability 
System  for  Major  Errors  in  Periodic  Report  Disclosures  of 
China Life Insurance Company Limited”. As at 31 December 
2023, there was no major error in periodic report disclosures 
of the Company. The “Measures for the Administration of 
Registration  of  Persons  Who  Have  Knowledge  of  Inside 
Information of China Life Insurance Company Limited” has 
been  introduced  to  enhance  the  confidentiality  of  inside 
information  of  the  Company  and  to  register  and  submit 
information  concerning  persons  who  have  knowledge  of 
inside  information.  The  relevant  requirements  under  the 
“System of Internal Reporting of Material Information of China 
Life  Insurance  Company  Limited”  have  been  incorporated 
into  the  indicator  system  under  the  internal  control  report 
of the Company. Persons responsible for reporting material 
information obtain and identify potential material information 
at  the  level  of  operation  and  management  by  making  use 
of various information technologies, and submit and report 
such  information  to  the  President  and  the  Board  of  the 
Company as earlier as possible. The Board then makes the 
final decision on whether to release the material information, 
and  discloses  the  same  to  such  extent  as  it  considers 
reasonable and practicable.

The  Company  has  established  a  well-developed  system 
relating  to  investment  decisions  in  accordance  with  the 
relevant  laws  and  regulations  and  based  on  the  actual 
situation  of  investment  management.  The  system  defines 
the  approval  and  decision-making  authority,  authorisation 
mechanism  and  specific  decision-making  procedures  for 
investment  management.  All  major  investment  decisions 
shall be approved and implemented in strict compliance with 
the internal decision-making process of the Company and the 
requirements  of  its  investment  management  system.  The 
Investment Decisions Committee is a permanent body of the 
Company for investment decisions, which is responsible for 
reviewing major investments and providing support to any 
investment decisions made by the management.

101

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceThe Company has established a comprehensive information 
technology  system  to  cover  all  aspects  of  IT  work  and 
formed  a  closed-loop  control  mechanism  focusing  on 
centralised review and publication, periodic inspection and 
continuous  improvement.  By  conducting  measures  such 
as the inspection and evaluation of system implementation 
on  a  regular  basis,  the  Company  has  facilitated  the 
effective implementation of the system and enhanced the 
standardisation and normalisation of various IT work. Further, 
the  Company  has  constantly  promoted  the  construction 
of  the  systems  of  information  safety  and  risk  control,  and 
formulated and implemented a series of effective information 
safety control measures at various stages of the life cycle 
of the IT system, thereby effectively ensuring the safe and 
steady  operation  of  the  Company.  In  2023,  the  Company 
conducted  several  internal  and  external  risk  assessments 
to  promote  construction  by  inspection,  with  a  view  to 
consistently  enhancing  its  capability  in  management  and 
control of information safety risks.

The  Risk Management Department, the Audit Department 
and the Legal and Compliance Department of the Company 
are  responsible  for  the  supervision  and  inspection  of  the 
Company’s internal control measures. The Company identifies 
issues in the areas of system design, control implementation 
and  risk  management  in  a  timely  manner  through  the 
adoption  of  various  measures  such  as  walk-through  test, 
control  test  and  risk  analysis.  It  also  eliminates  loopholes, 
guards against risks and reduces losses by adopting various 
measures  to  improve  systems,  enhance  legal  compliance 
and  pursue  accountability.  In  2023,  the  Company  actively 
adapted  to  the  stringent  regulatory  environment  in  the 
PRC  and  overseas  financial  industry  and  strictly  complied 
with  the  regulatory  requirements  to  constantly  improve 
the  organisational  structure  of  internal  audit,  and  further 
strengthened the mechanism for internal audit management, 
which  effectively  performed  the  supervisory  role  of  audit. 
The Company carried out the economic responsibility audit 
on  its  key  responsible  persons  at  all  levels  and  the  senior 
management audit on deputy heads of its branches at the 
provincial level, organised and performed a series of special 

audits closely related to the Company’s business objectives, 
and  conducted  a  variety  of  special  audits  on  anti-money 
laundering,  connected  transactions,  assets  and  liabilities 
management, solvency risk management system, application 
of  funds,  protection  of  consumers’  rights  and  interests, 
reputational risk management, risk management of financial 
derivative transactions, compliance of intermediary business, 
and insurance fraud risk management pursuant to regulatory 
requirements. Meanwhile, the Company has put more efforts 
on the application of audit results, consistently strengthened 
the  supervision  and  direction  of  rectification  measures 
for  any  issues  identified  in  audit,  handover  of  the  issues 
concerned and the responsibility attribution, proceeded with 
the  integration  of  rectification  measures,  further  improved 
the closed-loop management of internal audits, and facilitated 
its standardised management and compliance operation. The 
Company  has  constantly  optimised  three  lines  of  defense 
for  compliance  management  to  vigorously  establish  a 
sound  and  effective  compliance  management  system  and 
to improve a mechanism for compliance management on an 
ongoing basis, with a view to identifying, guarding against 
and  mitigating  material  compliance  risks.  The  Company 
has  also  played  an  active  role  in  advocating  the  business 
philosophy of “creating value from compliance” and made 
a  serious  effort  towards  fostering  the  corporate  culture  of 
“being  compliant  on  a  proactive  basis,  starting  from  the 
top level and having responsibility for all to be compliant”, 
thus  successfully  obtaining  the  national  standard  GB/T 
35770-2022 and the international standard ISO 37301:2021 
compliance  management  system  certificates  at  the  end 
of  2023.  The  Company  will  continue  to  deeply  engage  in 
building a law-based company by upholding the compliance 
objective of managing itself according to law and practising 
the compliance philosophy of good faith business operations, 
strengthen  systems  management  and  construction  with 
enhanced  management  and  control  of  compliance  risks, 
and  introduce  multiple  measures  concurrently  to  further 
reinforce  an  internal  impetus  to  compliance  operation,  for 
the purpose of ensuring the achievement of its goal of high-
quality development.

102

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceRisk Management

Risk Management System

The  Company  has  established  an  organisational  system 
for  comprehensive  risk  management  with  the  ultimate 
responsibility  assumed  by  the  Board,  under  the  direct 
leadership of the management, having reliance on the risk 
management  departments  and  with  the  close  cooperation 
among the relevant functional departments, and developed a 
5-tier organisational structure for risk management covering 
the corporate governance level, the headquarters level, the 
provincial  branches  level,  the  local  or  city  branches  level, 
and the county sub-branches level. With the reliance on the 
5-tier risk management and control structure, the Company 
has  put  in  place  three  lines  of  defense  that  focus  on  risk 
management: the first line of defense consists of branches 
and  sub-branches  at  all  levels  and  various  functional 
departments  that  identify,  assess,  address,  monitor  and 
report  risks  at  the  front  end  of  business;  the  second  line 
of  defense  is  composed  of  the  Risk  Management  and 
Consumer  Rights  Protection  Committee  of  the  Board,  as 
well  as  the  Risk  Management  Committee  and  the  Risk 
Management  Department  of  the  Company  that  take  lead 
in  formulating  the  system,  standard  and  limit  for  a  variety 
of risks and make recommendations to address such risks; 
the  third  line  of  defense  comprises  the  Audit  Committee 
of  the  Board,  as  well  as  the  internal  audit  department, 
the  Office  of  the  Discipline  Inspection  Committee  and 
other departments of the Company that supervise the risk 
management  workflows  established  by  the  Company  and 
the procedures and actions for control of various risks. The 
three  lines  of  defense  have  been  coordinated  with  each 
other in a proactive manner to organise and commence any 
work  in  relation  to  risk  management.  By  establishing  the 
organisational  structure  of  risk  control,  the  Company  has 
gradually  established  a  criss-cross  network  of  risk  control 
system, with the risk management departments at all levels 
as  leading  bodies,  the  relevant  functional  departments  as 
main bodies, the vertical decision-making control system and 
horizontal interactive collaboration mechanism as supporting 
systems and the comprehensive risk management as focus, 
thus laying a strong foundation for the Company to achieve a 
comprehensive risk management system with full coverage, 
all-employee participation and effective workflows.

Work in relation to Risk Management

Pursuant  to  the  requirements  of  the  NFRA  on  the  China 
Risk  Oriented  Solvency  System  (C-ROSS),  the  Company 
pushed  forward  the  establishment  of  a  solvency  risk 
management system, and built a “1+7+N” comprehensive 
risk  management  system  with  the  “Comprehensive  Risk 
Management Rules” as the general principles, seven types 
of  risks  (including  insurance  risk,  market  risk,  credit  risk, 
operational risk, strategic risk, reputational risk and liquidity 
risk) as the key focuses, and having reliance on a series of 
implementing  rules  for  business  such  as  the  “Measures 
for  the  Administration  of  Risk  Preference  System”.  The 
Company  consistently  reinforced  the  mechanism  for 
formation, transmission and application of the risk preference 
system,  creating  a  system  for  the  normal  management  of 
risk  preference  with  the  statement  on  risk  preference  as 
the  carrier,  and  the  risk  tolerance  and  limit  indicators  as 
the focus. Through the combination of risk preference with 
various  lines  of  operation  and  management,  the  Company 
maintained  a  good  interaction  between  risk  management 
and business development. The Company conducts a self-
assessment on solvency risk management capability every 
year so as to assess all work in relation to risk management 
in  two  dimensions:  the  soundness  of  the  system  and  the 
effectiveness  of  its  implementation.  The  Company  took 
specific rectification measures against its own shortcomings 
and  weaknesses,  which  enhanced  its  risk  management 
standard in all aspects. In the SARMRA under the C-ROSS 
(Phase II) Regulation conducted by the NFRA, the Company’s 
capability of solvency risk management ranked among the 
top of life insurance companies.

The  Company  followed  the  requirements  under  anti-
money laundering laws and regulations, kept on improving 
the  system  for  money-laundering  risk  management  and 
performed the anti-money laundering obligations under the 
law, with a view to enhancing both the quality and efficiency 
of its anti-money laundering work. Meanwhile, pursuant to 
external regulatory requirements, the Company conducted 
special  governance  on  illegal  fund-raising  activities  and 
carried  out  the  self-inspection  and  rectification  in  key  risk 
areas, which effectively improved the Company’s precaution 
capability in key risk areas.

103

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceIn 2023, the Company vigorously promoted the informatisation 
of  risk  management,  actively  applied  the  latest  advanced 
technologies  such  as  big  data  and  artificial  intelligence, 
and  further  optimised  and  upgraded  the  intelligent 
application  of  anti-money  laundering  in  great  depth,  thus 
making  significant  progress  in  the  intelligent  identification 
of  illegal  fund-raising  risks,  monitoring  of  sales  risk  pre-
warning,  and  integrated  risk  management  platform.  The 
informatisation  and  intellectualisation  of  risk  management 
improved significantly, and the risk management capability 
of the Company was enhanced on an ongoing basis, which 
provided a strong support to the high-quality development 
of the Company.

Risk Identification and Control

The major risks of the Company in the course of business 
operation  and  management  include  insurance  risk,  market 
risk, credit risk, operational risk, strategic risk, reputational 
risk,  liquidity  risk,  information  safety  risk,  ESG  risk  and 
fraud risk.

Insurance Risk
Insurance  risk  refers  to  the  risk  that  exposes  insurance 
companies to unexpected losses due to the adverse deviation 
of the actual situation from the projections of assumptions 
such as loss ratio, expense rate and lapse rate.

The  Company  assessed  and  monitored  insurance  risks 
through  sensitivity  analysis  and  other  actuarial  appraisal 
methods,  with  a  focus  on  the  impact  of  mortality  rate, 
morbidity rate, lapse rate, expense rate and other relevant 
assumptions  on  the  Company’s  operating  results.  The 
Company  managed  insurance  risks  through  the  following 
mechanisms and processes: (1) establishing an organisational 
structure and a system for insurance risk management, so 
that  insurance  risk  management  can  be  performed  within 
a  scientific,  comprehensive  and  effective  management 
system;  (2)  devising  a  system  for  risk  limit  indicators  and 
carrying  out  normal  monitoring  analysis,  so  as  to  contain 
risks  within  a  controllable  range;  (3)  implementing  an 
effective  product  development  and  management  system 
to  strictly  control  product  pricing  risks,  and  strengthening 
empirical  analysis  to  offer  support  to  pricing  assumptions 
and assessing assumptions, in order to prevent and control 
insurance risks from the front end of products; (4) effectively 
guarding  against  adverse  selection  risks  and  insurance 
frauds through the establishment and implementation of a 
well-developed system for verification of insurance policies 
and  claims,  as  well  as  the  practical  operation  regulations; 
(5)  transferring  and  mitigating  insurance  risks  through  a 
scientific  and  reasonable  reinsurance  arrangement;  and 
(6)  strengthening  expenses  management  and  enhancing 
efficiency  in  resource  utilisation.  In  2023,  the  Company 
managed insurance risks in a regulated and orderly manner, 
with sufficient and reasonable provisions of minimum capital 
for  insurance  risks.  The  Company  will  continuously  keep 
a  watch  on  the  development  trend  of  insurance  risks  and 
further enhance its capability of managing insurance risks.

104

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceMarket Risk
Market risk refers to the risk that exposes the Company to 
unexpected losses due to adverse movement in (amongst 
others)  interest  rate,  equity  prices,  real  estate  prices  and 
exchange rate.

Credit Risk
Credit risk refers to the risk that exposes the Company to 
unexpected losses due to non-performance or delay in the 
performance of contractual obligations by counterparties, or 
adverse changes in their credit standings.

In order to address the market risks, the Company continued 
to pay attention to the risk exposures of interest rate, equity 
prices,  real  estate  prices  and  exchange  rate,  monitored 
value  at  risk/mark  to  market  (VaR/MTM),  yield  volatility, 
duration  and  other  key  market  risk  indicators  on  a  regular 
basis, set up a 2-tier risk limit indicator and corresponding 
threshold values, carried out sensitivity analyses and stress 
tests  to  measure  the  risk  losses  to  the  Company  under 
stress  scenarios,  gave  pre-warning  of  market  risks  and 
formulated  contingency  plans  for  emergencies.  Currently, 
the proportion of each investment asset is in line with the 
requirements  of  the  NFRA  and  the  internal  management 
provisions of the Company. According to the results of the 
risk  indicator  monitoring  and  stress  tests,  the  market  risk 
of  the  Company  was  within  a  normal  controllable  range. 
The  Company  primarily  adopted  the  following  risk  control 
measures  in  2023:  (1)  stepping  up  efforts  on  the  study  of 
macro  economy,  currency  and  financial  policies  to  assess 
domestic and international economic and market trends in 
a  timely  manner;  (2)  reviewing  the  risks  of  major  assets 
categories  and  the  characteristics  of  their  returns  on  a 
regular basis, so as to constantly optimise the model of asset 
allocation; (3) carrying out the effective management of open 
market equity exposure and making reasonable allocations; 
(4)  increasing  investment  in  interest  rate  bonds  with  long 
duration when appropriate opportunities arose, with a view 
to extending the duration of assets and narrowing the gap 
arising from the duration mismatch of assets and liabilities; 
(5) facilitating the advancement of systems to improve risk 
monitoring  and  pre-warning  functions  and  simultaneously 
strengthening the emergency response mechanism for major 
emergencies in investment management; and (6) reinforcing 
efforts to identify and monitor investment concentration risk 
and diversifying risks in a reasonable manner.

The  credit  risks  that  the  Company  is  exposed  to  mainly 
relate  to  investment  deposits,  bond  investments,  non-
standard  financial  product  investments  and  reinsurance 
arrangements, etc.

Credit Risk of Investment Business
To  address  the  credit  risks  of  investment  business,  the 
Company  developed  and  continuously  improved  the 
organisational  structure  of  credit  risk  management, 
and  constantly  optimised  the  process  for  credit  risk 
management.  Meanwhile,  the  Company  established 
and  made  amendments  to  the  management  system 
and  strengthened  the  implementation  of  such  system 
pursuant  to  the  regulatory  requirements  and  management 
practices,  strengthened  the  research  on  risks  and  kept 
on  improving  risk  analysis,  assessment,  monitoring,  pre-
warning  and  emergency  response  standard.  By  relying  on 
information technology, the Company consistently enhanced 
the  standard  of  quantitative  analysis  on  credit  risks  and 
diversified  the  methods  used  for  risk  management  and 
control.  The  Company  primarily  adopted  the  following 
measures in 2023: (1) further improving the centralised credit 
rating process and system functions to enhance the credit 
risk management standard; (2) optimising the credit risk limit 
management system in multiple dimensions to improve the 
mechanism for prevention of credit risks prior to investment; 
(3) strengthening the monitoring of credit risk indicators for 
the purposes of indicating risk exposure and any change of 
risk distribution in an effective manner and closely tracking 
down  negative  information;  and  (4)  deepening  efforts  on 
the research of key industries and the credit risk outlook to 
enhance the capability of the Company in risk management 
and control during and after investment.

105

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceReinsurance Credit Risk
Reinsurance  credit  risk  refers  to  the  credit  risk  that  may 
possibly  be  faced  by  the  Company  in  connection  with  the 
obligations  to  be  undertaken  by  reinsurers  due  to  their 
failure  to  perform  reinsurance  contracts.  To  address  the 
reinsurance credit risks, the Company adopted the following 
measures: (1) properly setting self-retained risk limits through 
an  effective  reinsurance  management  system,  and  using 
reinsurance as an effective tool to transfer risks to reinsurers 
with  a  high  level  of  solvency;  (2)  reviewing  the  relevant 
information  of  a  reinsurer  in  the  reinsurance  registration 
system in strict compliance with the regulatory requirements 
prior  to  the  execution  of  a  reinsurance  contract  to  ensure 
that the reinsurer in cooperation with the Company satisfies 
with the regulatory requirements; and (3) conducting credit 
assessments on reinsurers through internal rating to select 
reinsurers that have higher credit standing to mitigate credit 
risks.

Operational Risk
Operational  risk  refers  to  the  risk  of  losses  arising  from 
the issues found in internal procedures, employees and IT 
systems, as well as external events.

implemented 

The  Company  consistently 
regulatory 
requirements and its operational risk management strategies, 
optimised  the  operational  risk  management  system,  and 
regulated  the  operational  risk  management  processes, 
so  as  to  enhance  the  effectiveness  of  operational  risk 
management on an ongoing basis. The Company established 
an operational risk management system that combines three 
management tools, namely self-assessment of operational 
risk and its control, loss database for operational risks, and 
key risk indicators, and further reinforced the operational risk 
management at all levels of branches, in order to facilitate 
the  vertical  expansion  of  operational  risk  management 
network  and  achieve  the  integration  of  operational  risk 
management and control with its business development. The 
operational risk control measures adopted by the Company 
mainly included the following: (1) developing an operational 
risk management process and method compatible with the 
nature,  scale  and  risk  characteristics  of  the  Company’s 
business, including the identification, assessment, control, 
monitoring  and  reporting  mechanisms;  (2)  establishing  a 
loss  database  for  operational  risks  to  carry  out  the  loss 
data collection and analysis of operational risks on a regular 
basis;  (3)  establishing  a  key  indicator  room  for  operational 
risks to conduct regular monitoring of the key indicators for 

operational risks and taking relevant control measures against 
them; (4) conducting self-assessments on operational risks 
and their control measures on a regular basis and identifying 
any  areas  in  the  management  and  control  of  operational 
risks  that  were  vulnerable,  with  a  view  to  constantly 
increasing the capability of the Company in operational risk 
management; and (5) fostering a culture of operational risk 
management by organising and conducting training courses 
on  operational  risk  management.  In  2023,  the  operational 
risk  management  of  the  Company  was  satisfactory,  and 
losses  from  operational  risks  were  controllable.  As  the 
management  foundation  of  the  Company  for  operational 
risks  was  consistently  solidified,  the  quality  and  efficiency 
of its risk management were further enhanced.

Strategic Risk
Strategic  risk  refers  to  the  risk  of  mismatch  between 
strategies, market conditions and capabilities of the Company 
arising  from  ineffective  formulation  or  implementation  of 
strategies or changes in operational environment.

The Company set up a relatively well-developed system for 
strategic risk management, and established an organisational 
system  for  strategic  risk  management  with  the  ultimate 
responsibility  assumed  by  the  Board,  under  the  direct 
leadership of the management and with the division of labour 
and collaboration among the relevant functional departments. 
The  Company  also  optimised  the  work  mechanism  and 
process  for  strategic  study,  formulation,  implementation 
and assessment. By taking into full account various factors 
such as market conditions, risk preference, capital position 
and  its  own  capabilities,  the  Company  made  planning  for 
its medium- and long-term development and put the same 
into practice in annual business plan and work plans, so as 
to strengthen the formulation, approval, implementation and 
evaluation of whole process management of strategic and 
development planning. Meanwhile, the Company equipped 
with a professional team of talents and developed a scientific 
and efficient system for performance appraisal to strengthen 
the management of both business and investment strategies. 
The Company also created an indicator system for the daily 
monitoring of strategic risks to monitor and analyse strategic 
risks on a regular basis, which ensured an effective execution 
of the Company’s strategic risk management. In 2023, the 
soundness  of  the  Company’s  strategic  risk  management 
system  and  the  effectiveness  of  its  implementation  were 
maintained,  and  the  strategic  risks  were  controllable  in 
general.

106

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceLiquidity Risk
Liquidity risk refers to the risk that the Company does not 
have  access  to  sufficient  funds  in  time  or  at  reasonable 
costs to meet its liabilities or other payment obligations as 
they become due.

The  Company  established  a  system  for  liquidity  risk 
management  to  define  the  organisational  structure  and 
responsibilities  of  liquidity  risk  management.  Further, 
the  Company  developed  the  processes  covering  the 
identification, evaluation, monitoring, response and disposal, 
reporting,  and  rectification  of  liquidity  risk,  and  organised 
regular  emergency  exercises  on  liquidity  risks.  Overall, 
the  liquidity  risk  of  the  Company  was  insignificant.  The 
Company  will  constantly  step  up  its  effort  on  liquidity  risk 
management pursuant to the regulatory requirements and its 
own provisions to ensure the performance of its obligation 
to give insurance benefits as scheduled.

Information Safety Risk
Information  safety  risk  refers  to  the  operational,  legal  and 
reputational risks caused by natural factors, human factors, 
technological  loopholes  or  management  defects  in  the 
process of applying information technology in the Company.

Reputational Risk
Reputational risk refers to the risk of negative comments on 
the Company from stakeholders, the public and the media 
as a result of the behaviours of the Company’s divisions at 
all levels, practitioners or external events, thereby causing 
losses,  damaging  brand  value,  being  detrimental  to  the 
normal  operation  of  the  Company,  and  even  affecting 
market and social stability. Reputational risk may exist in any 
aspect of the Company’s operation and management. The 
Company highly values its reputation and has incorporated 
reputational risk management into the corporate governance 
and  comprehensive  risk  management  system  to  prevent 
reputational risk.

In  2023,  the  Company  made  further  improvement  to  its 
system  for  reputational  risk  management  to  enhance  the 
standard  of  reputational  risk  management  on  an  ongoing 
basis. For the improvement of systems and mechanisms, the 
measures for the administration of reputational risks of the 
Company was optimised to strengthen the system for the 
evaluation and responsibility attribution of reputational risks 
and  to  consolidate  the  main  management  responsibilities. 
By  practising  the  reputational  risk  management  concept 
focusing on precaution, the Company conducted the source 
control  over  reputational  risk,  and  mitigated  reputational 
risks and hidden dangers in an active and effective manner, 
which avoided the occurrence of significant reputational risk 
incidents. The Company regularly reviewed and reported on 
reputational  risk  management  by  conducting  evaluations 
and  inspections  on  a  rolling  basis  with  more  sophisticated 
management  methods,  and  advanced  the  development  of 
whole-process management online through the introduction 
of  tech-empowered  management  tools,  thus  contributing 
to  an  improvement  of  reputational  risk  management  in 
both  quality  and  efficiency.  The  Company  constantly 
proceeded  with  all  tasks  throughout  the  process,  such  as 
the identification, evaluation and disposal of reputational risk, 
so  as  to  properly  address  and  dispose  of  any  reputational 
incidents  and  effectively  protect  brand  reputation.  The 
Company  also  offered  training  courses  and  exercises  on 
reputational  risk  management  in  all  aspects  to  cultivate  a 
culture of reputational risk management.

107

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceThe Company attached great importance to information safety 
risk management. Firstly, the Company set up organisations 
to  offer  protection  for  information  safety.  It  established 
an  internet  security  and  informationisation  commission  as 
the  body  for  leading  and  organising  the  development  of 
internet security and informationisation of the Company in 
all  aspects.  An  information  safety  professional  committee 
was set up under the internet security and informationisation 
commission  to  take  the  lead  in  the  risk  management  of 
information  safety  of  the  Company.  A  working  group  of 
information  safety  was  established  at  the  headquarters 
level  for  the  daily  operation  of  information  safety  of  the 
Company,  whereas  a  leading  group  and  working  group 
of  information  safety  were  established  at  the  level  of 
branches  and  the  divisions  directly  under  the  Company 
for  the  specific  implementation  of  information  safety.  By 
assigning  the  duties  of  information  safety  to  its  different 
levels  for  implementation,  the  Company  consolidated  the 
responsibility  of  maintaining  information  safety  at  each 
level.  Secondly,  the  Company  developed  various  systems 
and  strictly  implemented  such  systems  to  ensure  the 
standardisation  of  information  management.  Thirdly,  the 
Company optimised the safety management requirements 
for the full life cycle of its IT system. By conducting safety 
tests and quality checks on the IT system before and after 
it  was  put  online,  the  Company  consistently  enhanced 
the  safety  of  such  system.  The  Company  also  formulated 
contingency plans of the IT system for regular exercises to 
enhance its emergency response capability to address cyber 
attacks or safety accidents. Through the application of new 
cutting-edge technologies such as cloud computing and big 
data in all aspects, the Company built a security situational 
awareness platform and developed an automatic joint control 
mechanism focusing on joint prevention and coordination for 
the entire network with the help from the enterprise general 
control  center,  thus  achieving  the  centralised  analysis  and 
coordinated  disposal  of  various  safety  risks.  In  addition, 
the  Company  constantly  stepped  up  efforts  on,  among 
others,  awareness  training,  promotion  and  education,  and 
phishing simulation for the information safety awareness of 
employees to foster a corporate culture of “everyone places 
emphasis on safety”. In 2023, there was no circumstance 
where  the  Company’s  operation  was  affected  due  to  the 
breakdown of computers or security breach.

In  2023,  the  Company  actively  implemented  the  legal 
provisions  of  national  laws  such  as  the  “Data  Security 
Law”  and  the  “Personal  Information  Protection  Law”  to 
strictly protect major data and personal information, so as to 
safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of customers. 
It continued to optimise its data governance structure and 
data  management  system  and  mechanism,  refined  the 
responsibilities of divisions at all levels for data management, 
established  the  unified  standards  for  the  management  of 
data classification and categorisation and a strategy for data 
security protection to define the targets to be protected for 
data security and the key areas for protection, implemented 
the  classified  security  protection  measures  for  the  full  life 
cycle such as the collection, transmission and storage of data 
in an efficient manner, and developed a 3-dimensional data 
security  protection  system.  Moreover,  with  the  increased 
efforts  on  developing  its  data  management  capability,  the 
Company was awarded the highest level certification under 
the Data Management Capability Maturity Assessment Model 
(DCMM),  and  consistently  strengthened  the  management 
and control of data security, in order to ensure that the data 
of the Company was manageable and controllable.

ESG Risk
The Company assesses ESG material issues once a year in 
view of the external economic, social and macro environment 
as  well  as  its  own  development  strategy,  discusses  and 
determines the risks and opportunities faced by it in relation 
to ESG, and regards the management and escalation of key 
issues as its priority of work in ESG for the year. The Board 
reviews  and  confirms  the  assessment  results,  taking  into 
consideration the key issues as part of its formulation of an 
overall  strategy,  and  supervising  the  management  of  such 
issues and their performance. In 2023, the Company further 
strengthened  its  ESG  risk  management,  through  which 
top  five  ESG  risks  were  identified  as  follows:  information 
safety,  climate  change,  corruption,  human  resources  and 
customer  relationship  management,  and  talent  attraction 
and retention. The Company has devised the management 
strategy against the above risks in order to keep track with 
the risk development trend in a timely manner.

108

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceFraud Risk
The  Company  promoted  the  fraud  risk  management  on 
an  ongoing  basis,  played  an  active  role  in  increasing  the 
awareness of fraud risk prevention, and proceeded with all 
tasks against frauds in an effective manner. The Company 
has  established  an  organisational  system  for  fraud  risk 
management  with  the  ultimate  responsibility  assumed  by 
the Board, under the direct leadership of fraud risk managers 
and  with  the  close  cooperation  among  the  functional 
departments.  With  its  implementation  of  comprehensive 
risk  management,  the  Company  identified  control  points 
in  a  variety  of  business  activities  for  fraud  risks.  The 
Company  also  proceeded  with  all  tasks  against  frauds  in 
active  cooperation  with  regulatory  authorities  and  industry 
associations,  and  attached  great  importance  to  fostering 
anti-fraud culture through education on anti-fraud alert and 
promotion. As a result, the capability of fraud risk prevention 
and control of the Company was effectively improved.

For other analysis on the insurance risk, market risk, credit 
risk  and  liquidity  risk  of  the  Company,  please  refer  to  the 
“Risk Management” section in the Notes to the Consolidated 
Financial Statements of this annual report.

It  should  be  stated  that  the  risk  management  and  internal 
control  of  the  Company  are  designed  with  the  objectives 
to  reasonably  ensure  the  legal  compliance  of  business 
operation  and  management,  safety  of  assets,  truthfulness 
and  completeness  of  financial  reports  and  relevant 
information, improvement of operating efficiency and effect, 
and  accomplishment  of  development  strategy.  Given  the 
inherent limitations on risk management and internal control, 
the  Company  can  only  provide  reasonable  assurance  with 
respect to the accomplishment of the above objectives.

109

Annual Report 2023 | Corporate GovernanceOTHER 
INFORMATION

BASIC INFORMATION OF THE COMPANY

Registered name in Chinese

中國人壽保險股份有限公司(簡稱「中國人壽」)

Registered name in English

China Life Insurance Company Limited (“China Life”)

Legal representative

Bai Tao

Registered office address/ 
Current office address

Postal code

Telephone

Investor relations hotline

16 Financial Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, P.R. China

100033

86-10-63633333

86-10-63631241

Customer service hotline

95519

Fax

Website

Email

86-10-66575722

www.e-chinalife.com

ir@e-chinalife.com

Hong Kong office address

16/F, Tower A, China Life Centre, One Harbour Gate, 18 Hung Luen Road, 
Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Telephone

852-29192628

110

Annual Report 2023 | Other Information 
 
 
CONTACT INFORMATION

Name

Office address

Telephone

Fax

Email

Board Secretary

Zhao Guodong

Securities Representative

Li Yinghui

16 Financial Street, Xicheng District, 
Beijing, P.R. China

16 Financial Street, Xicheng District, 
Beijing, P.R. China

86-10-63631241

86-10-66575112

ir@e-chinalife.com

86-10-63631191

86-10-66575112

liyh@e-chinalife.com

*  Ms. Li Yinghui, Securities Representative of 

the Company, is also the main contact person 
of the external Company Secretary engaged by 
the Company

INFORMATION DISCLOSURE AND PLACE FOR OBTAINING THE REPORT

Media and websites for the 
Company’s A Share disclosure

Shanghai Securities News (www.cnstock.com) 
Securities Times (www.stcn.com) 
Securities Daily (www.zqrb.cn)

CSRC’s designated website for the 
Company’s annual report disclosure

www.sse.com.cn

The Company’s H Share  
disclosure websites

HKExnews website of Hong Kong Exchanges and  
Clearing Limited at www.hkexnews.hk 
The Company’s website at www.e-chinalife.com

The Company’s annual report  
may be obtained at

Tower A, China Life Plaza, 16 Financial Street, Xicheng District, Beijing,  
P.R. China

STOCK INFORMATION

Stock type

A Share

H Share

Exchanges on which the stocks  
are listed

Shanghai Stock Exchange

The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong 
Limited

Stock short name

Stock code

China Life

China Life

601628

2628

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

H Share registrar and  
transfer office

Computershare Hong Kong  
Investors Services Limited

Domestic legal adviser

King & Wood Mallesons

Address: Shops 1712-1716, 17th Floor, 
Hopewell Centre, 183 Queen’s Road 
East, Wanchai, Hong Kong

International legal advisers

Latham & Watkins LLP

Debevoise & Plimpton LLP

Auditors of the Company

Domestic auditor

Overseas auditor

PricewaterhouseCoopers  
Zhong Tian LLP 

Address: 11/F, 
PricewaterhouseCoopers Center, 
2 Link Suqare, 202 Hubin Road, 
Huangpu District, Shanghai, PRC

PricewaterhouseCoopers 

Address: 22/F, Prince’s Building, 
Central, Hong Kong

Name of the Signing Auditors:
Zhou Xing, Huang Chen

Name of the Certified Auditor:
Yip Siu Foon, Linda

111

Annual Report 2023 | Other Information 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
INDEX OF INFORMATION DISCLOSURE ANNOUNCEMENTS

Serial No.

Items

Date of disclosure

Announcement of Premium Income

Election of Language and Means of Receipt of Corporate Communication

Reply Form

Announcement – Forfeiture of Unclaimed Dividends

Announcement of Premium Income

Announcement – Approval of Qualification of Person in Charge of Finance by the 
CBIRC

Announcement – Change of Board Secretary and Authorised Representative

Announcement of Premium Income

Clarification Announcement in relation to Premium Income

Notice of Board Meeting

Voluntary Announcement – Convening of 2022 Annual Results Briefing

Announcement of Results for the Year Ended 31 December 2022

China Life Insurance Company Limited 2022 Environmental, Social and Governance & 
Social Responsibility Report

2023/1/13

2023/1/16

2023/1/16

2023/2/1

2023/2/13

2023/3/3

2023/3/3

2023/3/13

2023/3/13

2023/3/14

2023/3/20

2023/3/29

2023/3/29

Summary of Solvency Quarterly Report of Insurance Company (Fourth Quarter of 2022)

2023/3/29

Announcement – Connected Transaction – Investment in Partnership through Equity 
Investment Plan

Overseas Regulatory Announcement – China Life Insurance Company Limited – 
Announcement on Changes in Accounting Estimates

Final Dividend for the Year Ended 31 December 2022

Announcement of Premium Income

Notice of Board Meeting

Annual Report 2022

Notification Letter and Change Request Form to Registered Shareholders

Notification Letter and Request Form to Non-registered Shareholders

Voluntary Announcement – Convening of 2023 First Quarter Results Briefing

2023 First Quarter Report

Announcement – Continuing Connected Transactions under the Agreement for 
Entrusted Investment and Management and Operating Services with respect to 
Alternative Investments with Insurance Funds

Announcement – Connected Transaction – Investment in Partnership through Equity 
Investment Plan

Announcement – Connected Transaction – Investment in Partnership through Equity 
Investment Plan

2023/3/29

2023/3/29

2023/3/29

2023/4/10

2023/4/17

2023/4/19

2023/4/19

2023/4/19

2023/4/19

2023/4/27

2023/4/27

2023/4/27

2023/4/27

Summary of Solvency Quarterly Report of Insurance Company (First Quarter of 2023)

2023/4/27

Overseas Regulatory Announcement – China Life Insurance Company Limited – 
Announcement on Changes in Accounting Estimates

Announcement in relation to Relevant Representation on the Implementation of IFRS17 
& IFRS9

2023/4/27

2023/5/8

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

29 

30 

112

Annual Report 2023 | Other Information 
 
 
 
 
 
Serial No.

Items

Date of disclosure

31 

32 

33 

34 

35 

36 

37 

38 

39 

40 

41 

42 

43 

44 

45 

46 

47 

48 

49 

50 

51 

52 

53 

54 

55 

56 

57 

58 

59 

60 

61 

62 

Briefing on IFRS17 & IFRS9 Updates

Announcement of Premium Income

Announcement – Election of Employee Representative Supervisor

Reports of Board of Directors & Board of Supervisors for 2022, Financial Report 
& Profit Distribution Plan for 2022, Remuneration of Directors & Supervisors, 
Appointment of Auditors for 2023, Formulation of the Provisional Measures of 
Performance-Based Remuneration of Directors, Supervisors, Senior Management 
& Personnel in Key Positions, CCT under the Agreement for Entrusted Investment 
& Management & Operating Services with respect to Alternative Investments with 
Insurance Funds & Notice of AGM

Notice of Annual General Meeting

Form of Proxy of Holders of H Shares for use at the Annual General Meeting of the 
Company to be held on Wednesday, 28 June 2023

Notification Letter and Change Request Form to Registered Shareholders

Notification Letter and Request Form to Non-registered Shareholders

Announcement of Premium Income

Announcement – Resignation of Supervisor

Announcement – Resolutions Passed at the Annual General Meeting and Distribution of 
Final Dividend

Announcement – Approval of Qualification as Director and Supervisor by the NFRA

Final Dividend for the Year Ended 31 December 2022 (Updated)

Announcement – Resignation of Supervisor

Announcement of Premium Income

Announcement – Change of President and Chief Actuary

Announcement – Nomination of Directors

Announcement of Premium Income

Notice of Board Meeting

Voluntary Announcement – Convening of 2023 Interim Results Briefing

Announcement of Unaudited Interim Results for the Six Months Ended 30 June 2023

Summary of Solvency Quarterly Report of Insurance Company (Second Quarter of 
2023)

Announcement of Premium Income

2023 Interim Report

Notification Letter and Change Request Form to Registered Shareholders

Notification Letter and Request Form to Non-registered Shareholders

Announcement – Change of Composition of the Special Committees of the Board

Announcement of Premium Income

Notice of Board Meeting

Voluntary Announcement – Convening of 2023 Third Quarter Results Briefing

2023 Third Quarter Report

Summary of Solvency Quarterly Report of Insurance Company (Third Quarter of 2023)

2023/5/8

2023/5/10

2023/5/12

2023/5/23

2023/5/23

2023/5/23

2023/5/23

2023/5/23

2023/6/9

2023/6/21

2023/6/28

2023/6/28

2023/6/28

2023/6/29

2023/7/10

2023/8/4

2023/8/4

2023/8/9

2023/8/10

2023/8/15

2023/8/23

2023/8/23

2023/9/11

2023/9/13

2023/9/13

2023/9/13

2023/9/21

2023/10/11

2023/10/13

2023/10/18

2023/10/26

2023/10/26

113

Annual Report 2023 | Other Information 
 
 
 
 
 
Serial No.

Items

Date of disclosure

Announcement in relation to the Disclosure of Relevant Representation on the 2023 
Corporate Day

Materials for the China Life 2023 Corporate Day: Past Experiences Herald a Promising 
Future – China Life 2023 Corporate Day

Materials for the China Life 2023 Corporate Day: Insurance + Senior Care Make Life 
Better – China Life’s Distinctive Senior Care Ecosystem

Materials for the China Life 2023 Corporate Day: Progress Intergration Prospects – 
Individual Sales System Reform

Election of Ms. Liu Hui and Mr. Ruan Qi as Executive Directors of the Seventh Session 
of the Board of Directors, Election of Mr. Li Bing as a Non-Executive Director of the 
Seventh Session of the Board of Directors and Notice of the First Extraordinary General 
Meeting 2023

Notice of the First Extraordinary General Meeting 2023

Form of Proxy of Holders of H Shares for use at the First Extraordinary General 
Meeting 2023 of the Company to be held on Friday, 15 December 2023

Notification Letter and Change Request Form to Registered Shareholders

Notification Letter and Request Form to Non-registered Shareholders

Announcement of Premium Income

Announcement – Approval of Qualification as President of the Company by the NFRA

Supplemental Notice of the First Extraordinary General Meeting 2023

Supplemental Form of Proxy of Holders of H Shares for use at the First Extraordinary 
General Meeting 2023 of the Company to be held on Friday, 15 December 2023

Notification Letter and Change Request Form to Registered Shareholders

Notification Letter and Request Form to Non-registered Shareholders

Announcement – Approval of Qualification as Chief Actuary of the Company by the 
NFRA

Announcement of Premium Income

Announcement – Resolutions Passed at the First Extraordinary General Meeting 2023

Announcement – Renewal of Continuing Connected Transactions under the Insurance 
Sales Framework Agreement

Announcement – Supplementary Information regarding Compensation of Directors, 
Supervisors and Senior Management Members in 2022

2023/10/30

2023/10/30

2023/10/30

2023/10/30

2023/11/8

2023/11/8

2023/11/8

2023/11/8

2023/11/8

2023/11/9

2023/11/10

2023/11/29

2023/11/29

2023/11/29

2023/11/29

2023/12/1

2023/12/11

2023/12/15

2023/12/15

2023/12/15

63 

64 

65 

66 

67 

68 

69 

70 

71 

72 

73 

74 

75 

76 

77 

78 

79 

80 

81 

82 

114

Annual Report 2023 | Other Information 
 
 
 
 
 
DEFINITIONS AND MATERIAL RISK ALERT

In this report, unless the context otherwise requires, the following expressions have the following meanings:

China Life, the Company6

China Life Insurance Company Limited and its subsidiaries

CLIC

AMC

China Life Insurance (Group) Company, the controlling shareholder of the Company

China Life Asset Management Company Limited, a non-wholly owned subsidiary of 
the Company

Pension Company

China Life Pension Company Limited, a non-wholly owned subsidiary of the Company

China Life AMP

China Life AMP Asset Management Company Limited, an indirect non-wholly owned 
subsidiary of the Company

CGB

CLP&C

CLI

China Guangfa Bank Co., Ltd., an associate of the Company

China Life Property and Casualty Insurance Company Limited, a non-wholly owned 
subsidiary of CLIC

China Life Investment Management Company Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of 
CLIC

China Life Capital

China Life Capital Investment Company Limited, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary 
of CLIC

Ministry of Finance

Ministry of Finance of the People’s Republic of China

NFRA

CSRC

HKSE

SSE

Company Law

Insurance Law

Securities Law

National Financial Regulatory Administration, the predecessor of which is China 
Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission

China Securities Regulatory Commission

The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited

Shanghai Stock Exchange

Company Law of the People’s Republic of China

Insurance Law of the People’s Republic of China

Securities Law of the People’s Republic of China

Articles of Association

Articles of Association of China Life Insurance Company Limited

C-ROSS (Phase II) Regulation

Solvency Regulatory Rules II for Insurance Companies

SARMRA

Solvency Aligned Risk Management Requirements and Assessment

China or PRC

ESG

RMB

Material Risk Alert:

For the purpose of this report, “China” or “PRC” refers to the People’s Republic 
of China, excluding the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Macau Special 
Administrative Region and Taiwan region

Environmental, Social and Governance

Renminbi Yuan

The  risks  faced  by  the  Company  primarily  include  risks  relating  to  macro  trends,  insurance  risk,  market  risk,  credit  risk, 
operational risk, strategic risk, reputational risk, liquidity risk, information safety risk, ESG risk and fraud risk, etc. The Company 
has  adopted  various  measures  to  manage  and  control  different  risks  effectively.  For  details,  please  refer  to  the  “Future 
Prospect” in the section headed “Management Discussion and Analysis” and the “Internal Control and Risk Management” 
in the section headed “Corporate Governance” of this report.

6 

Except for “the Company” referred to in the Consolidated Financial Statements.

115

Annual Report 2023 | Other Information 
 
 
 
FINANCIAL 
REPORT

Independent Auditor’s Report

To the Shareholders of China Life Insurance Company Limited
(incorporated in the People’s Republic of China with limited liability)

OPINION

What we have audited

The consolidated financial statements of China Life Insurance Company Limited (the “Company”) and its subsidiaries (the 
“Group”) which are set out on pages 122 to 272, comprise:

• 

the consolidated statement of financial position as at 31 December 2023;

• 

the consolidated statement of comprehensive income for the year then ended;

• 

the consolidated statement of changes in equity for the year then ended;

116 Annual Report 2023 | Financial Report

OPINION (continued)

What we have audited (continued)

• 

the consolidated statement of cash flows for the year then ended; and

• 

the notes to the consolidated financial statements, comprising material accounting policy information and other explanatory 
information.

Our opinion

In  our  opinion,  the  consolidated  financial  statements  give  a  true  and  fair  view  of  the  consolidated  financial  position  of 
the Group as at 31 December 2023, and of its consolidated financial performance and its consolidated cash flows for the 
year then ended in accordance with IFRS Accounting Standards and have been properly prepared in compliance with the 
disclosure requirements of the Hong Kong Companies Ordinance.

BASIS FOR OPINION

We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (“ISAs”). Our responsibilities under those 
standards  are  further  described  in  the  Auditor’s  Responsibilities  for  the  Audit  of  the  Consolidated  Financial  Statements 
section of our report.

We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.

Independence

We are independent of the Group in accordance with the International Code of Ethics for Professional Accountants (including 
International Independence Standards) issued by the International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (“IESBA Code”), 
and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with the IESBA Code.

KEY AUDIT MATTERS

Key  audit  matters  are  those  matters  that,  in  our  professional  judgment,  were  of  most  significance  in  our  audit  of  the 
consolidated financial statements of the current period. These matters were addressed in the context of our audit of the 
consolidated financial statements as a whole, and in forming our opinion thereon, and we do not provide a separate opinion 
on these matters.

Key audit matters identified in our audit are summarised as follows:

•  Valuation of  liabilities for remaining coverage and insurance revenue  recognition  for insurance  contracts not  using  the 

premium allocation approach

•  Fair value of level 3 financial assets

117

Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportIndependent Auditor’s Report (continued)KEY AUDIT MATTERS (continued)

Key Audit Matter

How our audit addressed the Key Audit Matter

Valuation of liabilities for remaining coverage and insurance 
revenue recognition for insurance contracts not using the 
premium allocation approach

Refer to Notes 2.8, 14 and 20 to the consolidated financial 
statements.

IFRS 17 “Insurance contracts” sets out the requirements in 
accounting for insurance contracts issued and reinsurance 
contracts  held.  Starting  from  1  January  2023,  the  Group 
has  adopted  IFRS  17  with  comparatives  restated  from  1 
January 2022 (the transition date). This is a new standard 
which requires significant judgements in the use of complex 
methodologies and assumptions in particular for valuation 
of liabilities for remaining coverage.

At 31 December 2023, the Group had liabilities for remaining 
coverage  for  insurance  contracts  not  using  the  premium 
allocation approach of RMB4,790.02 billion, accounting for 
90.12% of the Group’s total liabilities. In 2023, the amount 
of  insurance  revenue  recognised  for  contracts  not  using 
the  premium  allocation  approach  is  RMB160.30  billion, 
accounting for 46.50% of the Group’s total revenue.

The  Group  uses  the  discounted  cash  flow  method  to 
estimate  the  above  liabilities,  including  estimates  of  the 
present  value  of  future  cash  flows,  risk  adjustment  for 
non-financial  risk,  contractual  service  margin  and  loss 
component.

The insurance revenue recognition for insurance contracts 
not using the premium allocation approach relies primarily 
on  the  measurement  of  significant  components  of  the 
related liabilities, including estimates of the present value 
of future cash flows, risk adjustment for non-financial risk 
and contractual service margin.

We  focus  on  the  valuation  of  the  liabilities  for  remaining 
coverage  for  insurance  contracts  not  using  the  premium 
allocation approach as this requires significant management 
judgement  in  the  selection  and  application  of  complex 
methodologies. These liabilities also require management’s 
significant  judgements  in  determining  the  assumptions 
related  to  mortality  rates,  morbidity  rates,  lapse  rates, 
coverage  unit,  discount  rates,  expense  assumptions  and 
policy dividend assumptions. Changes in these assumptions 
could  have  significant  effects  on  the  above  liabilities  and 
revenue  being  recognised.  As  part  of  our  audit,  we  also 
focus  on  the  transition  of  IFRS  17  for  the  liabilities  for 
remaining  coverage  insurance  contracts  not  using  the 
premium allocation approach.

118

We obtained an understanding, evaluated the design and tested 
the  key  internal  controls  over  the  valuation  of  the  Group’s 
liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  and  insurance  revenue 
recognition  for  insurance  contracts  not  using  the  premium 
allocation  approach,  including  controls  over  management’s 
review  of  the  actuarial  methodologies,  the  actuarial  models, 
the actuarial assumptions and the data inputs used.

With  the  assistance  of  our  internal  actuarial  experts,  we 
performed  the  following  audit  procedures  for  the  valuation 
of  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage,  including  those  at  the 
transition date, and insurance revenue recognition for insurance 
contracts not using the premium allocation approach:

•  Assessing  the  reasonableness  of  methodologies  used  by 

the Group;

•  Assessing  the  reasonableness  of  the  significant  actuarial 
assumptions  by  considering  the  Group’s  rationale  for  the 
actuarial  judgements  applied  along  with  comparison  to 
industry data and historical experience;

•  Testing the relevance, completeness and accuracy of the 
underlying insurance policy data used in the valuation and 
measurement on a sample basis;

•  Performing  an  independent  actuarial  modelling  and 
recalculation  of  the  estimates  of  the  present  value  of 
future  cash  flows,  risk  adjustment  for  non-financial  risk, 
contractual service margin, loss component and insurance 
revenue recognised in the current period on a sample basis 
and comparing our results to the results from the Group’s 
actuarial models.

Based on the above procedures, we found the methodologies, 
significant  assumptions  and  judgements  used  in  relation  to 
the  valuation  of  liabilities  recorded  for  remaining  coverage 
and insurance revenue recognised for insurance contracts not 
using  the  premium  allocation  approach  were  supportable  by 
the evidence we gathered.

Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportIndependent Auditor’s Report (continued)KEY AUDIT MATTERS (continued)

Key Audit Matter

How our audit addressed the Key Audit Matter

Fair value of level 3 financial assets

Refer to Note 5.4 to the consolidated financial statements.

At  31  December  2023,  the  Group  held  level  3  financial 
assets  measured  at  fair  value,  with  a  carrying  value  of 
RMB607.01 billion, accounting for 10.46% of the Group’s 
total assets.

These  level  3  financial  assets  primarily  include  unlisted 
equity  securities  and  unlisted  debt  securities,  which  are 
accounted for as financial assets at fair value through profit 
or loss, investment in debt instruments at fair value through 
other  comprehensive  income  or  investment  in  equity 
instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive 
income.  The  fair  values  of  these  financial  assets  are 
measured using valuation techniques based on significant 
unobservable inputs.

We  have  identified  the  fair  value  of  the  Group’s  level  3 
financial assets as a key audit matter due to the significant 
estimates  and  judgements  involved  in  the  determination 
of  valuation  techniques,  significant  assumptions  and 
significant unobservable inputs.

We  obtained  an  understanding,  evaluated  the  design  and 
tested  the  operating  effectiveness  of  internal  controls  over 
the Group’s fair value measurement of level 3 financial assets, 
including controls over management’s review of the valuation 
techniques,  the  significant  assumptions  and  the  significant 
unobservable inputs used in the fair value measurements.

With  the  assistance  of  our  valuation  experts,  we  performed 
the following audit procedures:

•  Evaluating  the  appropriateness  of  the  Group’s  valuation 
techniques  and  significant  assumptions  by  referring  to 
industry practices and valuation principles;

•  Testing  the  significant  unobservable  inputs  used  by  the 
Group  in  determining  the  fair  values  and  assessing  the 
reasonableness  of  these  inputs  by  comparing  them  to 
information  available  from  third-party  sources  or  market 
data;

•  Testing the accuracy, on a sample basis, of the fair value 

calculations used for level 3 financial assets.

Based on the above procedures, we found that the significant 
estimates  and  judgements  involved  in  determining  the  fair 
value of level 3 financial instruments were supportable by the 
evidence we gathered.

OTHER INFORMATION

The directors of the Company are responsible for the other information. The other information comprises all of the information 
included in the annual report other than the consolidated financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon.

Our opinion on the consolidated financial statements does not cover the other information and we do not express any form 
of assurance conclusion thereon.

In connection with our audit of the consolidated financial statements, our responsibility is to read the other information and, 
in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the consolidated financial statements or 
our knowledge obtained in the audit or otherwise appears to be materially misstated.

If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we 
are required to report that fact. We have nothing to report in this regard.

119

Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportIndependent Auditor’s Report (continued)RESPONSIBILITIES OF DIRECTORS AND THOSE CHARGED WITH  
GOVERNANCE FOR THE CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The directors of the Company are responsible for the preparation of the consolidated financial statements that give a true 
and fair view in accordance with IFRS Accounting Standards and the disclosure requirements of the Hong Kong Companies 
Ordinance, and for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of consolidated 
financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

In preparing the consolidated financial statements, the directors are responsible for assessing the Group’s ability to continue 
as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting 
unless the directors either intend to liquidate the Group or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.

Those charged with governance are responsible for overseeing the Group’s financial reporting process.

AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE AUDIT OF THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements as a whole are free 
from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. We 
report our opinion solely to you, as a body, and for no other purpose. We do not assume responsibility towards or accept 
liability  to  any  other  person  for  the  contents  of  this  report.  Reasonable  assurance  is  a  high  level  of  assurance,  but  is  not 
a  guarantee  that  an  audit  conducted  in  accordance  with  ISAs  will  always  detect  a  material  misstatement  when  it  exists. 
Misstatements  can  arise  from  fraud  or  error  and  are  considered  material  if,  individually  or  in  the  aggregate,  they  could 
reasonably  be  expected  to  influence  the  economic  decisions  of  users  taken  on  the  basis  of  these  consolidated  financial 
statements.

As  part  of  an  audit  in  accordance  with  ISAs,  we  exercise  professional  judgment  and  maintain  professional  scepticism 
throughout the audit. We also:

• 

Identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to fraud 
or error, design and perform audit procedures responsive to those risks, and obtain audit evidence that is sufficient and 
appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion. The risk of not detecting a material misstatement resulting from fraud is 
higher than for one resulting from error, as fraud may involve collusion, forgery, intentional omissions, misrepresentations, 
or the override of internal control.

•  Obtain an understanding of internal control relevant to the audit in order to design audit procedures that are appropriate 
in  the  circumstances,  but  not  for  the  purpose  of  expressing  an  opinion  on  the  effectiveness  of  the  Group’s  internal 
control.

•  Evaluate the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the reasonableness of accounting estimates and related 

disclosures made by the directors.

120

Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportIndependent Auditor’s Report (continued)AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE AUDIT OF THE CONSOLIDATED  
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (continued)

•  Conclude on the appropriateness of the directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting and, based on the audit 
evidence obtained, whether a material uncertainty exists related to events or conditions that may cast significant doubt 
on the Group’s ability to continue as a going concern. If we conclude that a material uncertainty exists, we are required 
to  draw  attention  in  our  auditor’s  report  to  the  related  disclosures  in  the  consolidated  financial  statements  or,  if  such 
disclosures are inadequate, to modify our opinion. Our conclusions are based on the audit evidence obtained up to the 
date of our auditor’s report. However, future events or conditions may cause the Group to cease to continue as a going 
concern.

•  Evaluate the overall presentation, structure and content of the consolidated financial statements, including the disclosures, 
and  whether  the  consolidated  financial  statements  represent  the  underlying  transactions  and  events  in  a  manner  that 
achieves fair presentation.

•  Obtain  sufficient  appropriate  audit  evidence  regarding  the  financial  information  of  the  entities  or  business  activities 
within the Group to express an opinion on the consolidated financial statements. We are responsible for the direction, 
supervision and performance of the group audit. We remain solely responsible for our audit opinion.

We communicate with those charged with governance regarding, among other matters, the planned scope and timing of the 
audit and significant audit findings, including any significant deficiencies in internal control that we identify during our audit.

We also provide those charged with governance with a statement that we have complied with relevant ethical requirements 
regarding independence, and to communicate with them all relationships and other matters that may reasonably be thought 
to bear on our independence, and where applicable, actions taken to eliminate threats or safeguards applied.

From  the  matters  communicated  with  those  charged  with  governance,  we  determine  those  matters  that  were  of  most 
significance  in  the  audit  of  the  consolidated  financial  statements  of  the  current  period  and  are  therefore  the  key  audit 
matters. We describe these matters in our auditor’s report unless law or regulation precludes public disclosure about the 
matter or when, in extremely rare circumstances, we determine that a matter should not be communicated in our report 
because the adverse consequences of doing so would reasonably be expected to outweigh the public interest benefits of 
such communication.

The engagement partner on the audit resulting in this independent auditor’s report is Yip Siu Foon, Linda.

PricewaterhouseCoopers
Certified Public Accountants

Hong Kong
27 March 2024

121

Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportIndependent Auditor’s Report (continued)As at  
31 December 
2023

As at  
31 December 
2022

As at  
1 January  

2022

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

Note 2.1.1.b)

53,710
1,480
12,753
258,760
413,255
6,520
211,349
2,744,169

54,559
1,810
13,193
262,488
485,567
6,333
N/A
N/A

55,632
2,518
13,374
258,933
529,488
6,333
N/A
N/A

Notes

7
8
9
10
11.1
11.2
11.3
11.4

ASSETS
Property, plant and equipment
Right-of-use assets
Investment properties
Investments in associates and joint ventures
Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Investment in debt instruments at fair value through 

other comprehensive income

Investment in equity instruments at fair value through 

11.5

138,005

N/A

N/A

other comprehensive income

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Held-to-maturity securities
Loans
Available-for-sale securities
Securities at fair value through profit or loss
Reinsurance contract assets
Other assets
Deferred tax assets
Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell
Accrued investment income
Cash and cash equivalents

Total assets

11.6
11.7
11.8
11.9
11.10
14.3
13
29
11.11

1,705,375
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
25,846
37,318
24,431
19,759
51
149,305

5,802,086

N/A
1,574,204
342,083
1,738,108
223,790
24,096
22,004
46,126
38,533
49,580
127,594

5,010,068

N/A
1,533,753
429,878
1,429,287
206,771
19,327
33,981
24,180
12,915
48,538
60,459

4,665,367

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

122

Consolidated Statement of Financial PositionAs at 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial Report 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Notes

14.2
14.3
15
16
17
29

18

34
35

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Liabilities
Insurance contract liabilities
Reinsurance contract liabilities
Interest-bearing loans and other borrowings
Bonds payable
Other liabilities
Deferred tax liabilities
Current tax liabilities
Premiums received in advance
Financial assets sold under agreements to repurchase
Financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss

Total liabilities

Equity
Share capital
Reserves
Retained earnings

Attributable to equity holders of the Company

Non-controlling interests

Total equity

Total liabilities and equity

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

As at  
1 January  

2022

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

Note 2.1.1.b)

4,859,175
188
12,857
36,166
126,750
–
309
48,878
216,851
13,878

5,315,052

28,265
145,933
302,895

477,093

9,941

487,034

4,266,947
160
12,774
34,997
117,751
272
238
49,654
148,958
3,344

4,635,095

28,265
99,033
238,723

366,021

8,952

374,973

3,809,716
154
19,222
34,994
113,133
999
248
47,546
239,446
3,416

4,268,874

28,265
156,677
203,478

388,420

8,073

396,493

5,802,086

5,010,068

4,665,367

Approved and authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 27 March 2024.

Bai Tao

Director

Li Mingguang

Director

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

123

As at 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportConsolidated Statement of Financial Position (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

Notes

Insurance revenue
Interest income
Investment income
Net realised gains on financial assets
Net fair value gains through profit or loss
Investment income from associates and joint ventures
Other income

Total revenues

Insurance service expenses
Allocation of reinsurance premiums paid
Less: A mounts recovered from reinsurers
Insurance finance income/(expenses) from insurance contracts 

issued

Less: R einsurance finance income/(expenses) from 

reinsurance contracts held

Finance costs
Expected credit losses
Other impairment losses
Other expenses

Profit before income tax
Income tax

Net profit

Attributable to:
  – Equity holders of the Company
  – Non-controlling interests

20
21
22
23
24
10

25

26

27

28
29

212,445
122,994
(9,375)
N/A
N/A
8,079
10,603

344,746

(150,353)
(4,726)
4,438
(127,923)

182,578
N/A
174,809
12,707
(12,156)
3,979
8,944

370,861

(131,614)
(4,119)
6,274
(148,700)

616

583

(5,308)
1,217
–
(18,131)

44,576
2,971

47,547

46,181
1,366

(4,863)
N/A
(3,150)
(15,212)

70,060
(1,948)

68,112

66,680
1,432

Basic and diluted earnings per share

30

RMB1.63

RMB2.36

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

124

Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive IncomeFor the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial Report 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

(21,699)

(69,341)

(21,741)

(69,257)

Other comprehensive income

Other comprehensive income attributable to equity holders of the 

Company (net of tax)

Other comprehensive income that may be reclassified to profit or loss 

in subsequent periods:
Changes in fair value of investment in debt instruments at fair value 

through other comprehensive income

Less: A mounts transferred to profit or loss from other comprehensive 

income

Allowance for credit losses on investment in debt instruments at fair 

value through other comprehensive income

Gains or losses from changes in fair value of available-for-sale securities
Less: A mounts transferred to net profit from other comprehensive 

income

Share of other comprehensive income of associates and joint ventures 

under the equity method

Exchange differences on translating foreign operations
Financial changes in insurance contracts
Financial changes in reinsurance contracts

Other comprehensive income that may not be reclassified to profit or 

loss in subsequent periods:
Changes in fair value of investment in equity instruments at fair value 

through other comprehensive income

Share of other comprehensive income of associates and joint ventures 

under the equity method

Financial changes in insurance contracts

Non-controlling interests

Total comprehensive income for the year, net of tax

Attributable to:
  – Equity holders of the Company
  – Non-controlling interests

82,617

(7,774)

(892)

N/A
N/A

(51)

325
(97,940)
679

1,122

660

(487)

42

25,848

24,440
1,408

N/A

N/A

N/A

(62,849)
(8,371)

(3,015)

1,102
4,967
545

N/A

(1,636)

–

(84)

(1,229)

(2,577)
1,348

125

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportConsolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Attributable to equity holders of the Company

Share  
capital

Reserves

Retained 
earnings

 Non-
controlling 
interests

Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

(Note 34)

(Note 35)

28,265

249,755

201,041

8,073

487,134

–

(93,078)

2,437

–

(90,641)

28,265
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–

–

156,677
–
(69,257)

(69,257)

13,137
–
–
(74)
(1,450)

11,613

203,478
66,680
–

66,680

(13,137)
(18,372)
–
74
–

(31,435)

8,073
1,432
(84)

1,348

–
–
(469)
–
–

(469)

396,493
68,112
(69,341)

(1,229)

–
(18,372)
(469)
–
(1,450)

(20,291)

28,265

99,033

238,723

8,952

374,973

–
28,265

–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–

–

60,751
159,784

–
(21,741)

(21,741)

7,604
–
–
(94)
380

7,890

39,351
278,074

46,181
–

46,181

(7,604)
(13,850)
–
94
–

(21,360)

6
8,958

1,366
42

1,408

–
–
(425)
–
–

(425)

100,108
475,081

47,547
(21,699)

25,848

–
(13,850)
(425)
–
380

(13,895)

As at 31 December 2021
Impact of initial application of IFRS 17 (Note 

2.1.1.b)

As at 1 January 2022 (Restated, Note 

2.1.1.b)
Net profit
Other comprehensive income

Total comprehensive income

Transactions with shareholders
Appropriation to reserves (Note 35)
Dividends declared
Dividends to non-controlling interests
Reserves to retained earnings (Note 35)
Others

Total transactions with shareholders

As at 31 December 2022 (Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

Impact of initial application of IFRS 9  

(Note 2.1.1.a)

As at 1 January 2023

Net profit
Other comprehensive income

Total comprehensive income

Transactions with shareholders
Appropriation to reserves (Note 35)
Dividends declared (Note 32)
Dividends to non-controlling interests
Reserves to retained earnings (Note 35)
Others

Total transactions with shareholder

As at 31 December 2023

28,265

145,933

302,895

9,941

487,034

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

126

Consolidated Statement of Changes in EquityFor the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial Report 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

44,576

70,060

CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Profit before income tax
Adjustments for:

Investment income
Interest income
Expected credit losses
Other impairment losses
Net realised and unrealised gains on financial assets
Insurance contracts and reinsurance contracts held
Depreciation and amortisation
Foreign exchange gains/(losses)
Investment income from associates and joint ventures
Decrease/(increase) in securities at fair value through profit or loss, net
Decrease/(increase) in financial assets at fair value through profit or loss, net
Increase/(decrease) in financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss, net
Receivables and payables
Income tax paid
Interest received – securities at fair value through profit or loss
Dividends received – securities at fair value through profit or loss
Interest received – financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Dividends received – financial assets at fair value through profit or loss

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from operating activities

CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Disposals and maturities:

Disposals of debt investments
Maturities of debt investments
Disposals of equity investments
Disposals of property, plant and equipment
Disposals of subsidiaries

Purchases:

Debt investments
Equity investments and subsidiaries
Property, plant and equipment

Investments in associates and joint ventures
Decrease/(increase) in term deposits, net
Decrease/(increase) in financial assets purchased under agreements to resell, 

net

Interest received
Dividends received
Cash paid related to other financing activities

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from investing activities

9,375
(122,994)
(1,217)
–
N/A
460,499
5,016
381
(8,079)
N/A
(13,777)
(2,187)
5,877
(1,036)
N/A
N/A
7,317
615

384,366

210,688
251,226
556,929
1,051
–

(881,317)
(836,048)
(4,171)
(4,217)
80,787
21,837

145,824
33,373
(198)

(424,236)

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

(174,809)
N/A
N/A
3,150
(551)
458,817
5,291
69
(3,979)
(35,286)
N/A
3,175
12,265
982
5,401
699
N/A
N/A

345,284

168,656
309,801
513,350
363
4,395

(519,495)
(819,785)
(3,076)
(5,436)
44,273
(27,327)

141,680
34,330
–

(158,271)

127

Consolidated Statement of Cash FlowsFor the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial Report 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Increase/(decrease) in financial assets sold under agreements  

to repurchase, net

Cash received from borrowings
Interest paid
Repayment of borrowings
Dividends paid to equity holders of the Company
Dividends paid to non-controlling interests
Payment of lease liabilities
Capital injected into subsidiaries by non-controlling interests
Cash received related to other financing activities
Cash paid related to other financing activities

Net cash inflow/(outflow) from financing activities

Foreign exchange gains/(losses) on cash and cash equivalents

Net increase in cash and cash equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents
Beginning of the period

End of the period

Analysis of balances of cash and cash equivalents
Cash at banks and in hand
Short-term bank deposits

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

67,129
43
(7,921)
(577)
(13,850)
(418)
(1,149)
18,035
750
(1,769)

60,273

64

20,467

127,594

148,061

147,453
608

(90,711)
688
(7,545)
(8,275)
(18,372)
(469)
(1,307)
5,896
–
–

(120,095)

217

67,135

60,459

127,594

123,142
4,452

The notes on pages 129 to 272 form an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

128

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportConsolidated Statement of Cash Flows (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1 ORGANISATION AND PRINCIPAL ACTIVITIES

China  Life  Insurance  Company  Limited  (the  “Company”)  was  established  in  the  People’s  Republic  of  China  (“China”  or 
the  “PRC”)  on  30  June  2003  as  a  joint  stock  company  with  limited  liability  as  part  of  a  group  restructuring  of  China  Life 
Insurance  (Group)  Company  (“CLIC”,  formerly  China  Life  Insurance  Company)  and  its  subsidiaries  (the  “Restructuring”). 
The Company and its subsidiaries are hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Group”. The Group’s principal activities are 
the underwriting of life, health, accident and other types of personal insurance business; reinsurance for personal insurance 
business; fund management business permitted by national laws and regulations or approved by the State Council of the 
People’s Republic of China, etc.

The Company is a joint stock company incorporated in the PRC with limited liability. The address of its registered office is 
16 Financial Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, the PRC. The Company is listed on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited, 
and the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

In August 2022, the Company has applied for the voluntary delisting of its American depositary shares (“ADSs”) from the 
New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”). The last day of trading of the Company’s ADSs on the NYSE was 1 September 2022 
(U. S. Eastern time) and the delisting of the Company’s ADSs has taken effect on 2 September 2022 (U. S. Eastern time). 
On 13 November 2023, the Company filed a Form 15F with the SEC to deregister the ADSs and the underlying H Shares 
and  terminate  its  reporting  obligations  under  the  U.  S.  Securities  Exchange  Act  of  1934,  as  amended.  The  deregistration 
and termination of reporting obligations became effective on 12 February 2024 (U. S. Eastern time).

These consolidated financial statements are presented in millions of Renminbi (“RMB million”) unless otherwise stated. These 
consolidated financial statements have been approved and authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 27 March 2024.

2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The principal accounting policies applied in the preparation of these consolidated financial statements are set out below.

2.1 Basis of preparation

The Group has prepared these consolidated financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards 
(“IFRSs”), amendments to IFRSs and interpretations issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”). These 
consolidated financial statements also comply with the applicable disclosure provisions of the Rules Governing the Listing of 
Securities on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the “Listing Rules”) and the applicable disclosure requirements of 
the Hong Kong Companies Ordinance. The Group has prepared the consolidated financial statements under the historical cost 
convention, except for financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value, insurance contracts and reinsurance contracts 
held for assets or liabilities, certain property, plant and equipment at deemed cost as part of the restructuring process. The 
preparation of financial statements in compliance with IFRSs requires the use of certain material estimates. It also requires 
management  to  exercise  its  judgement  in  the  process  of  applying  the  Group’s  accounting  policies.  The  areas  involving  a 
higher degree of judgement or complexity, or areas where assumptions and estimates are significant to the consolidated 
financial statements are disclosed in Note 4.

129

Notes to the Consolidated Financial StatementsFor the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial Report2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023

Standards/Amendments

Content

IFRS 9
IFRS 17
Amendments to IAS 12

Financial Instruments
Insurance Contracts
Deferred Tax related to Assets and Liabilities arising  

Amendments to IAS 12
Amendments to IAS 1 and 

IFRS Practice Statement 2

from a Single Transaction

International Tax Reform – Pillar Two Model Rules
Disclosure of Accounting Policies

Amendments to IAS 8

Definition of Accounting Estimates

Effective for  
annual periods 
beginning on or after

1 January 2018(i)
1 January 2023
1 January 2023

1 January 2023
1 January 2023

1 January 2023

Except  for  IFRS  9  and  IFRS  17,  the  above  amendments  to  the  standards  did  not  have  any  significant  impact  on  the 
consolidated financial statements of the Group for the year ended 31 December 2023.

(i)  The final version of IFRS 9 was issued by the IASB in July 2014, which introduces new requirements for classification and 
measurement, impairment, and hedge accounting. The standard is effective for periods beginning on or after 1 January 
2018, with early adoption permitted. The Group had adopted the temporary exemption permitted in the Amendments 
to IFRS 4 Applying IFRS 9 Financial Instruments with IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts (“IFRS 4 Amendment”) to apply IAS 
39 rather than IFRS 9, until the effective date of IFRS 17. Therefore, the Group adopted IFRS 17 and IFRS 9 for the first 
time on 1 January 2023.

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments

Classification and measurement
IFRS 9 requires that the Group classifies debt instruments based on the combined effect of application of business models 
(hold  to  collect  contractual  cash  flows,  hold  to  collect  contractual  cash  flows  and  sell  financial  assets  or  other  business 
models)  and  contractual  cash  flow  characteristics  (solely  payments  of  principal  and  interest  on  the  principal  amount 
outstanding  or  not).  Debt  instruments  not  giving  rise  to  cash  flows  that  are  solely  payments  of  principal  and  interest  on 
the principal amount outstanding would be measured at fair value through profit or loss. Other debt instruments giving rise 
to  cash  flows  that  are  solely  payments  of  principal  and  interest  on  the  principal  amount  outstanding  would  be  measured 
at amortised cost, fair value through other comprehensive income (“FVOCI”) or fair value through profit or loss, based on 
their respective business models.

Equity instruments would generally be measured at fair value through profit or loss unless the Group elects to measure at 
FVOCI for certain equity investments not held for trading. The unrealized gains and losses of the other comprehensive income 
(“OCI”) on equity instruments previously classified as available-for-sale securities recognised in income. If the Group elects 
to measure equity investments at FVOCI, gains and losses would be recognised in retained earnings when the instruments 
are disposed, except for the received dividends which do not represent a recovery of part of the investment cost.

130

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

Impairment
IFRS  9  replaces  the  “incurred  loss”  model  with  the  “expected  credit  loss”  model  which  is  designed  to  include  forward-
looking  information.  The  Group  expects  that  the  provision  for  debt  instruments  of  the  Group  under  the  “expected  credit 
loss” model would be larger than that under the previous “incurred loss” model.

Hedge accounting
The Group does not apply hedge accounting currently, so the Group expects that the new hedge accounting model under 
IFRS 9 will have no impact on the Group’s consolidated financial statements.

The  Group  adopted  IFRS  9  on  1  January  2023.  Refer  to  Note  2.4  Financial  Instruments  for  the  accounting  policies  under 
IFRS 9.

Impact of initial application of IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments
In accordance with the transitional provisions in IFRS 9, there is no need to restate the comparative information. The impact 
of adoption of IFRS 9 at the initial application date are included in retained earnings and reserves at the beginning of the 
period upon adjustment, with a corresponding increase of RMB100,108 million in shareholders’ equity as at 1 January 2023. 
In alignment with the above treatment, the Group only discloses relevant information for the current period.

The following table presents the carrying amounts of financial instruments of the Group as at 1 January 2023 classified and 
measured under IAS 39 and IFRS 9, respectively.

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

Notes

Assets
Including:
Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Investment in debt instruments at fair value through other 

comprehensive income

Investment in equity instruments at fair value through other 

comprehensive income

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Held-to-maturity securities
Loans
Available-for-sale securities
Securities at fair value through profit or loss

Liabilities
Including:
Interest-bearing loans and other borrowings
Bonds payable
Financial assets sold under agreements to repurchase
Financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss

1
2
3
4

5

6
7
8
9
10

11
12
13

As at  
1 January  

2023

As at 
 31 December 
2022

RMB million

RMB million

498,294
6,445
231,896
2,341,964

485,567
6,333
N/A
N/A

119,913

N/A

1,353,748
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A

12,782
36,167
149,022
3,344

N/A
1,574,204
342,083
1,738,108
223,790

12,774
34,997
148,958
3,344

131

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

(i) As at 1 January 2023, the Group adjusted the carrying amount of original financial assets to the carrying amount under 
IFRS 9 based on the measurement category under IFRS 9:

1. T erm deposits

31 December 2022
Presentation adjustments: Interest receivable
Remeasurement: ECL

1 January 2023

2. S tatutory deposits – restricted

31 December 2022
Presentation adjustments: Interest receivable
Remeasurement: ECL

1 January 2023

3. I nvestment in debt instruments at amortised cost

31 December 2022
Add: T ransfer from held-to-maturity securities
Add: T ransfer from available-for-sale securities
Add: T ransfer from loans
Remeasurement: From fair value to amortised cost
Remeasurement: ECL
Presentation adjustments: Interest receivable

1 January 2023

4. I nvestment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

31 December 2022
Add: T ransfer from available-for-sale securities
Add: T ransfer from loans
Add: T ransfer from held-to-maturity securities
Presentation adjustments: Interest receivable
Remeasurement: From amortised cost to fair value

1 January 2023

5. I nvestment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

31 December 2022
Add: T ransfer from available-for-sale securities (note)

1 January 2023

Carrying amount

RMB million

485,567
13,051
(324)

498,294

6,333
120
(8)

6,445

–
1,984
7,808
220,914
(92)
(398)
1,680

231,896

–
529,652
83,236
1,572,220
28,225
128,631

2,341,964

–
119,913

119,913

Note:  As at 31 December 2022, the total carrying amount of unlisted equity securities, preferred stocks and perpetual bonds measured at fair value held 

by the Group was RMB119,913 million.

132

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

(i) As at 1 January 2023, the Group adjusted the carrying amount of original financial assets to the carrying amount under 
IFRS 9 based on the measurement category under IFRS 9 (continued):

6. F inancial assets at fair value through profit or loss

31 December 2022
Add: T ransfer from securities at fair value through profit or loss
Add: T ransfer from available-for-sale securities
Add: T ransfer from loans
Remeasurement: From amortised cost to fair value
Remeasurement: From cost to fair value
Presentation adjustments: Interest receivable

1 January 2023

7. H eld-to-maturity securities

31 December 2022
Less: T ransfer to investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Less: T ransfer to investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive 

income

1 January 2023

8. L oans

31 December 2022
Less: T ransfer to financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Less: T ransfer to investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Less: T ransfer to investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive 

income

1 January 2023

9. A vailable-for-sale securities

31 December 2022
Less: T ransfer to financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Less: T ransfer to investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Less: T ransfer to investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive 

income

Less: T ransfer to investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive 

income

1 January 2023

Carrying amount

RMB million

–
223,790
1,080,735
37,933
1,535
3,632
6,123

1,353,748

1,574,204
(1,984)

(1,572,220)

–

342,083
(37,933)
(220,914)

(83,236)

–

1,738,108
(1,080,735)
(7,808)

(529,652)

(119,913)

–

133

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

(i) As at 1 January 2023, the Group adjusted the carrying amount of original financial assets to the carrying amount under 
IFRS 9 based on the measurement category under IFRS 9 (continued):

10. Securities at fair value through profit or loss

31 December 2022
Less: T ransfer to financial assets at fair value through profit or loss

1 January 2023

11. Interest-bearing loans and other borrowings

31 December 2022
Remeasurement: Interest payable

1 January 2023

12. Bonds payable

31 December 2022
Remeasurement: Interest payable

1 January 2023

13. Financial assets sold under agreements to repurchase

31 December 2022
Remeasurement: Interest payable

1 January 2023

Carrying amount

RMB million

223,790
(223,790)

–

12,774
8

12,782

34,997
1,170

36,167

148,958
64

149,022

(ii) As at 1 January 2023, reconciliation of the Group from the provision for impairment under IAS 39 to impairment provision 
under IFRS 9 is as below:

Measurement categories

Provision for impairment of term deposits
Provision for impairment of statutory deposits
Provision for impairment of investment in debt 

instruments at amortised cost
Provision for impairment of loans
Provision for impairment of other assets

Sub-total

Provision for impairment of fair value through 

other comprehensive income – debt instruments 
investment

Provision for impairment of available-for-sale 

securities

Sub-total

Total

134

Impairment 
provision under 
IAS 39

Presentation 

adjustment Remeasurement

RMB million

Impairment 
provision under 
IFRS 9

–
–

–
2,343
639

2,982

–
–

–
(2,343)
–

(2,343)

–

1,739

18,588

18,588

21,570

(18,588)

(16,849)

(19,192)

324
8

398
–
21

751

886

–

886

1,637

324
8

398
–
660

1,390

2,625

–

2,625

4,015

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

(iii) Accounting policy for financial instruments related to IAS 39 applicable as of 31 December 2022:
Financial assets
Classification
The  Group  classifies  its  financial  assets  into  the  following  categories:  securities  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss,  held-
to-maturity  securities,  loans  and  receivables  and  available-for-sale  securities.  Management  determines  the  classification 
of its financial assets at initial recognition which depends on the purpose for which the assets are acquired. The Group’s 
investment in securities fall into the following four categories:

(a) Securities at fair value through profit or loss
This  category  has  two  sub-categories:  securities  held  for  trading  and  those  designated  as  at  fair  value  through  profit  or 
loss at inception. Securities are classified as held for trading at inception if acquired principally for the purpose of selling in 
the short-term or if they form part of a portfolio of financial assets in which there is evidence of taking short-term profit. 
The Group may classify other financial assets as at fair value through profit or loss if they meet the criteria in IAS 39 and 
designated as such at inception.

(b) Held-to-maturity securities
Held-to-maturity securities are non-derivative financial assets with fixed or determinable payments and fixed maturities that 
the Group has the positive intention and ability to hold to maturity and do not meet the definition of loans and receivables 
nor designated as available-for-sale securities or securities at fair value through profit or loss.

(c) Loans and receivables
Loans  and  receivables  are  non-derivative  financial  assets  with  fixed  or  determinable  payments  that  are  not  quoted  in  an 
active  market  other  than  those  that  the  Group  intends  to  sell  in  the  short-term  or  held  as  available-for-sale.  Loans  and 
receivables  mainly  comprise  term  deposits,  loans,  securities  purchased  under  agreements  to  resell,  accrued  investment 
income and premium receivables as presented separately in the statement of financial position.

(d) Available-for-sale securities
Available-for-sale  securities  are  non-derivative  financial  assets  that  are  either  designated  in  this  category  or  not  classified 
in any of the other categories.

Recognition and measurement
Purchase and sale of investments are recognised on the trade date, when the Group commits to purchase or sell assets. 
Investments  are  initially  recognised  at  fair  value  plus,  in  the  case  of  all  financial  assets  not  carried  at  fair  value  through 
profit  or  loss,  transaction  costs  that  are  directly  attributable  to  their  acquisition.  Investments  are  derecognised  when  the 
rights  to  receive  cash  flows  from  the  investments  have  expired  or  when  they  have  been  transferred  and  the  Group  has 
also transferred substantially all risks and rewards of ownership.

Securities at fair value through profit or loss and available-for-sale securities are carried at fair value. Equity investments that 
do not have a quoted price in an active market and whose fair value cannot be reliably measured are carried at cost, net 
of allowance for impairments. Held-to-maturity securities are carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method. 
Investment gains and losses on sales of securities are determined principally by specific identification. Realised and unrealised 
gains and losses arising from changes in the fair value of the securities at fair value through profit or loss category, and the 
change of fair value of available-for-sale debt securities due to foreign exchange impact on the amortised cost are included 
in net profit in the period in which they arise. The remaining unrealised gains and losses arising from changes  in  the fair 
value  of  available-for-sale  securities  are  recognised  in  OCI.  When  securities  classified  as  available-for-sale  securities  are 
sold or impaired, the accumulated fair value adjustments are included in net profit as realised gains on financial assets.

135

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

(iii) Accounting policy for financial instruments related to IAS 39 applicable as of 31 December 2022 (continued):
Financial assets (continued)
Recognition and measurement (continued)
Term deposits primarily represent traditional bank deposits which have fixed maturity dates and are stated at amortised cost.

Loans are carried at amortised cost, net of allowance for impairment.

The Group purchases securities under agreements to resell substantially identical securities. These agreements are classified 
as secured loans and are recorded at amortised cost, i.e., their costs plus accrued interests at the end of the reporting period, 
which approximates fair value. The amounts advanced under these agreements are reflected as assets in the consolidated 
statement  of  financial  position.  The  Group  does  not  take  physical  possession  of  securities  purchased  under  agreements 
to resell. Sale or transfer of the securities is not permitted by the respective clearing house on which they are registered 
while the lent capital is outstanding. In the event of default by the counterparty, the Group has the right to the underlying 
securities held by the clearing house.

Impairment of financial assets other than securities at fair value through profit or loss

Financial assets other than those accounted for as at fair value through profit or loss are adjusted for impairment, where 
there are declines in value that are considered to be impaired. In evaluating whether a decline in value is an impairment for 
these financial assets, the Group considers several factors including, but not limited to, the following:

•  significant financial difficulty of the issuer or debtor;

•  a breach of contract, such as a default or delinquency in payments;

• 

it becomes probable that the issuer or debtor will enter into bankruptcy or other financial reorganisation; and

• 

the disappearance of an active market for that financial asset because of financial difficulties.

In  evaluating  whether  a  decline  in  value  is  impairment  for  equity  securities,  the  Group  also  considers  the  extent  or  the 
duration of the decline. The quantitative factors include the following:

• 

the market price of the equity securities was more than 50% below their cost at the reporting date;

• 

• 

the market price of the equity securities was more than 20% below their cost for a period of at least six months at the 
reporting date; and

the market price of the equity securities was below their cost for a period of more than one year (including one year) 
at the reporting date.

When the decline in value is considered impairment, held-to-maturity debt securities are written down to their present value 
of estimated future cash flows discounted at the securities’ effective interest rates, available-for-sale debt securities and 
equity securities are written down to their fair value, and the change is recorded in net realised gains on financial assets in 
the period the impairment is recognised. The impairment losses are reversed through net profit if in a subsequent period the 
fair value of a debt security increases and the increase can be objectively related to an event occurring after the impairment 
losses  were  recognised  through  net  profit.  The  impairment  losses  recognised  in  net  profit  on  equity  instruments  are  not 
reversed through net profit.

136

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.a IFRS 9 – Financial Instruments (continued)

(iii) Accounting policy for financial instruments related to IAS 39 applicable as of 31 December 2022 (continued)
Fair value measurement
The  Group  measures  financial  instruments,  such  as  securities  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss  and  available-for-sale 
securities, at fair value at each reporting date. Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer 
a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The fair value measurement of 
assets and liabilities is based on the presumption that the transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability takes place 
either:

• 

in the principal market for the asset or liability, or

• 

in the absence of a principal market, in the most advantageous market for the asset or liability.

The principal or the most advantageous market must be accessible by the Group at the measurement date.

The fair value of an asset or a liability is measured using the assumptions that market participants would use when pricing 
the asset or liability, assuming that market participants act in their economic best interest.

A  fair  value  measurement  of  a  non-financial  asset  takes  into  account  a  market  participant’s  ability  to  generate  economic 
benefits  by  using  the  asset  in  its  highest  and  best  use  or  by  selling  it  to  another  market  participant  that  would  use  the 
asset in its highest and best use.

The  Group  uses  valuation  techniques  that  are  appropriate  in  the  circumstances  and  for  which  sufficient  data  is  available 
to measure fair value, maximising the use of relevant observable inputs and minimising the use of unobservable inputs.

All assets and liabilities for which fair value is measured or disclosed in the consolidated financial statements are categorised 
within the fair value hierarchy, based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement as a whole.

For  assets  and  liabilities  that  are  measured  at  fair  value  on  a  recurring  basis,  the  Group  determines  whether  transfers 
have occurred between each level in the hierarchy by re-assessing categorisation (based on the lowest level input that is 
significant to the fair value measurement as a whole) at the end of each reporting period.

2.1.1.b IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts

In  May  2017,  the  IASB  issued  IFRS  17  Insurance  Contracts,  a  comprehensive  new  accounting  standard  for  insurance 
contracts covering recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure, which replaces IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts. In 
June 2020, the IASB issued the amendments to IFRS 17 which include a deferral of the effective date of IFRS 17 to annual 
reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023. Insurers qualifying for the deferral of IFRS 9 can apply both IFRS 
17 and IFRS 9 for the first time to annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023.

The Group adopted IFRS 17 for the preparation and disclosure of financial reports on 1 January 2023, and the comparative 
financial statements of the Group have been restated. This is mainly due to these changes in IFRS 17 compared to IFRS 
4, as follows:

• 

It provides a comprehensive general model for insurance contracts, and the measurement is based on the building blocks 
of expected present value of future cash flows, a risk adjustment for non-financial risk and a contractual service margin 
representing  the  unearned  profit  of  the  insurance  contracts.  It  also  provides  the  variable  fee  approach  for  insurance 
contracts with direct participation features and the premium allocation approach mainly for short-duration;

137

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.1  New  accounting  standards  and  amendments  adopted  by  the  Group  for  the  first  time  for  the 
financial year beginning on 1 January 2023 (continued)

2.1.1.b IFRS 17 – Insurance Contracts (continued)

•  The fulfilment cash flows include the expected present value of future cash flows and a risk adjustment for non-financial 

risk, remeasured every reporting period;

•  A contractual service margin represents the unearned profit of the insurance contracts and will be recognised in profit 

or loss over the coverage period;

•  Certain  changes  in  the  fulfilment  cash  flows  relating  to  future  service  adjust  the  carrying  amount  of  the  contractual 
service  margin  at  the  end  of  the  reporting  period,  and  thereby  will  be  recognised  in  profit  or  loss  over  the  remaining 
coverage period;

•  The discount rate assumption is determined based on observable current market situation that reflect the characteristics 
of  the  insurance  contracts.  The  effect  of  changes  in  discount  rates  will  be  reported  in  either  profit  or  loss  or  other 
comprehensive income, determined by an accounting policy choice;

•  The  recognition  of  insurance  revenue  and  insurance  service  expenses  is  made  in  the  statement  of  comprehensive 

income based on the services provided during the period;

• 

Investment  component  is  the  amounts  that  an  insurance  contract  requires  the  Group  to  repay  to  a  policyholder  in  all 
circumstances,  regardless  of  whether  an  insured  event  occurs.  Insurance  revenue  and  insurance  service  expenses 
presented in profit or loss has excluded any investment components;

•  Variable fee approach should be adopted for insurance contracts with direct participation features where policyholders 
share in the returns from underlying items. When applying the variable fee approach, the entity’s share of the fair value 
changes of the underlying items is included in the contractual service margin;

•  An  entity  may  simplify  the  measurement  of  a  group  of  insurance  contracts  using  the  premium  allocation  approach  if 
and  only  if  the  entity  reasonably  expects  that  such  simplification  would  produce  a  measurement  of  the  liabilities  for 
remaining  coverage  for  the  group  that  would  not  differ  materially  from  the  one  that  would  be  produced  applying  the 
general model or the coverage period of each contract in the group is one year or less at the inception of the group;

• 

Insurance revenue, insurance service expenses and insurance finance income and expenses are presented separately; 
and

•  Extensive disclosures are required to provide information on the recognised amounts from insurance contracts and the 

nature and extent of risks arising from these contracts.

For insurance contracts with accounting treatments that are inconsistent with the provisions of IFRS 17 prior to 1 January 
2023, the Group adopted the retrospective approach. When full retrospective approach is impracticable, the Group adopted 
the modified retrospective approach or fair value approach.

The  equity  of  the  Group  as  at  1  January  2022  decreased  by  RMB90,641  million  due  to  the  initial  application  of  IFRS  17. 
Refer to Note 2.8 for relevant accounting policies.

138

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.1 Basis of preparation (continued)

2.1.2 New accounting standards and amendments that are not yet effective and have not been early 
adopted by the Group for the financial year beginning on 1 January 2023

Standards/Amendments

Content

Amendments to IAS 1
Amendments to IAS 1
Amendments to IFRS 16
Amendments to IFRS 10 and 

Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current
Non-current Liabilities with Covenants
Lease Liability in a Sale and Leaseback
Sale or Contribution of Assets between an Investor or 

IAS 28

its Associate or Joint Venture

Amendments to IAS 7, 'Cash 
Flow Statement’ and IFRS 
7, 'Financial Instruments: 
Disclosures’

Financing Arrangements of Supplier

Effective for  
annual periods 
beginning on or after

1 January 2024
1 January 2024
1 January 2024
No mandatory effective 
date yet determined but 
available for adoption
1 January 2024

Amendments to IAS 21

Lack of Convertibility

1 January 2025

The Group has not early adopted any standard, interpretation or amendment that has been issued but is not yet effective.

2.2 Consolidation

The  consolidated  financial  statements  include  the  financial  statements  of  the  Company  and  its  subsidiaries  for  the  year 
ended  31  December  2023.  Subsidiaries  are  those  entities  which  are  controlled  by  the  Group  (including  the  structured 
entities controlled by the Group). Control is achieved when the Group is exposed, or has rights, to variable returns from its 
involvement with the investee and has the ability to affect those returns through its power over the investee. Specifically, 
the Group controls an investee if and only if the Group has:

•  power over the investee (i.e., existing rights that give it the current ability to direct the relevant activities of the investee);

•  exposure, or rights, to variable returns from its involvement with the investee; and

• 

the ability to use its power over the investee to affect its returns.

When  the  Group  has  less  than  a  majority  of  the  voting  or  similar  rights  of  an  investee,  the  Group  considers  all  relevant 
facts and circumstances in assessing whether it has power over an investee, including:

• 

the contractual arrangement with the other vote holders of the investee;

• 

rights arising from other contractual arrangements; and

• 

the Group’s voting rights and potential voting rights.

The  Group  re-assesses  whether  or  not  it  controls  an  investee  if  facts  and  circumstances  indicate  that  there  are  changes 
to one or more of the three elements of control. Consolidation of a subsidiary begins when the Group obtains control over 
the subsidiary and ceases when the Group loses control of the subsidiary.

139

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2 SUMMARY OF MATERIAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

2.2 Consolidation (continued)

Profit or loss and each component of OCI are attributed to the equity holders of the Company and to the non-controlling 
interests, even if this results in the non-controlling interests having a deficit balance. When necessary, adjustments are made 
to the financial statements of subsidiaries to bring their accounting policies in line with the Group’s accounting policies. All 
intra-group  assets  and  liabilities,  equity,  income,  expenses  and  cash  flows  relating  to  transactions  between  members  of 
the Group are eliminated in full upon consolidation.

A change in the ownership interest of a subsidiary, without a loss of control, is accounted for as an equity transaction. If 
the Group loses control over a subsidiary, it:

•  derecognises the assets (including goodwill) and liabilities of the subsidiary;

•  derecognises the carrying amount of any non-controlling interests;

•  derecognises the cumulative translation differences recorded in equity;

• 

recognises the fair value of the consideration received;

• 

recognises the fair value of any investment retained;

• 

recognises any surplus or deficit in profit or loss; and

• 

reclassifies  the  Group’s  share  of  components  previously  recognised  in  OCI  to  profit  or  loss  or  retained  earnings,  as 
appropriate, as if the Group had directly disposed of the related assets or liabilities.

The  consolidated  financial  statements  incorporate  the  financial  statements  of  the  combining  entities  or  businesses  in 
business  combination  under  common  control  as  if  they  had  been  combined  from  the  date  when  the  combining  entities 
or  businesses  first  came  under  the  control  of  the  ultimate  holding  company.  The  net  assets  of  the  combining  entities  or 
businesses  are  consolidated  using  the  carrying  amount  from  the  ultimate  holding  company’s  perspective.  No  amount  is 
recognised for goodwill or excess of the Group’s interest in the book value of the net assets over cost at the time of the 
common control combination, to the extent of the continuation of the ultimate holding company’s interest. The consolidated 
statement of comprehensive income includes the results of each of the combining entities or businesses from the earliest 
date presented or since the date when the combining entities or businesses first came under common control, where this 
is a shorter period, regardless of the date of the common control combination.

The comparative financial data have been restated to reflect the business combinations under common control occurred during 
this year. Transaction costs, including professional fees, registration fees, costs of furnishing information to shareholders, 
costs or losses incurred in combining operations of the previously separate businesses and other costs incurred in relation 
to the common control combination that is to be accounted for by using the merger accounting method are recognised as 
expenses in the period in which they are incurred.

The  acquisition  method  of  accounting  is  used  to  account  for  the  acquisition  of  subsidiaries  by  the  Group,  other  than 
common control combinations. The consideration transferred for the acquisition of a subsidiary is the fair value of the assets 
transferred, the liabilities incurred and the equity interest issued by the Group. The consideration transferred includes the fair 
value of any asset or liability resulting from a contingent consideration arrangement. Acquisition-related costs are expensed 
as  incurred.  Identifiable  assets  acquired,  and  liabilities  and  contingent  liabilities  assumed  in  a  business  combination  are 
measured  initially  at  their  fair  value  at  the  acquisition  date.  On  an  acquisition-by-acquisition  basis,  the  Group  recognises 
any non-controlling interest in the acquiree either at fair value or at the non-controlling interest’s proportionate share of the 
acquiree’s net assets.

140

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2.2 Consolidation (continued)

The excess of the aggregate of the consideration transferred, the fair value of any non-controlling interest in the acquiree, 
and  the  fair  value  of  any  previous  equity  interest  in  the  acquiree  at  the  acquisition  date  over  the  fair  value  of  the  net 
identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed is recorded as goodwill. If this is less than the fair value of the net assets 
of the subsidiary acquired in the case of a bargain purchase, the Group re-assesses whether it has correctly identified all 
of the assets acquired and all of the liabilities assumed, and reviews the procedures used to measure the amounts to be 
recognised  at  the  acquisition  date.  If  the  re-assessment  still  results  in  an  excess  of  the  fair  value  of  net  assets  acquired 
over the aggregate consideration transferred, then the gain is recognised in profit or loss. Goodwill is tested annually for 
impairment  and  carried  at  cost  less  accumulated  impairment  losses.  If  there  is  any  indication  that  goodwill  is  impaired, 
recoverable amount is estimated and the difference between carrying amount and recoverable amount is recognised as an 
impairment charge. Impairment losses on goodwill are not reversed in subsequent periods. Gains or losses on the disposal 
of an entity take into consideration the carrying amount of goodwill relating to the entity sold.

The  investments  in  subsidiaries  are  accounted  for  only  in  the  Company’s  statement  of  financial  position  at  cost  less 
impairment. Cost is adjusted to reflect changes in consideration arising from contingent consideration amendments. Cost 
also includes direct attributable costs of investment. The results of subsidiaries are accounted for by the Company on the 
basis of dividends received and receivable.

Transactions with non-controlling interests

The  Group  treats  transactions  with  non-controlling  interests  that  do  not  result  in  loss  of  controls  as  equity  transactions. 
For shares purchased from non-controlling interests, the difference between any consideration paid and the relevant share 
acquired of the carrying value of net assets of the subsidiary is recorded in equity. Gains or losses on disposal of shares 
to non-controlling interests are also recorded in equity.

When the Group ceases to have control or significant influence, any retained interest in the entity is re-measured to its fair 
value, with the change in carrying amount recognised in profit or loss. The fair value is the initial carrying amount for the 
purposes of subsequently accounting for the retained interest as an associate, joint venture or financial asset. In addition, 
any amounts previously recognised in OCI in respect of that entity are accounted for as if the Group had directly disposed 
of the related assets or liabilities. This may mean that amounts previously recognised in OCI are reclassified to profit or loss.

If the ownership interest in an associate is reduced but significant influence is retained, only a proportionate share of the 
amounts previously recognised in OCI is reclassified to profit or loss as appropriate.

2.3 Associates and joint ventures

Associates are entities over which the Group has significant influence, generally accompanying a shareholding of between 
20%  and  50%  of  the  voting  rights  of  the  investee.  Significant  influence  is  the  power  to  participate  in  the  financial  and 
operating policy decisions of the investee, but is not control or joint control over those policies.

Joint  ventures  are  the  type  of  joint  arrangements  whereby  the  parties  that  have  joint  control  of  the  arrangement  have 
rights to the net assets of the joint venture. Joint control is the contractually agreed sharing of control of an arrangement, 
which exists only when decisions about the relevant activities require the unanimous consent of the parties sharing control.

Investments  in  associates  and  joint  ventures  are  accounted  for  using  the  equity  method  of  accounting  and  are  initially 
recognised at cost.

141

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2.3 Associates and joint ventures (continued)

The Group’s share of post-acquisition profit or loss of its associates and joint ventures is recognised in net profit, and its 
share  of  post-acquisition  movements  in  OCI  is  recognised  in  the  consolidated  statement  of  comprehensive  income.  The 
cumulative  post-acquisition  movements  are  adjusted  against  the  carrying  amount  of  the  investment.  When  the  Group’s 
share  of  losses  in  an  associate  or  joint  venture  equals  or  exceeds  its  interest  in  the  associate  or  joint  venture,  including 
any other unsecured receivables, the Group does not recognise further losses unless it has obligations to make payments 
on behalf of the associate or joint venture.

Unrealised gains on transactions between the Group and its associates or joint ventures are eliminated to the extent of the 
Group’s interests in the associates or joint ventures. Unrealised losses are also eliminated unless the transaction provides 
evidence of an impairment of the asset transferred. Associates and joint ventures’ accounting policies have been changed 
where necessary to ensure consistency with the policies adopted by the Group. The Group adjusts the financial statements 
of its associates and joint ventures for insurance companies that have not adopted IFRS 9 and IFRS 17 in accordance with 
the Group’s accounting policies and recognises investment income and other comprehensive income, etc. accordingly.

Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of an acquisition over the fair value of the Group’s share of the net identifiable 
assets of acquired associates or joint ventures at the date of acquisition. Goodwill on acquisitions of associates and joint 
ventures  is  included  in  investments  in  associates  and  joint  ventures  and  is  tested  for  impairment  as  part  of  the  overall 
balance. Impairment losses on goodwill are not reversed. Gains or losses on the disposal of an entity take into consideration 
the carrying amount of goodwill relating to the entity sold.

The Group determines at each reporting date whether there is any objective evidence that the investments in associates and 
joint ventures are impaired. If this is the case, an impairment loss is recognised for the amount by which the investment’s 
carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount. The recoverable amount is the higher of the investment’s fair value less 
costs  of  disposal  and  value  in  use.  The  impairment  of  investments  in  the  associates  and  joint  ventures  is  reviewed  for 
possible reversal at each reporting date.

2.4 Financial instruments

Starting from 1 January 2023, the Group has adopted IFRS 9 and adjusted the accounting policies accordingly. The newly 
revised accounting policies are set out below:

A  financial  instrument  is  any  contract  that  gives  rise  to  a  financial  asset  of  one  entity  and  a  financial  liability  or  equity 
instrument of another entity. A financial asset or a financial liability is recognised when the Group becomes a party to the 
contractual provisions of the instrument.

Purchase and sale of investments are recognised on the trade date, when the Group commits to purchase or sell assets. 
At initial recognition, financial assets or financial liabilities not at fair value through profit or loss are measured at fair value 
plus or minus transaction costs (such as related charges and commissions) that are directly attributable to the acquisition 
or issue of such financial assets or financial liabilities. For financial assets and financial liabilities at fair value through profit 
or loss, transaction costs are recognised in profit or loss.

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2.4 Financial instruments (continued)

2.4.1 Financial assets

Classification and measurement

Based on the Group’s business model for managing the financial assets and the contractual cash flow characteristics of the 
financial assets, financial assets are classified as: financial assets at amortised cost, investment in debt instruments at fair 
value  through  other  comprehensive  income,  investment  in  equity  instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive 
income,  and  financial  assets  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss.  When,  and  only  when,  the  Group  changes  the  business 
model for managing financial assets, the Group shall reclassify all affected financial assets.

Debt instruments

Debt instruments are those financial instruments that meet the definition of a financial liability from the issuer’s perspective. 
Classification and subsequent measurement of debt instruments depend on:

(a)  the Group’s business model for managing assets; and

(b)  cash  flow  characteristics  of  financial  assets  (whether  the  cash  flows  are  solely  payments  of  principal  and  interest  on 

the principal amount outstanding).

Based on these factors, the Group classifies its debt instruments into the following three measurement categories:

i. Financial assets at amortised cost

The  financial  asset  is  held  within  a  business  model  whose  objective  is  to  collect  the  contractual  cash  flows,  and  the 
contractual cash flow characteristics are consistent with a basic lending arrangement, which gives rise on specified dates 
to  the  contractual  cash  flows  that  are  solely  payments  of  principal  and  interest  on  the  principal  amount  outstanding,  and 
the  financial  assets  are  not  designated  as  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss,  so  they  are  measured  at  amortised  cost. 
The  interest  income  of  such  financial  assets  is  recognised  using  the  effective  interest  rate  method.  Impairment  losses 
and  foreign  exchange  gains  or  losses  are  recognised  in  profit  or  loss.  The  gains  or  losses  arising  from  derecognition  are 
recognised directly in profit or loss.

ii. Investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

The  financial  asset  is  held  within  a  business  model  whose  objectives  are  both  collecting  the  contractual  cash  flows  and 
selling such financial assets, and the contractual cash flow characteristics are consistent with a basic lending arrangement. In 
addition, the financial assets are not designated as at fair value through profit or loss. Such financial assets are measured at 
fair value through other comprehensive income, and interest income is recognised using the effective interest rate method. 
Impairment losses and foreign exchange gains or losses are recognised in profit or loss for the current period. When such 
financial  assets  are  derecognised,  the  cumulative  changes  in  fair  value  recognised  in  other  comprehensive  income  are 
carried forward to profit or loss for the current period.

iii. Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss

Debt  instruments  held  by  the  Group  that  are  not  measured  at  amortised  cost  or  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive 
income  are  classified  as  financial  assets  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss.  These  financial  assets  are  subsequently 
measured at fair value. Net gains or losses, including any interest or dividend income, are recognised in profit or loss within 
investment income. The interest income represents the interest accrual on these financial assets which is calculated using 
the coupon rate.

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2.4 Financial instruments (continued)

2.4.1 Financial assets  (continued)

Classification and measurement (continued)

Equity instruments
Equity instruments are financial instruments that meet the definition of equity instruments when analysed from the issuer’s 
perspective.

All  equity  instruments  held  by  the  Group  are  subsequently  measured  at  fair  value,  and  gains  or  losses  are  recognised  in 
profit or loss. However, on initial recognition of an equity investment that is not held for trading, the Group may irrevocably 
elect  to  present  subsequent  changes  in  the  instrument’s  fair  value  in  other  comprehensive  income,  and  no  provision  for 
impairment  is  required.  Dividend  income  is  recognised  in  profit  or  loss  for  the  period  (except  for  those  clearly  represent 
a recovery of part of the cost of the investments). Other net gains and losses (including exchange gains and losses). are 
recognised  in  other  comprehensive  income,  and  may  not  be  subsequently  transferred  to  profit  or  loss.  Changes  in  the 
fair value of equity instruments measured at fair value through profit and loss, including any dividend income and foreign 
exchange gains and losses, are recognised in profit or loss within investment income. Dividend incomes on these equity 
instruments, which are generally determined at the amounts to be distributed by the investees, are recognised when the 
Group’s right to receive the payment is established.

Equity  instruments  classified  as  financial  assets  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss.  After  the  initial  confirmation,  gains  or 
losses arising from changes in the fair value of such financial assets (including dividend income earned and exchange gains 
or  losses)  are  recognised  in  profit  or  loss  for  the  period  and  shown  in  investment  income.  Dividend  income  from  equity 
instruments is generally determined by the amount distributed by the investee and is recognised when the Group’s right 
to receive dividends is established.

Impairment

Expected credit losses (“ECL”) refer to the weighted average of credit losses with the respective risks of a default occurring 
as the weights. Credit loss refers to the difference between all contractual cash flows discounted at the original effective 
interest rate or credit-adjusted effective interest rate for credit-impaired financial assets and receivable under the contract 
and all cash flows expected to be received, which is the present value of all cash shortfalls.

The Group recognises credit losses the basis of the ECL for cash and cash equivalents, term deposits, statutory deposits, 
financial assets purchased under agreements to resell, investment in debt instrument at amortised cost, investment in debt 
instrument at fair value through other comprehensive income, as well as other receivables, etc.

Giving consideration to reasonable and supportable information on past events, current conditions and forecasts of future 
economic  conditions  weighted  by  the  probability  of  default,  the  Group  recognises  the  ECL  as  the  probability-weighted 
amount  of  the  present  value  of  the  difference  between  the  cash  flows  receivable  from  the  contract  and  the  cash  flows 
expected to be collected.

At  each  reporting  date,  the  ECL  of  financial  instruments  at  different  stages  is  measured  respectively.  12-month  ECL  is 
recognised for financial instruments in Stage 1 which do not have a significant increase in credit risk since initial recognition; 
lifetime ECL is recognised for financial instruments in Stage 2 which have had a significant increase in credit risk since initial 
recognition but are not deemed to be credit-impaired; and lifetime ECL is recognised for financial instruments in Stage 3 
that has been credit-impaired.

For  the  financial  instruments  in  Stage  1  and  Stage  2,  the  Group  calculates  the  interest  income  by  applying  the  effective 
interest rate to the gross carrying amount (before net of expected credit losses). For the financial instruments in Stage 3, 
the interest income is calculated by applying the effective interest rate to the amortised cost (net of expected credit losses).

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2.4 Financial instruments (continued)

2.4.1 Financial assets  (continued)

Impairment (continued)

For other receivables that are classified into groups, the Group calculates the ECL with reference to historical credit loss 
experience, current conditions, and forecasts of future economic conditions, and based on the exposure at default and the 
lifetime ECL rates.

The Group recognises the impairment gain or loss into profit or loss for the period. For debt instruments classified as fair 
value through other comprehensive income, the Group recognises the loss allowance in profit or loss, meanwhile adjusts 
other comprehensive income, which does not decrease the carrying amount of the financial assets.

Derecognition

A  financial  asset  is  derecognised  when  one  of  the  following  criteria  is  met:  (i)  the  contractual  rights  to  receive  the  cash 
flows from the financial asset has expired, (ii) the financial asset has been transferred and the Group transfers substantially 
all the risks and rewards of ownership of the financial asset to the transferee, or (iii) the financial asset has been transferred 
and the Group has not retained control of the financial asset, although the Group neither transfers nor retains substantially 
all the risks and rewards of ownership of the financial asset.

When an investment in equity instruments measured at fair value through other comprehensive income is derecognised, the 
difference between the carrying amount and the consideration received as well as any cumulative gain or loss previously 
recognised in other comprehensive income are recognised in retained earnings. For other financial assets, when they are 
derecognised, their cumulative gains or losses previously recognised in other comprehensive income should be transferred 
out and recognised in profit or loss.

2.4.2 Financial liabilities

Financial liabilities are classified into financial liabilities at amortised cost and financial liabilities at fair value through profit 
or loss at initial recognition.

Financial  liabilities  at  amortised  cost  consist  primarily  of  interest-bearing  loans  and  other  borrowings,  financial  assets 
sold  under  agreements  to  repurchase,  bonds  payable  and  liabilities  arising  from  certain  investment  contracts  without  a 
discretionary participation feature (presented in other liabilities). Such financial liabilities are initially recognised at fair value, 
net of transaction costs incurred, and using the effective interest rate method for subsequent measurement.

Financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss mainly include liabilities arising from certain investment contracts without 
discretionary participation features (pension annuity products that do not transfer insurance risk), which are designated on 
initial recognition for subsequent measurement at fair value, with all realized or unrealized gains and losses recognised in 
profit or loss.

The  Group  retains  substantially  all  the  risk  and  rewards  of  ownership  of  securities  sold  under  agreements  to  repurchase 
which generally mature within 180 days from the transaction date. Therefore, securities sold under agreements to repurchase 
are classified as secured borrowings. The Group may be required to provide additional collateral based on the fair value of 
the  underlying  securities.  Securities  sold  under  agreements  to  repurchase  are  recorded  at  amortised  cost,  i.e.,  their  cost 
plus accrued interest at the end of the reporting period. It is the Group’s policy to maintain effective control over securities 
sold under agreements to repurchase which includes maintaining physical possession of the securities. Accordingly, such 
securities continue to be carried on the consolidated statement of financial position.

Bonds payable are initially recognised at fair value and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest 
rate method. Amortised cost is calculated by taking into account any discount or premium at acquisition and transaction costs.

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2.4 Financial instruments (continued)

2.4.2 Financial liabilities (continued)

A  financial  liability  is  derecognised  or  partly  derecognised  when  the  underlying  present  obligation  is  discharged  or  partly 
discharged. The difference between the carrying amount of the derecognised part of the financial liability and the consideration 
paid is recognised in profit or loss for the current period.

2.5 Fair value measurement

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between 
market participants at the measurement date. The fair value measurement of assets and liabilities is based on the presumption 
that the transaction to sell the asset or transfer the liability takes place either:

• 

in the principal market for the asset or liability, or

• 

in the absence of a principal market, in the most advantageous market for the asset or liability.

The principal or the most advantageous market must be accessible by the Group at the measurement date.

The fair value of an asset or a liability is measured using the assumptions that market participants would use when pricing 
the asset or liability, assuming that market participants act in their economic best interest.

A  fair  value  measurement  of  a  non-financial  asset  takes  into  account  a  market  participant’s  ability  to  generate  economic 
benefits  by  using  the  asset  in  its  highest  and  best  use  or  by  selling  it  to  another  market  participant  that  would  use  the 
asset in its highest and best use.

The  Group  uses  valuation  techniques  that  are  appropriate  in  the  circumstances  and  for  which  sufficient  data  is  available 
to measure fair value, maximising the use of relevant observable inputs and minimising the use of unobservable inputs.

All assets and liabilities for which fair value is measured or disclosed in the consolidated financial statements are categorised 
within the fair value hierarchy, described in Notes 5.4, 9 and 12 based on the lowest level input that is significant to the 
fair value measurement as a whole.

For  assets  and  liabilities  that  are  measured  at  fair  value  on  a  recurring  basis,  the  Group  determines  whether  transfers 
have occurred between each level in the hierarchy by re-assessing categorisation (based on the lowest level input that is 
significant to the fair value measurement as a whole) at the end of each reporting period.

2.6 Cash and cash equivalents

Cash  amounts  represent  cash  on  hand  and  demand  deposits.  Cash  equivalents  are  short-term,  highly  liquid  investments 
with original maturities of 90 days or less, whose carrying value approximates fair value.

2.7 Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell

The Group purchases securities under agreements to resell substantially identical securities. These agreements are classified 
as  secured  loans  and  are  recorded  at  amortised  cost,  i.e.,  their  costs  plus  accrued  interests  at  the  end  of  the  reporting 
period,  which  approximates  fair  value.  The  amounts  advanced  under  these  agreements  are  reflected  as  assets  in  the 
consolidated  statement  of  financial  position.  The  Group  does  not  take  physical  possession  of  financial  assets  purchased 
under agreements to resell. Sale or transfer of the securities is not permitted by the respective clearing house on which 
they are registered while the lent capital is outstanding. In the event of default by the counterparty, the Group has the right 
to the underlying securities held by the clearing house.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts

2.8.1 Definition

The contracts issued by the Group are classified into insurance contracts and investment contracts.

An  insurance  contract  is  a  contract  under  which  the  issuer  of  the  contract  accepts  significant  insurance  risk  from  the 
policyholder by agreeing to compensate the policyholder if a specified insured event adversely affects the policyholder. The 
Group assesses the extent to which insurance risk is transferred within a contract, conducting a test for the presence of 
significant insurance risk, thereby determining whether the contract should be classified as an insurance contract. Insurance 
contracts are those contracts that transfer significant insurance risk.

When the Group performs tests on significant insurance risk, it determines that a contract transfers significant insurance 
risk if the following conditions are met:

(a)  at  least  in  one  scenario  that  has  commercial  substance,  an  insured  event  specified  by  the  contract  could  cause  the 
Group  to  pay  significant  additional  amounts,  even  if  the  insured  event  is  extremely  unlikely,  or  even  if  the  expected 
present value of the contingent cash flows is a small proportion of the expected present value of the remaining cash 
flows from the insurance contract. Absence of discernible effect on the economics of the transaction indicates lack of 
commercial substance. The additional amounts refer to the present value of amounts payable if an insured event occurs 
that exceed those that would be payable if no insured event had occurred (including claims handling and assessment 
costs).

(b)  at  least  in  one  scenario  that  has  commercial  substance,  an  insured  event  specified  by  the  contract  could  cause  the 
Group to incur a loss on a present value basis. However, even if a reinsurance contract does not expose the issuer to 
the  possibility  of  a  significant  loss,  that  contract  is  deemed  to  transfer  significant  insurance  risk  if  it  transfers  to  the 
reinsurer substantially all the insurance risk relating to the reinsured portions of the underlying insurance contracts.

Investment contracts issued by the Group have the legal form of insurance contracts but do not transfer significant insurance 
risks.  The  Group  accounts  for  the  investment  contract  with  discretionary  participation  features  applying  the  accounting 
treatments for insurance contracts. An investment contract with discretionary participation features is a financial instrument 
that provides a particular investor with the contractual right to receive guaranteed and additional amounts. The additional 
amounts are subject to the returns on a specified pool of items at the discretion of the issuer, and are expected to be a 
significant  portion  of  the  total  contractual  benefits.  For  liabilities  arising  from  investment  contracts  without  discretionary 
participation features, the Group accounts for these contracts according to note 2.4.2.

An  insurance  contract  is  an  insurance  contract  with  direct  participation  features  if  all  the  following  conditions  are  met  at 
the inception of the contracts:

(a)  the contractual terms specify that the policyholder participates in a share of a clearly identified pool of underlying items;

(b)  an amount equal to a substantial share of the fair value returns on the underlying items is expected to be paid to the 

policyholder; and

(c)  a substantial proportion of any change in the amounts to be paid to the policyholder is expected to vary with the change 

in fair value of the underlying items.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.1 Definition  (continued)

Reinsurance  contract  is  an  insurance  contract  issued  by  the  reinsurer  to  compensate  the  cedent  for  claims  arising  from 
one or more insurance contracts issued by the cedent.

The Group adopts different models for different types of insurance contracts. Insurance contracts with direct participation 
features are measured using the variable fee approach. The Group simplifies the measurement using the premium allocation 
approach  for  insurance  contracts  and  reinsurance  contracts  with  coverage  of  one  year  or  less  or  contract  groups  where 
there  is  no  significant  difference  between  the  results  of  measuring  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  using  the  premium 
allocation approach and the results of measuring such liabilities using general measurement model. Other types of insurance 
contracts and reinsurance contracts are measured using the general measurement model.

The Group assesses the classification of contracts using its expectations at inception of the contracts and does not reassess 
the conditions afterwards, unless the contracts are modified.

2.8.2 Combination

The Group treats a series of insurance contracts with the same counterparty or related counterparties which may achieve 
an overall commercial effect, as a whole in order to report the substance of such contracts.

2.8.3 Separation

An insurance contract may contain one or more components, the Group separates the following components:

(a)  embedded  derivatives  meeting  the  separation  conditions  of  accounting  policies  for  financial  instruments  under  IFRS 

9 – Financial Instruments;

(b)  distinct investment components, but the investment components that meet the definition of investment contracts with 
discretionary participation features are still accounted for applying the accounting policies for insurance contracts;

(c)  promises to transfer distinct goods or services other than insurance contract services.

Investment component is the amount that an insurance contract requires to repay to policyholders regardless of whether 
an insured event occurs.

After the Group identifies and separates the non-insurance components that meet the above conditions for separation, the 
Group applies the accounting policies related to insurance contracts to the remaining portion.

2.8.4 Classification

The Group identifies portfolios of insurance contracts as contracts subject to similar risks and are managed together.

A group of insurance contracts consists of one or more insurance contracts issued within a period of no longer than one 
year and with similar levels of profitability.

The Group divides a portfolio of insurance contracts into a minimum of the following groups:

(a)  a group of contracts that is onerous at initial recognition;

(b)  a group of contracts that at initial recognition has no significant possibility of becoming onerous subsequently;

(c)  a group of the remaining contracts in the portfolio.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.4 Classification  (continued)

Portfolios of reinsurance contracts held are assessed for aggregation separately from portfolios of insurance contracts issued.

The Group divides a portfolio of reinsurance contracts held into at least the following groups:

(a)  a group of	contracts for which there is a net gain at initial recognition;

(b)  a group of contracts for which, at initial recognition, there is no significant possibility of a net gain arising subsequently;

(c)  a group of the remaining contracts in the portfolio.

The Group classifies reinsurance contracts held within a period of no longer than one year into the same group of reinsurance 
contracts held.

These  groups  represent  the  level  of  aggregation  at  which  insurance  contracts  are  initially  recognised  and  measured.  The 
Group does not reassess the composition of the groups subsequently.

2.8.5 Recognition

The Group recognises a group of insurance contracts it issues from the earliest of the following:

(a)  the beginning of the coverage period of the group of contracts, the coverage period refers to the period during which 

the Group provides insurance contract services;

(b)  the date when the first payment from a policyholder becomes due, or the date when the first payment is received by 

the Group if there is no contractual due date;

(c)  when it becomes onerous.

Reinsurance contracts held are recognised from the earliest of the following:

(a)  the beginning of the coverage period of the group of reinsurance contracts held; and

(b)  the date the Group recognises an onerous group of underlying insurance contracts.

For the reinsurance contracts held that provide proportionate coverage, they are recognised from the earliest of the following:

(a)  the later of the beginning of the coverage period or that any underlying insurance contract is initially recognised;

(b)  the date the Group recognises an onerous group of underlying insurance contracts.

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts

(i) General provisions (general measurement model)

Initial measurement
On initial recognition, the Group measures a group of insurance contracts at the total of the fulfilment cash flows and the 
contractual service margin.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts (continued)

(i) General provisions (general measurement model) (continued)

Initial measurement (continued)
Fulfilment cash flows comprise the following:

(a)  estimates of future cash flows directly related to the insurance contract;

(b)  an adjustment to reflect the time value of money and the financial risks; and

(c)  a risk adjustment for non-financial risk.

The fulfilment cash flows do not reflect the non-performance risk of the Group.

The Group defines insurance acquisition cash flows as cash flows arising from the costs of selling, underwriting and starting 
a group of insurance contracts that are directly attributable to the portfolio of insurance contracts to which the group belongs.

The  Group  may  estimate  the  future  cash  flows  at  a  higher  level  of  aggregation  and  then  allocate  the  resulting  fulfilment 
cash flows to individual groups of contracts.

The estimates of future cash flows:

(a)  estimates of future cash flows are unbiased probability-weighted averages;

(b)  reflect the perspective of the Group, provided that the estimates of any relevant market variables are consistent with 

observable market prices for those variables;

(c)  reflect conditions existing at the reporting date; and

(d)  are estimated separately from adjustment for the time value of money and financial risk, unless the most appropriate 

measurement technique combines these estimates.

The Group includes in the measurement of a group of insurance contracts all the future cash flows within the boundary of 
each contract in the group and does not measure future cash flows outside the boundary of the contract group.

Cash  flows  are  within  the  boundary  of  an  insurance  contract  if  the  Group  has  the  right  to  require  policyholders  to  pay 
premiums or has a substantial obligation to provide policyholders with insurance contract services.

A substantive obligation to provide insurance contract services ends when:

(a)  the Group has the practical ability to reassess the risks of the particular policyholder and, as a result, can set a price or 

level of benefits that fully reflects those risks; or

(b)  the Group has the practical ability to reassess the risks of the portfolio of insurance contracts that contains the contract 
and,  as  a  result,  can  set  a  price  or  level  of  benefits  that  fully  reflects  the  risk  of  that  portfolio;  and  the  pricing  of  the 
premiums up to the date when the risks are reassessed does not take into account the risks that relate to periods after 
the reassessment date.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts (continued)

(i) General provisions (general measurement model) (continued)

Initial measurement (continued)
The Group uses appropriate discount rate to adjust the estimates of future cash flows to reflect the time value of money 
and the financial risks related to those cash flows, to the extent that the financial risks are not included in the estimates 
of cash flows. The discount rates applied to the estimates of the future cash flows shall:

(a)  reflect the time value of money, the characteristics of the cash flows and the liquidity characteristics of the insurance 

contracts; and

(b)  be consistent with observable current market prices for financial instruments with cash flows whose characteristics are 
consistent with those of the insurance contracts, excluding the effect of factors that influence such observable market 
prices but do not affect the future cash flows of the insurance contracts.

The risk adjustment for non-financial risk is applied to the present value of the estimated future cash flows, to reflect the 
compensation that the Group requires for bearing the uncertainty about the amount and timing of the cash flows that arises 
from non-financial risk.

The  contractual  service  margin  is  a  component  of  the  liabilities  for  the  group  of  insurance  contracts  that  represents  the 
unearned profit the Group will recognise as it provides insurance contract services in the future.

On initial recognition, the contractual service margin is an amount arising from:

(a)  the fulfilment cash flows;

(b)  the derecognition at the date of initial recognition of any asset for insurance acquisition cash flows and any other asset 

or liability previously recognised for cash flows related to the group of contracts;

(c)  any cash flows arising from the contracts in the group at that date.

If the total amount represents net cash inflows, the Group recognises it as contractual service margin. If the total amount 
represents net cash outflows, the Group recognises a loss.

Subsequent measurement
The insurance contract liabilities are subsequently measured by the Group at the reporting date at the total of the liabilities 
for remaining coverage and the liabilities for incurred claims.

The liabilities for remaining coverage include the fulfilment cash flows related to unexpired coverage period allocated to the 
group at the financial position date and the contractual service margin of the group at that date.

The  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  include  the  fulfilment  cash  flows  related  to  claims  and  other  related  expenses  incurred 
allocated to the group at the financial position date.

For  insurance  contracts  without  direct  participation  features,  the  carrying  amount  of  the  contractual  service  margin  of  a 
group of insurance contracts at the reporting date is adjusted by the Group to reflect the effect of the following changes 
at the group of contracts level:

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts (continued)

(i) General provisions (general measurement model) (continued)

Subsequent measurement (continued)
(a)  the effect of any new contracts added to the group;

(b)  interest  accreted  on  the  carrying  amount  of  the  contractual  service  margin  for  contracts  measured  using  the  general 
measurement model. Interest accreted on the contractual service margin is measured at the locked-in discount rates. 
The locked-in discount rates are determined at the date of initial recognition of a group of contracts, applied to nominal 
cash flows that do not vary based on the returns on any underlying items;

(c)  changes relating to future service; except for

•  when  the  changes  result  in  a  decrease  in  the  carrying  amount  of  the  contractual  service  margin,  and  the  changes 
exceed the carrying amount of the contractual service margin. The contractual service margin is reduced to  zero, and 
the  excess  is  recognised  in  insurance  service  expenses  and  a  loss  component  is  recognised  within  the  liabilities  for 
remaining coverage;

• 

the  above  changes  adjust  the  loss  component  within  the  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  with  correspondence  to 
insurance service expenses. When the changes exceed the amount of loss component, the loss component should be 
reduced to zero. The remaining should be reinstating the contractual service margin.

(d)  the effect of any currency exchange differences on the contractual service margin; and

(e)  the amount recognised as insurance revenue because of the services provided in the period.

The Group rationally determines the coverage units of the groups of contracts in each period of the coverage period based 
on the pattern of provision of insurance contract services, and recognises insurance revenue accordingly over the current 
and future periods by amortising the carrying amount of the contractual service margin as adjusted for (a) to (d) above.

Changes in fulfilment cash flows that related to future services mainly comprise:

(a)  experience  adjustments  arising  from  premiums  received  in  the  period  that  related  to  future  services  and  related  cash 

flows, measured at the discount rates determined on initial recognition;

(b)  changes in estimates of the present value of future cash flows in the liabilities for remaining coverage, measured at the 
discount rates determined on initial recognition, except for those that relate to the effects of the time value of money, 
financial risk and changes therein;

(c)  differences  between  the  amount  of  investment  components  that  were  expected  to  be  payable  in  the  period  and  the 

amount of investment components that actually became payable;

(d)  differences between the amount of policy loans that were expected to be receivable in the period and the amount of 

policy loans that actually became receivable;

(e)  changes in risk adjustment for non-financial risk that relate to future service.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts (continued)

(ii) Measurement of groups of insurance contracts with direct participation features (variable fee approach)

The measurement of variable fee approach is consistent with the general measurement model except for the accounting 
policies listed below.

The Group applies the variable fee approach to measure the insurance contracts with direct participation features. The Group 
estimates the fulfilment cash flows of the groups of insurance contracts with direct participation features at the difference 
between the fair value of the underlying items and the variable fee.

The variable fee reflects the consideration received by the Group for providing investment-related services by managing the 
underlying items on behalf of the policyholder, and is equal to the Group’s share of the fair value of the underlying items 
less the fulfilment cash flows that do not vary based on the return on the underlying items.

For groups of insurance contracts measured using the variable fee approach, the carrying amount of the contractual service 
margin of a group of contracts at each reporting date equals the carrying amount at the start of the reporting period adjusted 
for:

(a)  the effect of any new contracts added to the group;

(b) the change in the amount of the Group’s share of the fair value of the underlying items, except to the extent that:

• 

• 

the decrease in the amount of the Group’s share of the fair value of the underlying items exceeds the carrying amount 
of the contractual service margin, giving rise to a loss;

the increase in the amount of the Group’s share of the fair value of the underlying items reverses the loss component 
of the liabilities for remaining coverage.

(c) the changes in fulfilment cash flows relating to future service and do not vary based on the returns of the fair value of 

underlying items, except to the extent that:

•  such increases in the fulfilment cash flows exceed the carrying amount of the contractual service margin, giving rise to 

a loss;

•  such decreases in the fulfilment cash flows are allocated to the loss component of the liabilities for remaining coverage.

(d)  the effect of any currency exchange differences on the contractual service margin; and

(e)  the amount recognised as insurance revenue because of the services provided in the period. The Group identifies the 
coverage  units  of  the  groups  of  contracts  for  the  coverage  period  in  accordance  with  the  insurance  contract  service 
provided, and recognised in the insurance revenue of the current period and subsequent periods accordingly by allocating 
the carrying amount of the contractual service margin as adjusted for (a) to (d) above.

(iii) Measurements for onerous insurance contracts

If a group of insurance contracts is onerous at the date of initial recognition, or if additional loss caused by contracts added 
to the group of onerous contracts, the Group recognises a loss as insurance service expenses in profit or loss for the net 
outflow for the group of onerous contracts, resulting in the carrying amount of the liabilities for the group being equal to 
the fulfilment cash flows and the contractual service margin of the group being zero.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts (continued)

(iii) Measurements for onerous insurance contracts (continued)

A group of insurance contracts becomes onerous (or more onerous) on subsequent measurement if meets one of the following 
conditions,  the  Group  recognises  a  loss  as  insurance  service  expenses  in  profit  or  loss  and  increases  loss  component  of 
the liabilities for remaining coverage:

(a)  the amount of unfavorable changes relating to future service in the fulfilment cash flows changes in estimates of future 
cash flows and the risk adjustment for non-financial risk exceed the carrying amount of the contractual service margin;

(b)  for a group of insurance contracts with direct participation features, the decrease in the amount of the Group’s share 

of the fair value of the underlying items exceed the carrying amount of the contractual service margin.

After a loss is recognised, the Group allocates the subsequent changes in fulfilment cash flows of the liabilities for remaining 
coverage specified as follows on a systematic basis between the loss component and the liabilities for remaining coverage 
excluding the loss component:

(a)  estimates of the present value of future cash flows for claims and expenses released from the liabilities for remaining 

coverage because of incurred insurance service expenses;

(b)  changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk recognised in profit or loss because of the release from risk; and

(c)  insurance finance income or expenses.

Any amounts allocated to the loss component of the liabilities for remaining coverage do not be recognised as insurance 
revenue.

After the Group has recognised a loss on an onerous group of insurance contracts, the subsequent measurements are:

(a)  for  any  subsequent  increases  relating  to  future  service  in  fulfilment  cash  flows  allocated  to  the  group  arising  from 
changes in estimates of future cash flows and the risk adjustment for non-financial risk, and any subsequent decreases 
in the amount of the Group’s share of the fair value of the underlying items, the Group recognises a loss as insurance 
service expenses in profit or loss and increases the liabilities for remaining coverage;

(b)  for  any  subsequent  decreases  relating  to  future  service  in  fulfilment  cash  flows  allocated  to  the  group  arising  from 
changes in estimates of future cash flows and the risk adjustment for non-financial risk, and any subsequent increases 
in the amount of the Group’s share of the fair value of the underlying items, the Group reverses the insurance service 
expenses in profit or loss and decreases the loss component of the liabilities for remaining coverage until that component 
is reduced to zero, the Group adjusts the contractual service margin only for the excess of the decrease over the amount 
allocated to the loss component.

(iv) Simplified approach for measurement of groups of insurance contracts (premium allocation approach)

The  Group  uses  the  premium  allocation  approach  for  measuring  the  group  of  insurance  contracts  with  a  coverage  period 
of each contract in the group is one year or less, or the Group reasonably expects that the measurement of the liabilities 
for remaining coverage for the group using the premium allocation approach would not differ materially from the one that 
would be produced using general measurement model.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.6 Measurement of insurance contracts (continued)

(iv) Simplified approach for measurement of groups of insurance contracts (premium allocation approach) (continued)

Initial measurement
On initial recognition, the Group measures the liabilities for remaining coverage based on the premiums received minus the 
insurance acquisition cash flows, minus (or add) the amount of the assets for insurance acquisition cash flows and other 
related assets or liabilities that is derecognised at the initial recognition.

Subsequent measurement
The carrying amount of a group of insurance contracts issued at the reporting date is the sum of the liabilities for remaining 
coverage and the liabilities for incurred claims.

At  the  reporting  date,  the  carrying  amount  of  the  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  is  the  carrying  amount  at  the  start  of 
the reporting period plus the premiums received in the period, minus insurance acquisition cash flows, plus any amounts 
relating to the amortisation of insurance acquisition cash flows recognised as insurance service expenses in the reporting 
period,  plus  any  adjustment  to  a  financing  component,  minus  the  amount  recognised  as  insurance  revenue  for  services 
provided in that period, and minus any investment component paid or transferred to the liabilities for incurred claims.

If, at any time during the coverage period, relevant facts and circumstances indicate that a group of insurance contracts is 
onerous, the Group will recognise a loss in profit or loss and increase the liabilities for remaining coverage.

The  Group  recognises  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  of  the  insurance  contracts  as  the  amount  of  fulfilment  cash  flow 
related to the incurred compensation.

2.8.7 Measurement of groups of reinsurance contracts held

(i) Groups of reinsurance contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

On initial recognition, the Group measures a group of reinsurance contracts held at the total of the fulfilment cash flows and 
the contractual service margin. The contractual service margin represents the net cost or net gain the Group will recognise 
as it receives insurance contract services from the reinsurer.

The fulfilment cash flows for the group of reinsurance contracts held include estimates of future cash flows,an adjustment 
to reflect the time value of money and the financial risks and a risk adjustment for non-financial risk,which relate directly to 
fulfil insurance contracts. The Group determines the risk adjustment for non-financial risk so that it represents the amount 
of risk being transferred by the holder of the group of reinsurance contracts to the issuer of those contracts.

The cash flows are within the contract boundary if they arise from substantive rights and obligations of the Group that exist 
during the reporting period in which the Group is obligated to pay premiums to the reinsurer or in which the Group has a 
substantive right to receive services from the reinsurer.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.7 Measurement of groups of reinsurance contracts held (continued)

(i) Groups of reinsurance contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

On initial recognition for a group of reinsurance contracts held, the Group calculates the sum of:

(a)  the fulfilment cash flows;

(b)  the amount derecognised at that date of any asset or liability previously recognised for cash flows related to the group 

of reinsurance contracts held;

(c)  any cash flows arising from the reinsurance contracts held in the group at that date;

(d)  loss-recovery component of assets for remaining coverage of reinsurance contracts held.

The Group recognises any net cost or net gain of the above total amounts as a contractual service margin.

The asset for reinsurance contracts held is subsequently measured by the Group at each financial position date at the total 
of the asset for remaining coverage and the asset for incurred claims.

The asset for remaining coverage includes the fulfilment cash flows related to unexpired coverage period allocated to the 
group of reinsurance contracts held at the financial position date and the contractual service margin of the group at that date.

The asset for incurred claims includes the fulfilment cash flows related to recovery of claims and other related expenses 
incurred allocated to the group of reinsurance contracts held at the financial position date.

If the reinsurance contract held is entered into before or at the same time as the onerous underlying insurance contracts are 
recognised, when the Group recognises a loss on initial recognition of an onerous group of underlying insurance contracts 
or  on  addition  of  onerous  underlying  insurance  contracts  to  a  group,  the  Group  recognises  a  loss-recovery  component  of 
the asset for remaining coverage for such groups of reinsurance contracts held by multiplying:

(a)  the loss recognised on the underlying insurance contracts; and

(b)  the percentage of claims on the underlying insurance contracts the Group expects to recover from the group of reinsurance 

contracts held.

The Group recognises the amount calculated above as an adjustment to contractual service margin and simultaneously as 
recoveries of insurance service expenses from reinsurers in profit or loss of the period.

When  the  Group  measures  the  groups  of  reinsurance  contracts  held,  it  adjusts  the  loss-recovery  component  to  reflect 
changes in the loss components of the onerous underlying insurance contracts, with the carrying amount of the loss-recovery 
component not exceeding the portion of the carrying amount of the loss components of the onerous underlying insurance 
contracts that the Group expects to recover from the group of reinsurance contracts held.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.7 Measurement of groups of reinsurance contracts held (continued)

(i) Groups of reinsurance contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

The Group measures the contractual service margin at each financial position date for a group of reinsurance contracts held 
as the carrying amount determined at the start of the reporting period, adjusted for:

(a)  the effect of contracts added to the group of contracts in the period on the contractual service margin;

(b)  interest accreted on the carrying amount of the contractual service margin, measured at the discount rates determined 
at the date of initial recognition of a group of contracts, to nominal cash flows that do not vary based on the returns on 
any underlying items;

(c)  the loss-recovery component of the asset for remaining coverage recognised on initial recognition of an onerous group 
of underlying insurance contracts or on addition of onerous underlying insurance contracts to a group, and reversals of 
a  loss  recovery  component  of  the  asset  for  remaining  coverage  to  the  extent  those  reversals  are  not  changes  in  the 
fulfilment cash flows of the group of reinsurance contracts held;

(d)  the  changes  in  the  fulfilment  cash  flows  relating  to  future  service,  other  than  the  change  resulting  from  a  change  in 
fulfilment cash flows allocated to a group of underlying insurance contracts that does not adjust the contractual service 
margin  for  the  group  of  underlying  insurance  contracts,  or  the  change  resulting  from  recognition  or  reversal  of  losses 
from onerous groups of underlying contracts measured applying the premium allocation approach;

(e)  the effect of any currency exchange differences in the period arising on the contractual service margin;

(f)  the  amortisation  of  the  contractual  service  margin  in  the  period.  The  Group  rationally  determines  the  coverage  units 
of  the  group  of  reinsurance  contracts  held  in  each  period  of  the  coverage  period  based  on  the  pattern  of  receipt  of 
insurance contract services, and recognises profit or loss accordingly over the current and future periods by amortising 
the carrying amount of the contractual service margin as adjusted for (a) to (e) above.

(ii) Groups of reinsurance contracts measured using the premium allocation approach

The Group applies the same principles to measure the groups of insurance contracts issued and the groups of reinsurance 
contracts held using the premium allocation approach.

When a group of reinsurance contracts held is measured using the premium allocation approach, for the amount recognised 
and reversed by the loss-recovery component of asset for remaining coverage recovered from reinsurers, the Group adjusts 
the carrying amount of asset for remaining coverage recovered from reinsurers in the group of reinsurance contracts while 
recognising the amounts recovered from reinsurers.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.8 Investment contracts with discretionary participation features

In  addition  to  the  requirements  for  insurance  contracts  set  out  above,  the  recognition  and  measurement  for  investment 
contract with discretionary participation features are modified as follows:

(a)  the date of initial recognition is the date the Group becomes party to the contract;

(b)  the contract boundary is modified so that cash flows are within the contract boundary if they result from a substantive 
obligation of the Group to deliver cash at a present or future date. The Group has no substantive obligation to deliver 
cash if the Group has the practical ability to set a price for the promise to deliver the cash that fully reflects the amount 
of cash promised and related risks;

(c)  the allocation of the contractual service margin is modified so that the Group recognises the contractual service margin 
over the duration of the group of contracts in a systematic way that reflects the transfer of investment services under 
the contract.

2.8.9 Modification and derecognition

If the terms of an insurance contract are modified, the Group derecognises the original contract and recognises the modified 
contract as a new contract, if any of the conditions below are satisfied:

(a)  if the modified terms had been included at contract inception:

• 

the modified contract would have been excluded from the scope of the accounting policies related to insurance contracts;

• 

the Group would have separated different components from the host insurance contract, resulting in a different insurance 
contract to which the accounting policies related to insurance contracts would have applied;

• 

the modified contract would have had a substantially different contract boundary; or

• 

the modified contract would have been included in a different group of contracts.

(b)  the  original  contract  met  the  definition  of  an  insurance  contract  with  direct  participation  features,  but  the  modified 

contract no longer meets that definition, or vice versa; or

(c)  the Group applied the premium allocation approach to the original contract, but the modifications mean that the contract 

no longer meets the eligibility criteria for that approach.

If  a  contract  modification  meets  none  of  the  conditions  above,  the  Group  treats  changes  in  cash  flows  caused  by  the 
modification as changes in estimates of fulfilment cash flows.

The Group derecognises an insurance contract when it is extinguished, i.e., when the obligation specified in the insurance 
contract expires or is discharged or cancelled.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.10 Presentation

(i) Insurance revenue

The Group recognises the reduction in the liabilities for remaining coverage because of services provided in the period as 
insurance revenue.

The amount of insurance revenue recognised in the reporting period depicts the transfer of promised services at an amount 
that reflects the portion of consideration that the Group expects to be entitled to in exchange for those services.

For contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach, insurance revenue includes the following:

(a)  Amounts related to the changes in the liabilities for remaining coverage;

•  claims  and  other  related  expenses  incurred  in  the  period  measured  at  the  amounts  expected  at  the  beginning  of  the 

period, excluding:

– amounts allocated to the loss component;
– repayments of investment components;
– amounts that relate to transaction-based taxes collected on behalf of third parties; and
– insurance acquisition cash flows.

• 

the changes in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk, excluding:

– changes included in insurance finance income or expenses;
– changes that relate to future service that adjust the contractual service margin; and
– amounts allocated to the loss component.

•  amounts of the contractual service margin amortised; and

•  other.

(b)  The Group determines insurance service expenses related to insurance acquisition cash flows in a systematic way on 
the basis of the passage of time. The Group recognises the same amount as insurance revenue to reflect the portion 
of the premiums that relate to recovering those cash flows.

For groups of insurance contracts measured using the premium allocation approach, the Group recognises insurance revenue 
based on the passage of time over the coverage period of a group of contracts.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.10 Presentation  (continued)

(ii) Insurance service expenses

The  Group  recognises  the  increase  in  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  because  of  claims  and  expenses  incurred  in  the 
period and any subsequent changes in fulfilment cash flows relating to incurred claims and incurred expenses as insurance 
service expenses.

Insurance service expenses include the following:

(a)  claims and other related expenses incurred in the period, excluding investment components;

(b)  amortisation of insurance acquisition cash flows;

(c)  changes  that  relate  to  past  service  –  changes  in  the  fulfilment  cash  flow  relating  to  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims; 

and

(d)  changes that relate to future service – onerous contract losses or reversals of those losses.

For  contracts  not  measured  using  the  premium  allocation  approach,  amortisation  of  insurance  acquisition  cash  flows  is 
reflected in insurance service expenses in the same amount as insurance acquisition cash flows recovery reflected within 
insurance  revenue.  For  contracts  measured  using  the  premium  allocation  approach,  amortisation  of  insurance  acquisition 
cash flows is based on the passage of time.

(iii) Allocation of reinsurance premiums paid

The Group recognises the reduction in the asset for remaining coverage because of insurance contract services received 
from the reinsurer in the period as allocation of reinsurance premiums paid. The Group treats amounts from the reinsurer 
that  it  expects  to  receive  that  are  not  contingent  on  claims  of  the  underlying  contracts  as  the  reduction  to  the  allocation 
of  reinsurance  premiums  paid.  Allocation  of  reinsurance  premiums  paid  excludes  any  investment  components  of  the 
reinsurance contracts held.

(iv) Amounts recovered from reinsurers

The increase in the carrying amount of the incurred claims for reinsurance contracts held incurred due to the incurred claims 
and other directly attributable expenses in the current period, as well as the subsequent changes in the related fulfilment 
cash flows, are recognised as the amounts recovered from reinsurers. The Group does not include the investment component 
of the reinsurance contracts held when recognising the amounts recovered from reinsurers.

(v) Financial changes in insurance contracts

Insurance  finance  income  or  expenses  comprises  the  change  in  the  carrying  amount  of  the  group  of  insurance  contract 
liabilities and reinsurance contract assets arising from:

(a)  the effect of the time value of money and changes in the time value of money;

(b)  the effect of financial risk and changes in financial risk.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.10 Presentation  (continued)

(v) Financial changes in insurance contracts (continued)

The Group disaggregates the financial changes in insurance contracts into insurance finance income or expenses from insurance 
contracts issued,reinsurance finance income or expenses from reinsurance contracts held and other comprehensive income.

For  the  contracts  not  measured  using  the  variable  fee  approach,  the  changes  in  carrying  amount  of  insurance  contract 
liabilities arising from the financial risk changing, such as discount rate, are recognised in other comprehensive income; For 
the contracts measured using the variable fee approach, insurance finance income or expenses equal to the amounts that 
can eliminate accounting mismatches arising from profit or loss from underlying items, and the remainders are recognised 
in other comprehensive income.

2.8.11 The effect of accounting estimates made in interim financial statements

For  the  treatment  result  of  accounting  estimates  for  insurance  contracts  and  reinsurance  contracts  held  made  in  interim 
financial statements, the Group has elected to adjust it in subsequent interim periods or in the annual reporting period.

2.8.12 Transition date approach

As  at  1  January  2022,  the  Group  applied  IFRS  17  retroactively.  When  it  was  impracticable  to  use  the  full  retrospective 
approach, the modified retrospective approach or the fair value approach were adopted by the Group. In accordance with 
IFRS 17, the comparative financial statements of the Group have been restated.

(i) Modified retrospective approach

Contracts without direct participation features
For contracts without direct participation features, the Group determines the contractual service margin or loss component 
of the liabilities for remaining coverage at the transition date as:

(a)  the  Group  estimates  the  future  cash  flows  at  the  date  of  initial  recognition  of  a  group  of  insurance  contracts  as  the 
amount of the future cash flows at the transition date, adjusted by the cash flows that occurred between the date of 
initial recognition of a group of insurance contracts and the transition date;

(b)  the risk adjustment for non-financial risk on initial recognition was determined by adjusting the amount at transition date 
or  earlier  date  (if  applicable)  for  the  expected  release  of  risk  before  transition  date.  The  expected  release  of  risk  was 
determined with reference to the release of risk for similar insurance contracts that the Group issued at transition date;

(c)  When the Group recognises contractual service margin at initial recognition, interest accreted on the carrying amount 
of  the  contractual  service  margin  during  the  period,  measured  at  the  discount  rates  determined  on  initial  recognition. 
The  amount  of  the  contractual  service  margin  recognised  in  profit  or  loss  before  transition  date  was  determined  by 
comparing the remaining coverage units at transition date with the coverage units provided under the group of contracts 
before that date; and

(d)  When the Group recognises the loss component at initial recognition, the amount allocated to the loss component before 

transition date is determined on a systematic and rational basis.

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2.8 Insurance Contracts (continued)

2.8.12 Transition date approach (continued)

(i) Modified retrospective approach (continued)

Contracts with direct participation features
For contracts with direct participation features, the Group determines the contractual service margin or loss component of 
the liabilities for remaining coverage at the transition date as:

(a)  based  on  the  amount  that  fair  value  of  the  underlying  items  minus  the  fulfilment  cash  flows  at  transition  date  and 

appropriately adjusted the relevant cash flow and non-financial risk adjustment before transition date;

(b)  if  (a)  result  in  a  contractual  service  margin,  the  amount  of  the  contractual  service  margin  recognised  in  profit  or  loss 
before transition date was determined by comparing the remaining coverage units at transition date with the coverage 
units provided under the group of contracts before that date;

(c)  if  (a)  result  in  a  loss  component,  the  Group  adjust  the  loss  component  to  nil  and  increase  the  liabilities  for  remaining 

coverage excluding the loss component by the same amount.

(ii) Fair value approach

For the groups of contracts that are measured using the fair value approach, the Group determines the contractual service 
margin or loss component of the liabilities for remaining coverage at transition date as the difference between the fair value 
of a group of contracts at that date and the fulfilment cash flows at that date.

The fair value of the group of contracts is calculated using the present value method, based on reasonable and supportable 
information available at the transition date.

3 SUMMARY OF OTHER ACCOUNTING POLICIES

3.1 Segment reporting

The  Group’s  operating  segments  are  presented  in  a  manner  consistent  with  the  internal  management  reporting  provided 
to the operating decision maker – president office for deciding how to allocate resources and for assessing performance.

Operating segment refers to the segment within the Group that satisfies the following conditions: i) the segment generates 
income and incurs costs from daily operating activities; ii) management evaluates the operating results of the segment to 
make resource allocation decision and to evaluate the business performance; and iii) the Group can obtain relevant financial 
information  of  the  segment,  including  financial  condition,  operating  results,  cash  flows  and  other  financial  performance 
indicators.

3.2 Foreign currency translation

The  Company’s  functional  currency  is  RMB.  Each  entity  in  the  Group  determines  its  own  functional  currency  and  items 
included in the financial statements of each entity are measured using that functional currency. The reporting currency of 
the consolidated financial statements of the Group is RMB. Transactions in foreign currencies are translated at the exchange 
rates  ruling  at  the  transaction  dates.  Monetary  assets  and  liabilities  denominated  in  foreign  currencies  are  translated  at 
the  exchange  rates  ruling  at  the  end  of  the  reporting  period.  Exchange  differences  arising  in  these  cases  are  recognised 
in net profit.

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3.3 Derivative instruments

Derivatives are initially recognised at fair value on the date on which a derivative contract is entered into and are subsequently 
re-measured at their fair value. The resulting gain or loss of derivative financial instruments is recognised in net profit. All 
derivatives are carried as financial assets when fair value is positive and as financial liabilities when fair value is negative.

Embedded  derivatives  that  are  not  closely  related  to  their  host  contract  (which  is  not  an  asset  regulated  by  the  Financial 
Instruments Standard) and that meet the definition of a derivative are separated and fair valued through profit or loss.

3.4 Property, plant and equipment

Property, plant and equipment, are stated at historical costs less accumulated depreciation and any accumulated impairment 
losses, except for those acquired prior to 30 June 2003, which are stated at deemed cost less accumulated depreciation 
and any accumulated impairment losses.

Depreciation

The historical costs of property, plant and equipment comprise its purchase price, including import duties and non-refundable 
purchase taxes, and any directly attributable costs of bringing the asset to its working condition and location for its intended 
use. Expenditure incurred after terms of property, plant and equipment have been put into operation, such as repairs and 
maintenance, is normally charged to the statement of comprehensive income in the period in which it is incurred. In situations 
where  the  recognition  criteria  are  satisfied,  the  expenditure  for  a  major  inspection  is  capitalised  in  the  carrying  amount 
of  the  assets  as  a  replacement.  Where  significant  parts  of  property,  plant  and  equipment  are  required  to  be  replaced  at 
intervals, the Group recognises such parts as individual assets with specific useful lives and depreciates them accordingly.

Depreciation is computed on a straight-line basis to write down the cost of each asset to its residual value over its estimated 
useful lives as follows:

Buildings
Office equipment, furniture and fixtures
Motor vehicles
Leasehold improvements

Estimated useful lives

15 to 35 years
3 to 11 years
4 to 8 years
Over the shorter of the remaining term of the lease and 

the useful lives

The residual values, depreciation method and useful lives are reviewed periodically to ensure that the method and period of 
depreciation are consistent with the expected pattern of economic benefits from items of property, plant and equipment.

Assets  under  construction  mainly  represent  buildings  under  construction,  which  are  stated  at  cost  less  any  impairment 
losses and are not depreciated, except for those acquired prior to 30 June 2003, which are stated at deemed cost less any 
accumulated impairment losses. Cost comprises the direct costs of construction and capitalised borrowing costs on related 
borrowed funds during the period of construction. Assets under construction are reclassified to the appropriate category of 
property, plant and equipment, investment properties or other assets when completed and ready for use.

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3 SUMMARY OF OTHER ACCOUNTING POLICIES  (continued)

3.4 Property, plant and equipment (continued)

Impairment and gains or losses on disposals

Property, plant and equipment are reviewed for impairment losses whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate 
that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. An impairment loss is recognised in net profit for the amount by which 
the  carrying  amount  of  the  asset  exceeds  its  recoverable  amount,  which  is  the  higher  of  an  asset’s  net  selling  price  and 
value in use.

The gain or loss on disposal of an item of property, plant and equipment is the difference between the net sales proceeds 
and the carrying amount of the relevant asset, and is recognised in net profit.

3.5 Leases

At inception of a contract, the Group assesses whether the contract is, or contains, a lease. A contract is, or contains, a lease 
if the contract conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of time in exchange for consideration. 
To assess whether a contract conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of a time, the Group 
assesses whether, throughout the period of use, the lessee has the right to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits 
from use of the identified asset and the right to direct the use of the identified asset.

As a lessee

Initial measurement

At the commencement date of the lease, the Group recognises right-of-use assets representing the right to use the leased 
assets, including buildings. The Group measures the lease liability at the present value of the lease payments that are not 
paid at that date, except for short-term leases and leases of low-value assets. For short-term leases with a lease term of not 
more than 12 months and low-value asset leases with a lower value when the individual asset is new, the Group chooses 
not to recognise the right of use assets and lease liabilities and recognises the relevant rental expenses in profit or loss or 
the cost of the relevant asset on a straight-line basis over each period of the lease term. In calculating the present value 
of the lease payments, the lease payments are discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease. If that rate cannot 
be readily determined, the Group uses its own incremental borrowing rate.

The lease term is the non-cancellable period of a lease when the Group has the right to use lease assets. When the Group 
has  an  option  to  extend  a  lease  and  is  reasonably  certain  to  exercise  that  option  to  extend  a  lease,  the  lease  term  also 
comprises  the  periods  covered  by  the  option  to  extend  the  lease.  When  the  Group  has  an  option  to  terminate  the  lease 
and is reasonably certain not to exercise that option, the lease term also comprises the periods covered by the option to 
terminate the lease. The Group reassesses whether it is reasonably certain to exercise an extension option, to exercise a 
purchase option or not to exercise a termination option, upon the occurrence of either a significant event or a significant 
change  in  circumstances  that  are  within  the  control  of  the  Group  and  affects  whether  the  Group  is  reasonably  certain  to 
exercise the commensurate options.

Subsequent measurement

The Group applies the straight-line method in depreciating the right-of-use assets. If it is reasonably certain that ownership 
of a leased asset transfers to the Group at the end of the lease term, the leased asset is depreciated under the remaining 
useful life of the asset. If it cannot be reasonably determined that ownership of a leased asset transfers to the Group at 
the end of the lease term, the Group depreciates the right-of-use asset from the commencement date to the earlier of the 
end of the lease term or the end of the useful life of the right-of-use asset.

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3.5 Leases (continued)

As a lessee  (continued)

Subsequent measurement (continued)

The Group uses a constant periodic rate of interest to calculate interest on the lease liability in each period during the lease 
term and recognises the interest in profit or loss.

Variable lease payments not included in the measurement of the lease liability are recognised in profit or loss in the period 
in which the event or condition that triggers the payment occurs.

After the commencement date of a lease, when there is a change in substance fixed payments, a change in the amounts 
expected to be payable under a residual value guarantee, a change in future lease payments resulting from a change in an 
index or a rate used to determine those payments, a change in the assessment or actual exercise situation of a purchase 
option,  an  extension  option  or  a  termination  option,  the  Group  uses  the  changed  present  value  of  lease  payments  to 
remeasure the lease liability and adjust the carrying amount of right-of-use asset accordingly. If the carrying amount of the 
right-of-use asset is reduced to zero and there is a further reduction in the measurement of the lease liability, the Group 
recognises any remaining amount of the remeasurement in profit or loss.

As a lessor

At the commencement date of the lease, leases in which the Group does not transfer substantially all the risks and rewards 
incidental to ownership of an asset are classified as operating leases. Rental income arising is accounted for on a straight-
line basis over the lease terms and is included in revenue in the statement of profit or loss.

3.6 Investment properties

Investment  properties  are  interests  in  land  use  rights  and  buildings  that  are  held  to  earn  rental  income  and/or  for  capital 
appreciation, rather than for the supply of services or for administrative purposes.

Investment properties are measured initially at cost, including transaction costs. Subsequent to initial recognition, investment 
properties are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and any impairment loss.

Depreciation is computed on the straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives. The estimated useful lives of investment 
properties are 15 to 35 years.

Overseas investment properties, that are held by the Group in the form of property ownership, equity investment, or other 
forms, have expected useful lives not longer than 50 years, determined based on the usage in their locations.

The useful lives and depreciation method are reviewed periodically to ensure that the method and period of depreciation 
are consistent with the expected pattern of economic benefits from the individual investment properties.

An investment property is derecognised when either it has been disposed of or when the investment property is permanently 
withdrawn from use and no future economic benefit is expected from its disposal. Any gains or losses on the retirement or 
disposal of an investment property are recognised in the statement of comprehensive income in the year of retirement or 
disposal. A transfer to, or from, an investment property is made when, and only when, there is evidence of a change in use.

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3.7 Employee benefits

Pension benefits

Full-time employees of the Group are covered by various government-sponsored pension plans, under which the employees 
are entitled to a monthly pension based on certain formulae. These government agencies are responsible for the pension 
liability  to  these  employees  upon  retirement.  The  Group  contributes  on  a  monthly  basis  to  these  pension  plans.  All 
contributions  made  under  the  government-sponsored  pension  plans  described  above  are  fully  attributable  to  employees 
at the time of the payment and the Group is unable to forfeit any amounts contributed by it to such plans. In addition to 
the government-sponsored pension plans, the Group established an employee annuity fund plan pursuant to the relevant 
laws and regulations in the PRC, whereby the Group is required to contribute to the plan at fixed rates of the employees’ 
salary costs. Contributions made by the Group under the annuity fund plan that is forfeited in respect of those employees 
who  resign  from  their  positions  prior  to  the  full  vesting  of  the  contributions  will  be  recorded  in  the  public  account  of  the 
annuity  fund  and  shall  not  be  used  to  offset  any  contributions  to  be  made  by  the  Group  in  the  future.  All  funds  in  the 
public account will be attributed to the employees whose accounts are in normal status after the approval procedures are 
completed as required. Under these plans, the Group has no legal or constructive obligation for retirement benefit beyond 
the contributions made.

Housing benefits

All full-time employees of the Group are entitled to participate in various government-sponsored housing funds. The Group 
contributes on a monthly basis to these funds based on certain percentages of the salaries of the employees. The Group’s 
liability in respect of these funds is limited to the contributions payable in each year.

Stock appreciation rights

Compensation  under  the  stock  appreciation  rights  is  measured  based  on  the  fair  value  of  the  liabilities  incurred  and  is 
expensed over the vesting period. Valuation techniques including option pricing models are used to estimate fair value of 
relevant liabilities. The liability is re-measured at the end of each reporting period to its fair value until settlement. Fair value 
changes in the vesting period are included in administrative expenses and changes after the vesting period are included in 
net fair value gains through profit or loss in net profit. The related liability is included in other liabilities.

3.8 Premiums received in advance

The advance premiums received by the Group are mainly premiums received for insurance contracts that have not yet met 
the criteria for initial recognition.

3.9 Share capital

Ordinary shares are classified as equity. Incremental costs directly attributable to the issue of equity instruments are shown 
in equity as a deduction, net of tax, from the proceeds.

3.10 Current and deferred income taxation

Income  tax  expense  for  the  period  comprises  current  and  deferred  tax.  Income  tax  is  recognised  in  net  profit,  except  to 
the extent that it relates to items recognised directly in OCI where the income tax is recognised in OCI.

Current  income  tax  assets  and  liabilities  for  the  current  period  are  calculated  on  the  basis  of  the  tax  laws  enacted  or 
substantively  enacted  at  the  end  of  each  reporting  period  in  the  jurisdictions  where  the  Company  and  its  subsidiaries 
operate  and  generate  taxable  income.  Management  periodically  evaluates  positions  taken  with  respect  to  situations  in 
which applicable tax regulations are subject to interpretation.

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3.10 Current and deferred income taxation (continued)

Deferred income tax is recognised, using the liability method, on temporary differences arising between the tax bases of 
assets  and  liabilities  and  their  carrying  amounts  in  the  consolidated  financial  statements.  Substantively  enacted  tax  rates 
are used in the determination of deferred income tax.

Deferred  income  tax  is  provided  on  temporary  differences  arising  on  investments  in  subsidiaries,  associates  and  joint 
ventures except where the timing of the reversal of the temporary difference can be controlled and it is probable that the 
temporary difference will not be reversed in the foreseeable future.

The  carrying  amount  of  deferred  tax  assets  is  reviewed  at  the  end  of  each  reporting  period  and  reduced  to  the  extent 
that  it  is  no  longer  probable  that  sufficient  taxable  profit  will  be  available  to  allow  all  or  part  of  the  deferred  tax  asset  to 
be  utilised.  Conversely,  previously  unrecognised  deferred  tax  assets  are  reassessed  by  the  end  of  each  reporting  period 
and are recognised to the extent that it is probable that sufficient taxable profit will be available to allow all or part of the 
deferred tax asset to be utilised.

Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities are measured at the tax rates that are expected to apply to the period when 
the  asset  is  realised  or  the  liability  is  settled,  based  on  tax  rates  (and  tax  laws)  that  have  been  enacted  or  substantively 
enacted at the end of the reporting period.

Deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities are offset if and only if the Group has a legally enforceable right to set off 
current  tax  assets  and  current  tax  liabilities  and  the  deferred  tax  assets  and  deferred  tax  liabilities  relate  to  income  tax 
levied by the same taxation authority on either the same taxable entity or different taxable entities which intend either to 
settle  current  tax  liabilities  and  assets  on  a  net  basis,  or  to  realise  the  assets  and  settle  the  liabilities  simultaneously,  in 
each future period in which significant amounts of deferred tax liabilities or assets are expected to be settled or recovered.

3.11 Provisions and contingencies

Provisions  are  recognised  when  the  Group  has  a  present  legal  or  constructive  obligation  as  a  result  of  past  events;  it  is 
probable that an outflow of resources will be required to settle the obligation; and the amount has been reliably estimated. 
Provisions are not recognised for future operating losses.

A  contingent  liability  is  a  possible  obligation  that  arises  from  past  events  and  whose  existence  will  only  be  confirmed  by 
the  occurrence  or  non-occurrence  of  one  or  more  uncertain  future  events  not  wholly  within  the  control  of  the  Group.  It 
can also be a present obligation arising from past events that is not recognised because it is not probable that outflow of 
economic resources will be required, or the amount of obligation cannot be measured reliably.

A contingent liability is not recognised in the consolidated statement of financial position but is disclosed in the notes to the 
consolidated financial statements. When a change in the probability of an outflow occurs so that such outflow is probable 
and can be reliably measured, it will then be recognised as a provision.

3.12 Dividend distribution

Dividend  distribution  to  the  Company’s  equity  holders  is  recognised  as  a  liability  in  the  Group’s  consolidated  financial 
statements in the year in which the dividends are approved by the equity holders of the Company.

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The  Group  makes  estimates  and  assumptions  that  affect  the  reported  amounts  of  assets  and  liabilities.  Estimates  and 
judgements are continually evaluated and based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future 
events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The Group exercises significant judgement in making 
appropriate assumptions.

Areas susceptible to changes in critical estimates and judgements, which affect the carrying amount of assets and liabilities, 
are set out below. It is possible that actual results may be different from the estimates and judgements referred to below. 
The  actual  result  may  have  significant  differences  in  accordance  with  changes  in  accounting  estimates  and  professional 
judgement.

4.1 Insurance contracts

4.1.1 Portfolios of contracts

The Group identifies portfolios of insurance contracts as contracts subject to similar risks and are managed together. The 
Group makes judgments about whether it has similar risk factors and management methods.

4.1.2 Investment components

The  Group  has  established  rules  to  unbundle  non-distinct  investment  components.  Generally,  for  relevant  contracts,  the 
Group determines the non-distinct investment components based on cash surrender values and similar contractual terms.

4.1.3 Determination of coverage unit

The Group’s unit of coverage is determined by considering the benefits provided by each contract and its expected duration 
of  insurance  coverage.  For  policies  that  include  investment  return  services  or  investment-related  services,  the  amount 
corresponding to the investment return service or investment-related service is the investment component or one of the 
amounts that the policyholder is entitled to recover.

4.1.4 Estimates of future benefit payments and premiums arising from insurance contracts not using 
the premium allocation approach

Fulfilment  cash  flows  are  determined  on  the  basis  of  the  Group’s  estimates  of  future  benefits,  premiums  and  related 
expenses, taking into account the risk adjustment for non-financial risk. The mortality rate, morbidity rate, lapse rate, discount 
rate,  expense  assumption  and  policy  dividend  assumption  used  for  the  estimation  of  future  cash  flows  are  determined 
according to the latest empirical analysis and current and future economic conditions.

The judgments and estimates used in the valuation process will affect the amount recognised in the consolidated financial 
statements for insurance contracts and reinsurance contracts held.

The description of the above assumptions is detailed in Note 14.1.

4.2 Financial instruments

The Group’s principal investments are debt investments, equity investments, term deposits, etc. The critical estimates and 
judgements are those associated with the recognition of impairment and the measurement of fair value.

4.2.1 Classification of financial assets

Significant judgements made by the Group in the classification of financial assets include business model and analysis on 
contractual cash flow characteristics.

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4.2 Financial instruments (continued)

4.2.1 Classification of financial assets (continued)

The Group’s assessment of the business model is performed on a financial asset portfolio basis, and determined on the basis 
of scenarios which are reasonably expected to occur, taking into account: how cash flows were realised in the past, how the 
performance are evaluated and reported to the entity’s key management personnel; the risks that affect the performance 
and the way in which those risks are assessed and managed; and how managers of the business are compensated, etc.

When  assessing  whether  contractual  cash  flow  characteristics  of  financial  assets  are  consistent  with  basic  lending 
arrangement, key judgements made by the Group include: the possibility of changes in  timing or amount  of the  principal 
during the duration due to reasons such as early repayment; whether interest only includes considerations for time value 
of  money,  credit  risks,  other  basic  lending  risks,  costs  and  profits.  For  example,  whether  the  prepayment  amount  only 
reflects the principal outstanding and the interest on the principal outstanding, as well as the reasonable compensation for 
the early termination of the contract.

4.2.2 Measurement of ECL

The  Group  calculates  ECL  through  default  risk  exposure  and  ECL  rate,  and  determines  the  ECL  rate  based  on  default 
probability  and  default  loss  rate.  In  determining  the  ECL  rate,  the  Group  uses  data  such  as  internal  historical  credit  loss 
experience, and adjusts historical data based on current conditions and forward-looking information.

4.2.3 Fair value of financial instruments

Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between 
market participants at the measurement date. When the fair values of financial assets and liabilities cannot be measured 
based on quoted prices in active markets, their fair value is measured using valuation techniques which require a degree 
of judgements. The methods and assumptions used by the Group in measuring the fair value of financial instruments are 
as follows:

Debt investments: fair values are generally based upon current bid prices. Where current bid prices are not readily available, 
fair  values  are  estimated  using  either  prices  observed  in  recent  transactions,  values  obtained  from  current  bid  prices  of 
comparable investments or valuation techniques when the market is not active.

Equity investments: fair values are generally based upon current bid prices. Where current bid prices are not readily available, 
fair values are estimated using either prices observed in recent transactions or commonly used market pricing models.

Financial  assets  purchased  under  agreements  to  resell,  term  deposits,  interest-bearing  loans  and  other  borrowings,  and 
financial assets sold under agreements to repurchase: the carrying amounts of these assets in the statement of financial 
position approximate fair value.

For  the  description  of  valuation  techniques,  please  refer  to  Note  5.4.  Using  different  valuation  techniques  and  parameter 
assumptions may lead to some differences of fair value estimations.

4.3 Impairment of investments in associates and joint ventures

The  Group  assesses  whether  there  are  any  indicators  of  impairment  for  investments  in  associates  and  joint  ventures  at 
the end of each reporting period. Investments in associates and joint ventures are tested for impairment when there are 
indicators that the carrying amounts may not be recoverable. An impairment exists when the carrying value of investments 
in associates and joint ventures exceeds its recoverable amount, which is the higher of its fair value less costs of disposal 
and  its  value  in  use.  The  calculation  of  the  fair  value  less  costs  of  disposal  is  based  on  available  data  from  binding  sales 
transactions in an arm’s length transaction of similar assets or observable market prices less incremental costs for disposing 
of investments in associates and joint ventures. When value in use calculations are undertaken, the Group must estimate 
the expected future cash flows from investments in associates and joint ventures and choose a suitable discount rate in 
order to calculate the present value of those cash flows.

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4.4 Income tax

The Group is subject to income tax in numerous jurisdictions. During the normal course of business, certain transactions 
and activities for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain, the Group needs to exercise significant judgement when 
determining  the  income  tax.  If  the  final  settlement  results  of  the  tax  matters  are  different  from  the  amounts  recorded, 
these differences will impact the final income tax expense and deferred tax for the period.

4.5 Determination of control over investee

The  Group  applies  its  judgement  to  determine  whether  the  control  indicators  set  out  in  Note  2.2  indicate  that  the  Group 
controls structured entities such as funds and asset management products.

The Group issues certain structured entities (e. g. funds and asset management products), and acts as a manager for such 
entities  according  to  the  contracts.  In  addition,  the  Group  may  be  exposed  to  variability  of  returns  as  a  result  of  holding 
shares of the structured entities. Determining whether the Group controls such structured entities usually focuses on the 
assessment of the aggregate economic interests of the Group in the entities (including any carried interests and expected 
management  fees)  and  the  decision-making  rights  on  the  entity.  As  at  31  December  2023,  the  Group  has  consolidated 
some funds issued and managed by the Company’s subsidiary, China Life AMP Asset Management Company (“CL AMP”), 
some debt investment schemes and asset management products issued and managed by the Company’s subsidiary, China 
Life  Asset  Management  Company  Limited  (“AMC”)  and  some  trust  schemes  and  debt  investment  schemes  issued  and 
managed by third parties in the consolidated financial statements. Please refer to Note 33(b) for the details.

5 RISK MANAGEMENT

Risk management is carried out by the Company’s Risk Management Committee under policies approved by the Company’s 
Board of Directors.

The Group issues contracts that transfer insurance risk or financial risk or both. This section summarises these risks and 
the way the Group manages them.

5.1 Insurance risk

5.1.1 Types of insurance risks

The  risk  under  any  one  insurance  contract  is  the  possibility  that  an  insured  event  occurs  and  the  uncertainty  about  the 
amount of the resulting claim. By the very nature of an insurance contract, this risk is random and therefore unpredictable. 
For  a  portfolio  of  insurance  contracts  where  the  theory  of  probability  is  applied  to  the  pricing  and  provisioning,  the  main 
risk to the Group is that actual claims are paid in excess of the carrying value of the insured liability. This occurs when the 
frequency or severity of claims and benefits exceeds the estimates. Insurance events are random, and the actual number 
of claims and the amount of benefits paid will vary each year from estimates established using statistical techniques.

The  business  of  the  Group  mainly  comprises  life  insurance  contracts  and  non-life  insurance  contracts.  For  life  insurance 
contracts,  the  most  significant  factor  is  constant  improvement  in  medical  and  social  conditions  that  would  help  prolong 
life  span.  Insurance  risk  is  also  affected  by  policyholders’  rights  to  terminate  contracts,  reduce  premiums,  refuse  to  pay 
premiums  or  exercise  annuity  conversion  rights.  Thus,  insurance  risk  is  also  subject  to  policyholders’  behaviours  and 
decisions.  For  non-life  insurance  contracts,  the  significant  factors  that  could  increase  the  overall  frequency  of  claims  are 
epidemics, profound changes in lifestyles, natural disasters, and accidents resulting in earlier or more claims than expected.

The Group manages insurance risk through underwriting strategies, reinsurance arrangements and claims handling.

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5.1 Insurance risk (continued)

5.1.1 Types of insurance risks  (continued)

Experience shows that the larger the portfolio of similar insurance contracts, the smaller the relative variability of the expected 
outcome will be. In addition, a more diversified portfolio is less likely to be affected across the board by a change in any 
subset  of  the  portfolio.  The  Group  has  developed  its  insurance  underwriting  strategy  to  diversify  the  types  of  insurance 
risks accepted and within each of these categories to achieve a sufficiently large population to reduce the variability of the 
expected outcome.

The  Group  manages  insurance  risks  through  two  types  of  reinsurance  agreements,  ceding  on  a  quota  share  basis  or  a 
surplus basis, to cover insurance liability risk. Reinsurance contracts cover almost all products, which contain risk liabilities. 
The  products  reinsured  include:  life  insurance,  accident  and  health  insurance  or  death,  disability,  accident,  illness  and 
assistance in terms of product category or function, respectively. These reinsurance agreements spread insured risk to a 
certain extent and reduce the effect of potential losses to the Group. However, the Group’s direct insurance liabilities to 
the policyholder are not eliminated because of the credit risk associated with the failure of reinsurance companies to fulfil 
their responsibilities.

5.1.2 Concentration of insurance risks

Currently,  the  Group’s  insurance  operation  is  mainly  located  in  the  PRC.  There  are  no  significant  differences  among  the 
regions where the Group underwrites insurance contracts.

The major products of the Group’s life insurance contracts are listed below:

Product name

RMB million

%

RMB million

%

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

Premiums of life insurance contracts (i)
Xin Xiang Wei Lai Participating Endowment (a)
Kang Ning Whole Life (b)
Fu Lu Shuang Xi Participating Endowment (c)
Sheng Shi Zun Xiang Annuity (d)
Mei Man Yi Sheng Annuity (e)
Others (f)

Total

Insurance benefits of life insurance  

contracts (i)

Xin Xiang Wei Lai Participating Endowment (a)
Kang Ning Whole Life (b)
Fu Lu Shuang Xi Participating Endowment (c)
Sheng Shi Zun Xiang Annuity (d)
Mei Man Yi Sheng Annuity (e)
Others (f)

38,632
11,233
5,065
61
19
509,867

564,877

25
6,618
3,053
7,157
2,854
94,723

6.84%
1.99%
0.90%
0.01%
0.00%
90.26%

100.00%

0.02%
5.78%
2.67%
6.25%
2.49%
82.79%

Total

114,430

100.00%

5
13,247
9,379
7,492
14
510,789

540,926

–
5,453
3,800
501
2,616
74,594

86,964

0.00%
2.45%
1.73%
1.39%
0.00%
94.43%

100.00%

–
6.27%
4.37%
0.58%
3.01%
85.77%

100.00%

171

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.1 Insurance risk (continued)

5.1.2 Concentration of insurance risks (continued)

Liabilities of life insurance contracts (i)
Xin Xiang Wei Lai Participating Endowment (a)
Kang Ning Whole Life (b)
Fu Lu Shuang Xi Participating Endowment (c)
Sheng Shi Zun Xiang Annuity (d)
Mei Man Yi Sheng Annuity (e)
Others (f)

Total

As at 31 December 2023

As at 31 December 2022

RMB million

%

RMB million

%

28,876
392,552
184,863
48,176
154,698
3,440,644

4,249,809

0.68%
9.24%
4.35%
1.13%
3.64%
80.96%

100.00%

4
386,218
181,523
54,528
158,469
3,060,157

3,840,899

0.00%
10.06%
4.73%
1.42%
4.13%
79.66%

100.00%

(i)  The premiums, the current amount of insurance benefits and the ending balance of liabilities are data under the Chinese 

Accounting Standards for Business Enterprises (“ASBE”).

(a)  Xin  Xiang  Wei  Lai  Participating  Endowment  is  a  participating  endowment  insurance  contract.  It  provides  two  options 
with regards to payment of premiums, i.e., one-off payment or regular payments in 3 years or 5 years. The insurance 
period  is  divided  into  8  years  and  10  years.  This  product  is  applicable  to  healthy  policyholders  between  28-day-old 
and  72-year-old.  From  the  first  effective  date  after  the  fifth  policy  year  to  the  expiration  period,  if  the  insured  lives  to 
the  annual  corresponding  effective  date,  a  survival  benefit  shall  be  paid  according  to  the  following  provisions:  If  the 
payment  is  made  in  the  form  of  single  premium,20%  of  the  annual  premium  as  determined  by  the  contract’s  basic 
insurance amount shall be paid. If the payment period is three years,60% of the annual premium as determined by the 
contract’s basic insurance amount shall be paid. If the payment period is five years,100% of the annual premium paid 
as determined by the contract’s basic insurance amount shall be paid. If the insured lives to the annual corresponding 
effective date of the expiration period, the contract shall terminate, and the maturity benefit shall be paid at the basic 
sum insured. If the insured dies from the effective date of the contract to the effective date of the year in which the 
insured reaches the age of 18, the death benefit shall be paid at the greater value of the insurance premium (excluding 
interest) and cash value paid by the insured at the time of death. If the insured dies on the effective date of the year 
in which the insured reaches the age of 18, the contract shall terminate, and the death benefit shall be paid according 
to  the  following  provisions:  if  the  insured  dies  before  the  effective  date  of  the  year  in  which  the  insured  reaches  the 
age of 41, the death benefit shall be paid at 160% of the insurance premium (excluding interest) paid at the time of the 
insured’s  death;  from  the  effective  date  of  the  year  in  which  the  insured  reaches  the  age  of  41  to  the  effective  date 
of the year in which the insured dies before the effective date of the year in which the insured reaches the age of 61, 
the death benefit shall be paid at 140% of the insurance premium (excluding interest) paid at the time of the insured’s 
death;  the  death  benefit  shall  be  paid  at  120%  of  the  insurance  premium  (excluding  interest)  paid  at  the  time  of  the 
insured’s death on and after the effective date of the year in which the insured reaches the age of 61.

(b)  Kang Ning Whole Life is a whole life insurance contract with the options for single premium or regular premium of 10 
years or 20 years and the payment methods of insurance are divided into single payment, annual payment, and semi-
annual payment. This product is applicable to healthy policyholders under 70-year-old. The critical illness benefit is paid 
at  200%  of  the  basic  sum  insured.  If  the  critical  illness  benefits  are  paid  within  the  payment  period,  the  insurance 
premium of each subsequent period shall be exempted, and the contract shall continue to be valid from the date of the 
payment  of  the  critical  illness  benefits.  Both  death  and  disability  benefits  are  paid  at  300%  of  the  basic  sum  insured 
less any critical illness benefits paid.

172

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.1 Insurance risk (continued)

5.1.2 Concentration of insurance risks (continued)

(c)  Fu  Lu  Shuang  Xi  Participating  Endowment  is  a  participating  insurance  contract  with  the  options  for  regular  premium 
of 3 years,5 years and 10 years paid annually, semi-annually, quarterly or monthly. Its insured period extends from the 
effective date of the insurance contract to the corresponding date of the year when the policyholders turn 75-year-old. 
This product is applicable to healthy policyholders between 30-day-old and 60-year-old. Starting from the effective date 
of the insurance contract, the survival benefit is paid every two policy years on the corresponding date at 10% of the 
basic  sum  insured.  If  death  incurred  over  insured  period,  the  contract  terminates  and  death  benefit  is  paid  at  death 
benefit amount. If the policyholders live to the annual corresponding effective date of the expiration period, the contract 
terminates and maturity benefit is paid at maturity benefit amount.

(d)  Sheng Shi Zun Xiang Annuity is an annuity insurance contract with the options for regular premium of 3 years or 5 years 
paid annually or monthly. The insurance period is 20 years. This product is applicable to healthy policyholders between 
28-day-old and 70-year-old. If the insured survives on the first and second annual effective dates after the contract has 
been  in  force  for  five  policy  years,  a  special  survival  benefit  shall  be  paid  according  to  the  following  provisions:  for  a 
premium payment period of three years, a special survival benefit shall be paid according to 48% and 12% of the annual 
premium determined by the contract’s basic insurance amount; for a premium payment period of five years, a special 
survival  benefit  shall  be  paid  according  to  60%  and  40%  of  the  annual  premium  determined  by  the  contract’s  basic 
insurance amount. If the insured survives until the effective date of the contract, the annuity shall be paid at the basic 
insurance amount every year from the first effective date of the contract after the contract has been in force for seven 
policy years until the expiration of the insurance period of the contract. If the insured survives until the effective date 
of the year in which the insurance period of the contract expires, the contract shall terminate, and the maturity benefit 
shall  be  paid  according  to  the  premiums  paid  (excluding  interest).  If  the  insured  dies  during  the  insurance  period,  the 
contract shall terminate, and the death benefit shall be paid according to the greater value of the premiums paid at the 
time of the insured’s death (excluding interest) minus the sum of the special survival benefit paid and the cash value.

(e)  Mei Man Yi Sheng Annuity is a participating annuity insurance contract with annual premium payment method and four 
types of premium payment periods: 3 years, 5 years, 8 years and 12 years. The insurance period is from the effective 
date  of  the  contract  to  the  effective  date  of  the  year  when  the  insured  reaches  the  age  of  75.  Any  person  between 
30 days and 60 years old and in good health can be the insured person. From the effective date of the contract to the 
date corresponding to the effective date of the year when the insured reaches the age of 74. If the insured is alive, the 
annuity of care will be paid every year on the effective date of the contract according to the following provisions: The 
annuity of care is the basic insurance amount multiplied by the period of payment (number of years) multiplied by 1%. 
The contract shall be terminated on the effective date of the year in which the insured survives until he reaches the age 
of 75, and the expiration benefit shall be paid according to the following provisions: The expiration benefit is the basic 
insurance amount multiplied by the payment period (number of years). If the insured dies due to illness within 2 years 
from the effective (or re-effective) date of the contract, the death benefit shall be paid according to the premium paid 
(without interest), and the contract shall terminate. If the insured dies due to accidental injury or dies due to illness 2 
years  after  the  effective  (or  re-effective)  date  of  the  contract,  the  death  benefits  shall  be  paid  in  accordance  with  the 
following  provisions  and  the  contract  shall  be  terminated.  The  death  benefit  is  the  basic  insurance  amount  multiplied 
by the number of years paid at the time of death multiplied by 110%.

(f)  Others consist of various life insurance contracts with no significant concentration.

173

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.1 Insurance risk (continued)

5.1.3 Sensitivity analysis

Sensitivity analysis of contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Significant  assumptions  involved  in  calculation  of  insurance  contract  liabilities  include  mortality,  morbidity,  lapse  rate  and 
discount rate, etc.

If  holding  all  other  variables  constant,  the  Group  considers  the  expected  effect  of  changes  in  assumptions  on  mortality, 
morbidity  and  lapse  rate  on  consolidated  profit  before  income  tax  and  consolidated  other  comprehensive  income  before 
income tax for the year, and considers the effect of risk mitigation on insurance contracts and reinsurance contracts held, 
as follows. For effect of changes in assumption on discount rate, please refer to Note 5.2.1(i).

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

Assumptions

Changes in 
assumptions

Effect on profit before  
income tax

Effect on other comprehensive 
income before income tax

Effect on profit before  
income tax

Effect on other comprehensive 
income before income tax

Before 
reinsurance

After 
reinsurance

Before 
reinsurance

After 
reinsurance

Before 
reinsurance

After 
reinsurance

Before 
reinsurance

After 
reinsurance

Mortality/Morbidity rate
Mortality/Morbidity rate
Lapse rate
Lapse rate

Increase by 10%
Decrease by 10%
Increase by 10%
Decrease by 10%

(5,407)
5,540
2,499
(2,606)

RMB million

(3,556)
3,651
2,229
(2,322)

(4,928)
5,299
5,505
(5,562)

(3,184)
3,471
5,294
(5,340)

(4,773)
4,920
762
(918)

RMB million

(3,436)
3,563
529
(672)

(3,509)
3,734
3,468
(3,508)

(2,219)
2,388
3,285
(3,315)

Sensitivity analysis of contracts measured using the premium allocation approach

Changes  in  factors  such  as  the  amount  of  contractual  claims  measured  using  the  premium  allocation  approach  have  the 
potential to affect changes in the assumed level of the reserve for outstanding claims, which in turn affects the simultaneous 
changes in the liabilities for incurred claims.

If holding all other variables constant, the Group considers the following expected effect of changes in claim ratios assumption 
on consolidated profit before income tax for the year.

Without considering the ceded business, holding all other variables constant, if claim ratios are 100 basis points higher or 
lower than the current assumption, the consolidated pre-tax profit is expected to be RMB249 million (as at 31 December 
2022:  RMB266  million)  lower  or  higher,  respectively;  With  consideration  of  ceded  business,  holding  all  other  variables 
constant, if claim ratios are 100 basis points higher or lower than the current assumption, the consolidated pre-tax profit is 
expected to be RMB238 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB252 million) lower or higher, respectively.

174

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.1 Insurance risk (continued)

5.1.3 Sensitivity analysis  (continued)

Sensitivity analysis of contracts measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

The following table indicates the claim development for contracts measured using the premium allocation approach without 
taking into account the impacts of ceded business:

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach (accident year)

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Total

RMB million

50,564
52,248
52,197
52,239
51,842
(51,813)

53,369
53,202
52,769
52,043

57,727
57,642
56,890

55,256
54,879

62,411

(51,939)

(56,551)

(53,220)

(40,438)

(253,961)

29

104

339

1,659

21,973

24,104

7

2,610

26,721

Estimated accumulated undiscounted 

claims expenses (before 
reinsurance)

Year end
1 year later
2 years later
3 years later
4 years later
Accumulated claims expenses paid

Total liabilities – Accident years from 

2019 to 2023

Total liabilities – Accident years 

before 2019

Effect of indirect claims expenses, 
risk adjustment for non-financial 
risk and discounting, etc.

Total liabilities for incurred claims

The  following  table  indicates  the  claim  development  for  contracts  measured  using  the  premium  allocation  approach  with 
taking into account the impacts of ceded business:

Estimated accumulated undiscounted 
claims expenses (after reinsurance)

Year end
1 year later
2 years later
3 years later
4 years later
Accumulated claims expenses paid

Total liabilities – Accident years from 

2019 to 2023

Total liabilities – Accident years 

before 2019

Effect of indirect claims expenses, 
risk adjustment for non-financial 
risk and discounting, etc.

Total liabilities for incurred claims

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach (accident year)

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

Total

RMB million

50,012
51,611
51,540
51,570
51,185
(51,156)

52,774
52,405
51,938
51,234

56,651
56,125
55,395

53,416
52,694

60,896

(51,132)

(55,075)

(51,521)

(39,479)

(248,363)

29

102

320

1,173

21,417

23,041

7

1,773

24,821

175

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk

The  Group’s  activities  are  exposed  to  a  variety  of  financial  risks.  The  key  financial  risk  is  that  proceeds  from  the  sale  of 
financial assets will not be sufficient to fund the obligations arising from the Group’s insurance and investment contracts. 
The most important components of financial risk are market risk, credit risk and liquidity risk.

The Group’s overall risk management program focuses on the unpredictability of financial markets and seeks to minimise 
potential  adverse  effects  on  the  financial  performance  of  the  Group.  Risk  management  is  carried  out  by  a  designated 
department  under  policies  approved  by  management.  The  responsible  department  identifies,  evaluates  and  manages 
financial risks in close cooperation with the Group’s operating units. The Group provides written principles for overall risk 
management, as well as written policies covering specific areas, such as managing market risk, credit risk, and liquidity risk.

The  Group  manages  financial  risk  by  holding  an  appropriately  diversified  investment  portfolio  as  permitted  by  laws  and 
regulations designed to reduce the risk of concentration in any one specific industry or issuer. The structure of the investment 
portfolio held by the Group is disclosed in Note 11.

The  sensitivity  analyses  below  are  based  on  a  change  in  an  assumption  while  holding  all  other  assumptions  constant.  In 
practice this is unlikely to occur, and changes in some of the assumptions may be correlated, such as change in interest 
rate and change in market price.

5.2.1 Market risk

(i) Interest rate risk

Interest  rate  risk  refers  to  the  risk  that  the  value  of  financial  instruments  and  the  measurement  results  of  insurance 
contracts will fluctuate due to changes in market interest rates. The Group’s financial assets are principally comprised of 
term deposits, debt investments which are exposed to interest rate risk. Changes in the level of interest rates could have 
a significant impact on the Group’s investment return, as well as an impact on the measurement of the Group’s insurance 
contracts and reinsurance contracts held.

The Group manages interest rate risk through adjustments to portfolio structure and duration, and, to the extent possible, 
by monitoring the mean duration of its assets and liabilities.

The sensitivity analysis for interest rate risk illustrates how changes in interest income, the fair value of future cash flows of 
a financial instrument, insurance contract liabilities and other items will fluctuate because of changes in market interest rates.

As at 31 December 2023, if market interest rates were 50 basis points higher or lower with all other variables held constant, 
profit before income tax for the year would have been RMB6,026 million or RMB14,179 million (as at 31 December 2022: 
RMB8,633  million  or  RMB15,191  million)  higher  or  lower,  respectively,  mainly  as  a  result  of  higher  or  lower  interest 
income on floating rate cash and cash equivalents, term deposits, statutory deposits-restricted and debt investments and 
the  fair  value  gains  or  losses  on  debt  investments  at  fair  value  through  profit  or  loss  and  changes  in  insurance  contract 
liabilities.  Other  comprehensive  income  before  income  tax  would  have  been  RMB9,899  million  or  RMB20,803  million  (as 
at 31 December 2022: RMB126,190 million or RMB137,367 million) higher or lower, respectively, mainly as a result of the 
fair  value  gains  or  losses  on  investment  in  debt  instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive  income,  and  the 
change of insurance contract liabilities.

176

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.1 Market risk  (continued)

(ii) Price risk

Price risk arises mainly from the volatility of prices of equity investments held by the Group. Prices of equity investments 
are determined by market forces. The Group is subject to increased price risk mainly because China’s capital markets are 
relatively volatile. The Group’s insurance contracts using the variable fee approach are exposed to price risk.

The Group manages price risk by holding an appropriately diversified investment portfolio as permitted by laws and regulations 
designed to reduce the risk of price concentration in any one specific industry or issuer.

As at 31 December 2023, if the prices of all the Group’s equity investments had increased or decreased by 10% with all 
other  variables  held  constant,  profit  before  income  tax  for  the  year  would  have  been  RMB68,496  million  or  RMB68,842 
million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB4,047 million or RMB4,618 million) higher or lower, respectively, mainly as a result of 
the fair value gains or losses on equity investments at fair value through profit or loss and the change of insurance contract 
liabilities. Other comprehensive income before income tax would have been RMB1,775 million or RMB1,795 million lower 
or  higher  (as  at  31  December  2022:  RMB43,381  million  or  RMB43,857  million  higher  or  lower),  respectively,  mainly  as  a 
result of fair value gains or losses on investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income, 
and the change of insurance contract liabilities.

(iii) Currency risk

Currency  risk  is  the  volatility  of  fair  value  or  future  cash  flows  of  financial  instruments  resulted  from  changes  in  foreign 
currency exchange rates. The Group’s currency risk exposure mainly arises from cash and cash equivalents, term deposits, 
debt  investments,  equity  investments,  interest-bearing  loans  and  other  borrowings  denominated  in  currencies  other  than 
the functional currency, such as US dollar, HK dollar, GB pound and EUR.

The following table summarises primary financial assets and financial liabilities denominated in currencies other than RMB 
as at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2022, expressed in RMB equivalent:

As at 31 December 2023

US dollar

HK dollar

GB pound

EUR

Others

Total

RMB million

Financial assets
Equity investments

Financial assets at fair value through profit 

or loss

20,928

40,871

541

1,426

1,074

64,840

Investment in equity instruments at fair 
value through other comprehensive 
income
Debt investments

Financial assets at fair value through profit 

or loss

Investment in debt instruments at fair value 

through other comprehensive income

Investment in debt instruments at 

amortised cost

Term deposits
Cash and cash equivalents

Total

Financial liabilities
Interest-bearing loans and other borrowings

Total

–

8,886

6,395

237

189
2,850
2,575

–

–

–
–
99

–

21

–

–
–
52

–

14

–

–
–
102

–

5

–

–
–
2

8,886

6,435

237

189
2,850
2,830

33,174

49,856

614

1,542

1,081

86,267

6,984

6,984

–

–

2,495

2,495

3,378

3,378

–

–

12,857

12,857

177

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.1 Market risk  (continued)

(iii) Currency risk (continued)

As at 31 December 2022

US dollar

HK dollar

GB pound

EUR

Others

Total

Financial assets
Equity securities

Available-for-sale securities
Securities at fair value through profit or loss

10,320
4,501

58,413
614

Debt securities

Held-to-maturity securities
Loans
Available-for-sale securities
Securities at fair value through profit or loss

Term deposits
Cash and cash equivalents

Total

Financial liabilities
Interest-bearing loans and other borrowings

Total

206
1,278
6,692
296
2,176
2,849

–
–
–
–
–
62

28,318

59,089

RMB million

–
394

–
–
–
8
–
208

610

–
1,212

–
–
–
7
–
136

–
874

68,733
7,595

–
–
–
3
–
7

206
1,278
6,692
314
2,176
3,262

1,355

884

90,256

6,756

6,756

–

–

2,307

2,307

3,192

3,192

–

–

12,255

12,255

As  at  31  December  2023,  if  RMB  had  strengthened  or  weakened  by  10%  against  US  dollar,  HK  dollar,  GB  pound,  EUR 
and other foreign currencies, with all other variables held constant, profit before income tax for the year would have been 
RMB7,738  million  (as  at  31  December  2022:  RMB927million)  lower  or  higher,  respectively,  mainly  as  a  result  of  foreign 
exchange losses or gains on translation of US dollar, HK dollar, GB pound, EUR and other foreign currencies denominated 
financial  assets  and  financial  liabilities  other  than  equity  instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive  income 
included in the table above. Other comprehensive income before tax recognised in equity instruments at fair value through 
other comprehensive income would have been RMB889 million (31 December 2022: RMB6,820 million) lower or higher due 
to the foreign exchange. The actual exchange losses in 2023 were RMB380 million (2022: exchange losses in RMB69 million).

5.2.2 Credit risk

Credit risk is the risk that one party of a financial transaction or the issuer of a financial instrument will fail to discharge its 
obligation  and  cause  another  party  to  incur  a  financial  loss.  Because  the  Group’s  investment  portfolio  is  restricted  to  the 
types of investments as permitted by the National Financial Regulatory Administration (“NFRA”) and a significant portion 
of  the  portfolio  is  in  government  bonds,  government  agency  bonds,  corporate  bonds  with  higher  credit  rating  and  term 
deposits with the state-owned commercial banks, the Group’s overall exposure to credit risk is relatively low.

Credit risk is controlled by the application of credit approvals, limits and monitoring procedures. The Group manages credit 
risk through in-house research and analysis of the Chinese economy and the underlying obligors and transaction structures. 
Where appropriate, the Group obtains collateral in the form of rights to cash, securities, property, equipment and so on to 
lower the credit risk.

178

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.2 Credit risk  (continued)

Credit risk exposure

The carrying amount of financial assets included on the consolidated statement of financial position represents the maximum 
credit risk exposure at the reporting date without taking account of any collateral held or other credit enhancements attached. 
As at 31 December 2023, the Group’s maximum credit risk exposure of insurance contracts and reinsurance contracts held 
was RMB18,627 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB19,810 million). The Group had no credit risk exposure relating to 
off-statement financial position items as at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2022.

Collateral and other credit enhancements

Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell are pledged by counterparties’ debt securities or term deposits of 
which the Group could take the ownership if the owner of the collateral defaults. These structured entities that the Group 
has  interest  in  are  guaranteed  by  third  parties  with  higher  credit  ratings,  or  by  pledging,  or  by  having  the  fiscal  budget 
income as the source of repayment, or by borrowers with higher credit ratings.

Credit quality

The Group’s debt securities investment mainly includes government bonds, government agency bonds, corporate bonds and 
subordinated bonds. As at 31 December 2023, 99.9% (as at 31 December 2022: 99.9%) of the corporate bonds held by the 
Group or the issuers of these corporate bonds had credit ratings of AA/A-2 or above. As at 31 December 2023,100% (as 
at 31 December 2022: 100%) of the subordinated bonds held by the Group either had credit ratings of AA/A-2 or above, or 
were issued by national commercial banks. The bonds issuers’ credit ratings are assigned by a qualified appraisal institution 
in the PRC and updated at each reporting date.

As at 31 December 2023, 96.5% (as at 31 December 2022: 95.6%) of the Group’s bank deposits are with the four largest 
state-owned commercial banks, other national commercial banks and China Securities Depository and Clearing Corporation 
Limited (“CSDCC”) in the PRC. The main reinsurance contracts were entered into with state-owned reinsurance companies. 
The  Group  believes  these  commercial  banks,  CSDCC  and  reinsurance  companies  have  a  high  credit  quality.  As  a  result, 
the Group concludes that the credit risk associated with term deposits, statutory deposits, cash and cash equivalents and 
reinsurance  contracts  held  has  not  caused  a  material  impact  on  the  Group’s  consolidated  financial  statements  as  at  31 
December 2023 and 2022.

Measurement of ECL

The Group formulates the credit losses of investment in debt instruments at amortised cost, investment in debt financial 
instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income, etc., using expected credit loss models according to IFRS 
9 requirements. For other receivables, the Group applies the simplified approach to recognise a loss allowance based on 
lifetime ECLs. The Group integrates factors such as asset type and market segment into a combination of items with similar 
credit risk characteristics.

Parameters for measuring expected credit losses
The parameters and assumptions involved in ECL model are described below:

The Group considers the credit risk characteristics of different financial instruments when determining if there is significant 
increase  in  credit  risk.  For  financial  instruments  with  or  without  significant  increase  in  credit  risk,12-month  or  lifetime 
expected credit losses are provided respectively. The expected credit loss is the result of discounting the product of EAD, 
PD and LGD.

179

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5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.2 Credit risk  (continued)

Measurement of ECL (continued)

Exposure at Default (EAD): EAD is based on the amounts the Group expects to be owed at the time of default, over the 
next 12 months or over the remaining lifetime.

Probability of Default (PD): The PD represents the likelihood of a borrower defaulting on its financial obligation, either over 
the next 12 months (12M PD), or over the remaining lifetime (Lifetime PD) of the obligation.

Loss  Given  Default  (LGD):  LGD  represents  the  Group’s  expectation  of  the  extent  of  loss  on  a  defaulted  exposure.  LGD 
varies by type of counterparty, type and seniority of claim and availability of collateral or other credit support.

Criteria for judging significant changes in credit risk
When considering the impairment stages for financial assets, the Group evaluates the credit risk at initial recognition and 
whether  there  is  any  significant  increase  in  credit  risk  for  each  reporting  period.  The  Group  considers  various  reasonable 
supporting information to judge if there is significant increase in credit risk, including the forward-looking information.

The Group sets quantitative and qualitative criteria to judge whether the credit risk has significant increase in credit risk after 
initial recognition. The judgement criteria mainly include the PD changes of the debtors, changes of credit risk categories and 
other indicators of significant increase in credit risk. In the judgement of whether the financial instruments have significant 
increase  in  credit  risk  after  initial  recognition,  the  Group  considers  the  30  days  past  due  as  one  of  criteria  of  significant 
increase in credit risk, in accordance with the standard.

Definition of financial assets that are credit-impaired
A financial asset is credit-impaired when one or more events that have a detrimental impact on the estimated future cash 
flows  of  that  financial  asset  have  occurred.  On  each  reporting  date,  the  Group  mainly  considers  but  is  not  limited  to  the 
following factors when assessing whether the debtor has incurred credit impairment:

•  Significant financial difficulty of the issuer or counterparty; or

•  A breach of contract, such as a default or past due event; or

•  The lender gives the borrower concessions for economic or contractual reasons due to the debtor financial difficulties, 

where such concessions are normally reluctant to be made by the borrower; or

• 

It becoming probable that the borrower will enter bankruptcy or financial re-organisation; or

•  Disappearance of an active market for that financial asset because of financial difficulties; or

•  Purchase or originate a financial asset at a significant discount that reflects the fact that a credit loss has occurred.

The  credit  impairment  of  financial  assets  may  be  caused  by  the  joint  effects  of  multiple  events,  and  may  not  be  caused 
by separately identifiable events.

180

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5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.2 Credit risk  (continued)

Criteria for judging significant changes in credit risk (continued)

Forward-looking information and management overlay
The  determinations  of  12  months  and  the  lifetime  ECL  also  incorporates  forward-looking  information.  The  Group  has 
performed historical data analysis and identified the key macroeconomic variables associated with credit risk and expected 
credit  losses  for  each  portfolio,  including  gross  domestic  product,  the  amount  of  exports  and  the  amount  of  fixed  asset 
investment  completed,  etc.  The  Group  has  developed  macroeconomic  forward  looking  adjustment  model  by  establishing 
a pool of macro-economic indicators, preparing data, filtering model factors, etc.

During the reporting period, the Group adjusted the predicted values of forward-looking economic indicators by synthesis of 
available data and considered the possibility of each scenario to determine the final macroeconomic scenarios and weights 
for measuring the relevant expected credit loss. The impact of these economic indicators on PD and LGD varies to different 
businesses. The Group comprehensively considers internal and external data, statistical analysis to determine the relationship 
between these economic indicators with PD and LGD. The Group evaluates and forecasts these economic indicators at least 
annually, provides the best estimates for the future, and regularly evaluates the results. Similar to other economic forecasts, 
the estimates of economic indicators have high inherent uncertainties, actual results may have significant difference with 
estimates. The Group considered the estimates above represented the optimal estimation of possible outcomes.

In  the  year  2023,  the  Group  updated  the  forward-looking  parameters  used  in  the  measurement  of  ECL  in  response  to 
changes in the macroeconomic environment. The cumulative year-on-year growth rate of GDP is expected to range between 
3.9% to 5.5% under the base, optimistic, and adverse scenarios for 2024. The optimistic and adverse scenarios are equally 
weighted and the base scenario is more weighted in each scenario.

The following table presents the credit risk exposures of financial instruments under the scope of expected credit loss.

Carrying amount

Stage 1

Stage 2

Stage 3

Cash and cash equivalents
Financial assets purchased under agreements to 

resell

Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Investment in debt instruments at amortised 

cost

Investment in debt instruments at fair value 

through other comprehensive income

Other assets
Total

149,305

19,759
413,255
6,520

211,349

2,735,577
37,241
3,573,006

RMB million

–

–
–
–

–

8,592
–
8,592

–

–
–
–

–

–
77
77

Maximum 
credit risk 
exposure

149,305

19,759
413,255
6,520

211,349

2,744,169
37,318
3,581,675

The Group internally grades the financial instruments based on the credit quality and risk characteristics. The credit rating of 
the financial instruments could further be classified into the different levels according to the internal rating scale. As at 31 
December 2023, the debt investments held by the Group have sufficient evidence to show that the asset is not expected 
to  default,  or  there  is  no  reason  to  suspect  that  the  asset  had  incurred  default.  The  related  credit  risk  has  not  caused  a 
material impact on the Group’s consolidated financial statements as at 31 December 2023.

181

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5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.3 Liquidity risk

Liquidity  risk  is  the  risk  that  the  Group  is  unable  to  obtain  funds  at  a  reasonable  funding  cost  when  required  to  meet  a 
repayment obligation and fund its asset portfolio within a certain time.

In the normal course of business, the Group attempts to match the maturity of financial assets to the maturity of insurance 
and financial liabilities to reduce liquidity risk.

The  following  table  shows  the  undiscounted  cash  flows  of  insurance  assets  and  insurance  liabilities,  financial  assets  and 
financial liabilities for contracts not using the premium allocation approach:

Contractual and expected cash flows (undiscounted)

As at 31 December 2023

Without 
maturity

Not later than 
1 year

Financial and insurance assets

Equity investments
Debt investments
Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Reinsurance contract assets
Financial assets purchased 

under agreements to resell

Cash and cash equivalents

Sub-total

Financial and insurance liabilities

Insurance contract liabilities
Reinsurance contract liabilities
Financial assets sold under 
agreements to repurchase
Financial liabilities at fair value 

1,099,601
–
–
–
–

–
–

1,099,601

–
–

–

–
422,558
188,436
706
5,590

19,800
149,305

786,395

355,437
(24)

(217,237)

through profit or loss

(13,878)

–

Interest-bearing loans and other 

borrowings
Bonds payable
Lease liabilities

Sub-total

Net cash inflow/(outflow)

–
–
–

(13,878)

1,085,723

(13,259)
(36,498)
(757)

87,662

874,057

Later than 1 
year but not 
later than 3 
years

RMB million

Later than 3 
years but not 
later than 5 
years

Later than 5 
years

–
664,719
144,278
1,128
2,799

–
–

–
499,102
120,329
5,461
3,011

–
–

–
4,111,034
–
–
33,282

–
–

812,924

627,903

4,144,316

14,374
(7)

(317,979)
(6)

(8,454,552)
(54)

–

–

–
–
(580)

13,787

826,711

–

–

–
–
(89)

–

–

–
–
(22)

(318,074)

(8,454,628)

309,829

(4,310,312)

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5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.3 Liquidity risk  (continued)

As at 31 December 2022

Without 
maturity

Not later than 
1 year

Later than 1 
year but not 
later than 3 
years

RMB million

Later than 3 
years but not 
later than 5 
years

Later than 5 
years

Contractual and expected cash flows (undiscounted)

Financial and insurance assets

Equity securities
Debt securities
Loans
Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Reinsurance contract assets
Securities purchased under 

agreements to resell

Accrued investment income
Cash and cash equivalents

Sub-total

Financial and insurance 

liabilities
Insurance contract liabilities
Reinsurance contract liabilities
Securities sold under 

agreements to repurchase
Financial liabilities at fair value 

through profit or loss

Interest-bearing loans and other 

borrowings
Bonds payable
Lease liabilities

Sub-total

890,926
–
–
–
–
–

–
–
–

–
264,690
333,258
195,048
4,063
4,604

38,548
52,161
127,594

–
467,372
137,926
226,337
988
2,988

–
290
–

–
422,088
78,902
100,235
1,718
3,047

–
–
–

–
3,306,607
118,063
–
–
39,388

–
–
–

890,926

1,019,966

835,901

605,990

3,464,058

–
–

–

307,043
8

(149,004)

(3,344)

–

–
–
–

(3,675)
(328)
(919)

(3,344)

153,125

27,090
(6)

(273,556)
(6)

(7,787,599)
(145)

–

–

(9,426)
(36,498)
(790)

(19,630)

–

–

(97)
–
(98)

–

–

(317)
–
(20)

(273,757)

(7,788,081)

Net cash inflow/(outflow)

887,582

1,173,091

816,271

332,233

(4,324,023)

The cash flows from various insurance contracts presented in the table above are the expected future net cash flows from 
existing insurance policies, which consist primarily of cash flows from premiums, claims, expense payments and policy loans, 
and  do  not  take  into  account  future  net  cash  flows  from  new  business.  The  excess  cash  inflows  from  matured  financial 
assets will be reinvested to cover any future liquidity exposures. The estimate is subject to assumptions including mortality, 
morbidity, the lapse rate, and expense assumption, etc. Actual experience may differ from estimates.

As at 31 December 2023, the carrying amount of the Group’s insurance contract liabilities was RMB4,859,175 million (as 
at 31 December 2022: RMB4,266,947 million), while the amount that the policyholder can demand reimbursement at any 
time was RMB3,795,388 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB3,317,324 million).

183

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5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.4 Capital management

The Group’s objectives for managing capital are to comply with the insurance capital requirements based on the minimum 
capital and actual capital required by the NFRA, prevent risk in operation and safeguard the Group’s ability to continue as a 
going concern so that it can continue to provide returns for equity holders and benefits for other stakeholders. The Group 
replenishes capital to improve the solvency ratio by issuing Core Tier 2 Capital Securities and bonds for capital replenishment 
according to the relevant laws and the approval of the relevant authorities.

The Group is also subject to other local capital requirements, such as statutory deposits – restricted requirement, statutory 
insurance  fund  requirement,  statutory  reserve  fund  requirement  and  general  reserve  requirement  discussed  in  detail  in 
Note 11.2, Note 19 and Note 35, respectively.

The Group manages capital to ensure its continuous and full compliance with the regulations mainly through monitoring its 
quarterly solvency ratios, as well as the solvency ratio based on annual stress testing.

The  former  China  Banking  and  Insurance  Regulatory  Commission  (“Former  CBIRC”)  issued  the  “Solvency  Regulatory 
Rules  II  for  Insurance  Companies”  at  the  end  of  2021.  The  NFRA  issued  the  “Circular  of  NFRA  on  Optimization  of 
Solvency Supervision Standards for Insurance Companies” in September 2023. The Company has calculated the core and 
comprehensive solvency ratio, core capital, actual capital and minimum capital as of 31 December 2023 in accordance with 
these requirements, as listed below:

Core capital
Actual capital
Minimum capital
Core solvency ratio
Comprehensive solvency ratio

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

710,527
981,594
449,160
158%
219%

699,688
1,007,601
487,290
144%
207%

According  to  the  solvency  ratios  results  mentioned  above,  and  the  unquantifiable  evaluation  results  of  operational  risk, 
strategic risk, reputational risk and liquidity risk of insurance companies, the NFRA evaluates the comprehensive solvency 
of insurance companies and supervises insurance companies by classifying them into four categories:

i)  Category A: solvency ratios meet the requirements, and the operational risk, strategic risk, reputational risk and liquidity 

risk are very low;

ii)  Category B: solvency ratios meet the requirements, and the operational risk, strategic risk, reputational risk and liquidity 

risk are low;

184

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5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.2 Financial risk (continued)

5.2.4 Capital management  (continued)

iii)  Category C: solvency ratios do not meet the requirements or solvency ratios meet the requirements but one or several 

risks in operation, strategy, reputation and liquidity are high;

iv)  Category D: solvency ratios do not meet the requirements or solvency ratios meet the requirements but one or several 

risks in operation, strategy, reputation and liquidity are severe.

According to the Supervision Information System of the China Risk Oriented Solvency System, the latest Integrated Risk 
Rating result of the Company was Category A.

5.3 Disclosures about interest in unconsolidated structured entities

The Group’s interests in unconsolidated structured entities are accounted for in investment in financial assets at fair value 
through  profit  or  loss  and  debt  instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive  income.  These  structured  entities 
typically raise funds by issuing securities or other beneficiary certificates. The purpose of these structured entities is primarily 
to  generate  management  service  fees,  or  provide  finance  to  public  and  private  infrastructure  construction.  Refer  to  Note 
4.5 for the Group’s consolidation judgements related to structured entities.

The Group did not guarantee or provide any financing support for the structured entities that the Group had interest in or 
sponsored.

(i) The unconsolidated structured entities that the Group has interest in

The  Group  believes  that  the  maximum  exposure  approximates  the  carrying  amount  of  interest  in  these  unconsolidated 
structured  entities.  The  size  of  unconsolidated  structured  entities  as  well  as  the  Group’s  carrying  amount  of  the  assets 
recognised  in  the  consolidated  financial  statements  relating  to  its  interest  in  unconsolidated  structured  entities  and  the 
Group’s maximum exposure are shown below:

As at 31 December 2023

Unconsolidated structured entities

Funds managed by affiliated entities

Funds managed by third parties
Trust schemes managed by affiliated entities
Trust schemes managed by third parties
Debt investment schemes managed by affiliated 

entities

Debt investment schemes managed by third parties
Others managed by affiliated entities Note 2

Others managed by third parties Note 2

Carrying amount 
of assets

Size

Maximum 
exposure

Interest held by  

the Group

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

175,402

Note 1
2,090
Note1
73,722

Note 1
40,116

Note1

9,794

174,195
1,284
56,551
31,035

45,544
9,211

9,794

174,195
1,284
56,551
31,035

45,544
9,211

103,825

103,825

Investment income and 
service fee
Investment income
Investment income
Investment income
Investment income and 
service fee
Investment income
Investment income and 
service fee
Investment income

185

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5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.3 Disclosures about interest in unconsolidated structured entities (continued)

(i) The unconsolidated structured entities that the Group has interest in (continued)

As at 31 December 2022

Unconsolidated structured entities

Funds managed by affiliated entities

Funds managed by third parties
Trust schemes managed by affiliated entities
Trust schemes managed by third parties
Debt investment schemes managed by affiliated 

entities

Debt investment schemes managed by third parties
Others managed by affiliated entities Note 2

Others managed by third parties Note 2

Carrying amount  

Size

of assets

Maximum  
exposure

Interest held by  

the Group

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

185,894

Note 1
1,992
Note1
60,850

Note 1
87,959

Note1

10,096

126,573
1,295
47,674
22,781

46,458
13,067

10,096

126,573
1,295
47,674
22,781

46,458
13,067

100,892

100,892

Investment income and 
service fee
Investment income
Investment income
Investment income
Investment income and 
service fee
Investment income
Investment income and 
service fee
Investment income

Note 1:   Funds,  trust  schemes,  debt  investment  schemes  and  others  managed  by  third  parties  were  sponsored  by  third  party  financial  institutions  and  the 

information related to size of these structured entities were not publicly available.

Note 2:   Others included wealth management products, special asset management schemes, asset-backed plans, etc.

(ii) The unconsolidated structured entities that the Group has sponsored but does not have interest in

As at 31 December 2023, the size of the unconsolidated structured entities that the Group sponsored but had no interest was 
RMB623,539 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB608,027 million), which were mainly funds, special asset management 
schemes, pension security products and pension products, etc., sponsored by the Group to generate management service 
fee income. In 2023, the management service fee from these structured entities was RMB1,651 million (2022: RMB1,731 
million), which was recorded as other income. The Group did not transfer assets to these structured entities.

5.4 Fair value hierarchy

Level 1 fair value is based on quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the entity 
can obtain at the measurement date.

Other  than  Level  1  quoted  prices,  Level  2  fair  value  is  based  on  valuation  techniques  using  significant  inputs,  that  are 
observable  for  the  asset  being  measured,  either  directly  or  indirectly,  for  substantially  the  full  term  of  the  asset  through 
corroboration  with  observable  market  data.  Observable  inputs  generally  used  to  measure  the  fair  value  of  investments 
classified as Level 2 include quoted market prices for similar assets in active markets; quoted market prices in markets that 
are not active for identical or similar assets and other market observable inputs. This level includes the debt investments 
for  which  quotations  are  available  from  pricing  services  providers.  Fair  values  provided  by  pricing  services  providers  are 
subject to a number of validation procedures by management. These procedures include a review of the valuation models 
utilised and the results of these models, as well as the recalculation of prices obtained from pricing services at the end of 
each reporting period.

186

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5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.4 Fair value hierarchy (continued)

Under certain conditions, the Group may not receive a price quote from independent third-party valuation service providers. 
In this instance, the Group’s valuation team may choose to apply an internally developed valuation method to the assets 
or liabilities being measured, determine the main inputs for valuation, and analyse the change of the valuation and report 
it to management. Key inputs involved in internal valuation services are not based on observable market data. They reflect 
assumptions made by management based on judgements and experiences. The assets and liabilities valued by this method 
are generally classified as Level 3.

As at 31 December 2023, assets classified as Level 1 accounted for 28.17% of assets measured at fair value on a recurring 
basis. Fair value measurements classified as Level 1 include certain debt investments, equity investments that are traded 
in  an  active  exchange  market  or  interbank  market  and  open-ended  funds  with  public  market  price  quotations.  The  Group 
considers a combination of certain factors to determine whether a market for a financial instrument is active, including the 
occurrence of trades within the specific period, the respective trading volume, and the degree to which the implied yields 
for debt investments for observed transactions differs from the Group’s understanding of the current relevant market rates 
and information. Trading prices from the Chinese interbank market are determined by both trading counterparties and can 
be  observed  publicly.  The  Group  adopted  this  price  of  the  debt  investments  traded  on  the  Chinese  interbank  market  at 
the reporting date as their fair market value and classified the investments as Level 1. Open-ended funds also have active 
markets. Fund management companies publish the net asset value of these funds on their websites on each trade date. 
Investors  subscribe  for  and  redeem  units  of  these  funds  in  accordance  with  the  funds’  net  asset  value  published  by  the 
fund management companies on each trade date. The Group adopted the unadjusted net asset value of the funds at the 
reporting date as their fair market value and classified the investments as Level 1.

As at 31 December 2023, assets classified as Level 2 accounted for 58.60% of assets measured at fair value on a recurring 
basis. They primarily include certain debt securities and equity securities. Valuations are generally obtained from third-party 
valuation service providers for identical or comparable assets, or through the use of valuation methodologies using observable 
market inputs, or recent quoted market prices. Valuation service providers typically gather, analyse and interpret information 
related to market transactions and other key valuation model inputs from multiple sources, and through the use of widely 
accepted internal valuation models, provide a theoretical quote on various securities. Debt securities are classified as Level 
2 when they are valued at recent trading prices from the Chinese interbank market or from valuation service providers.

As at 31 December 2023, assets classified as Level 3 accounted for 13.23% of assets measured at fair value on a recurring 
basis. They primarily include unlisted equity securities and unlisted debt securities. Fair values are determined using valuation 
techniques, including discounted cash flow valuations and the comparable companies approach. The determination of Level 
3 is primarily based on the significance of certain unobservable inputs used for measurement of the asset’s fair value.

For the accounting policies regarding the determination of fair values of financial assets and liabilities, see Note 4.2.

187

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5.4 Fair value hierarchy (continued)

The following table presents the Group’s quantitative disclosures of the fair value measurement hierarchy for assets and 
liabilities measured at fair value as at 31 December 2023:

Fair value measurement using

Quoted prices 
in active 
markets
Level 1

Significant 
observable 
inputs
Level 2

Significant 
unobservable 
inputs
Level 3

 Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

206,682
400,172
70,539

409
682
7,785
114,391
–

14,273
–
32,577

281
15,241
58,131

3,213
6,131
179,308
201,044
11,860

514
–
10,579

250,592
184,458
9,452
484
–

1,292,496

244,238
1,533,140
399,469
22,268
2,631

2,688,048

–
–
210,550

–
–
45
–
218,911

–
50,445
29,617

–
–
–
–
97,437

607,005

206,963
415,413
339,220

3,622
6,813
187,138
315,435
230,771

14,787
50,445
72,773

494,830
1,717,598
408,921
22,752
100,068

4,587,549

(13,878)

(13,878)

–

–

–

–

(13,878)

(13,878)

Financial assets at fair value through profit 

or loss
Equity investments

Funds
Common stocks
Others

Debt investments

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds
Others

Investment in equity instruments at fair 

value through other comprehensive income
Common stocks
Preferred stocks
Others

Investment in debt instruments at fair value 

through other comprehensive income
Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds/debts
Others

Total

Liabilities measured at fair value
Financial liabilities at fair value through  

profit or loss

Total

188

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.4 Fair value hierarchy (continued)

The following table presents the changes in Level 3 financial instruments for the year ended 31 December 2023:

Investment 
in equity 
instruments 
at fair value 
through other 
comprehensive 
income

Investment 
in debt 
instruments 
at fair value 
through other 
comprehensive 
income

Financial assets 
at fair value 
through profit 
or loss- Equity

Financial assets 
at fair value 
through profit 
or loss- Debt

Total

Opening balance
Purchases
Transferred into Level 3
Transferred out of Level 3
Total gains/(losses) recorded in profit 

or loss

Total gains/(losses) recorded in other 

comprehensive income

Disposals or exercised
Settlement

Closing balance

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

79,678
–
–
–

–

937
–
(553)

80,062

82,833
32,703
–
–

1,042

6,872
–
(26,013)

97,437

161,537
55,341
–
–

205,281
24,385
–
–

529,329
112,429
–
–

1,848

9,526

12,416

–
(8,176)
–

210,550

–
(934)
(19,302)

218,956

7,809
(9,110)
(45,868)

607,005

189

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.4 Fair value hierarchy (continued)

The following table presents the Group’s quantitative disclosures of the fair value measurement hierarchy for assets and 
liabilities measured at fair value as at 31 December 2022:

Fair value measurement using

Quoted prices 
in active 
markets
Level 1

Significant 
observable 
inputs
Level 2

Significant 
unobservable 
inputs
Level 3

Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

131,897
396,163
–
45,525

36,945
77,982
3,678
53,194
–

13,086
17,280
92

661
2,387
3,018
129

782,037

(3,344)

(7)

(3,351)

–
17,985
–
29,260

10,243
235,288
184,885
102,830
1,096

358
1,272
173

1,144
7,235
149,284
25,521

766,574

–

–

–

–
–
50,522
170,179

–
–
–
–
173,302

–
–
–

–
–
45
2,105

131,897
414,148
50,522
244,964

47,188
313,270
188,563
156,024
174,398

13,444
18,552
265

1,805
9,622
152,347
27,755

396,153

1,944,764

–

–

–

(3,344)

(7)

(3,351)

Assets measured at fair value
Available-for-sale securities

– Equity securities

Funds
Common stocks
Preferred stocks
Others
– Debt securities

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds
Others

Securities at fair value through profit or loss

– Equity securities

Funds
Common stocks
Others
– Debt securities

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Others

Total

Liabilities measured at fair value
Financial liabilities at fair value through  

profit or loss

Investment contracts at fair value through  

profit or loss

Total

190

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
5 RISK MANAGEMENT  (continued)

5.4 Fair value hierarchy (continued)

The following table presents the changes in Level 3 financial instruments for the year ended 31 December 2022:

Available-for-sale securities

Securities at fair 
value through 
profit or loss

Debt securities Equity securities Debt securities

Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

Opening balance
Purchases
Transferred out of Level 3
Total gains/(losses) recorded in profit or loss
Total gains/(losses) recorded in other 

comprehensive income

Disposals or exercised
Maturity

Ending balance

160,499
49,497
(10)
–

(1,829)
(600)
(34,255)

173,302

188,583
44,778
–
(1,714)

(168)
(10,778)
–

220,701

45
2,671
–
182

–
–
(748)

2,150

349,127
96,946
(10)
(1,532)

(1,997)
(11,378)
(35,003)

396,153

For  the  assets  and  liabilities  measured  at  fair  value  on  a  recurring  basis,  during  the  year  ended  31  December  2023, 
RMB69,953  million  (2022:  RMB4,993  million)  debt  investments  were  transferred  from  Level  1  to  Level  2  within  the  fair 
value hierarchy, whereas RMB22,570 million (2022: RMB46,485 million) debt investments were transferred from Level 2 to 
Level 1. RMB11,851 million equity investments were transferred from Level 1 to Level 2 (2022: RMB3,478 million), whereas 
RMB15,174 million equity investments were transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 (2022: RMB23,470 million).

For  the  years  ended  31  December  2023  and  2022,  there  were  no  significant  changes  in  the  business  or  economic 
circumstances that affected the fair value of the Group’s financial assets and liabilities. There were also no representations 
of financial assets.

As at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2022, significant unobservable inputs such as discount rate and discounts for 
lack of marketability were used in the valuation of primary assets and liabilities at fair value classified as Level 3.

The  table  below  presents  information  about  the  significant  unobservable  inputs  used  for  primary  financial  instruments  at 
fair value classified as Level 3 as at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2022:

Valuation techniques

Significant  
unobservable inputs

Range

Relationships between fair 
value and unobservable 
inputs

Comparable companies 

Discounts for lack of 

as at 31 December 2023: 

The fair value is inversely 

method

marketability

15%-33%

as at 31 December 2022: 

12%-30%

Discounted cash flow 

Discount rate

as at 31 December 2023: 

method

1.57%-16.70%

as at 31 December 2022: 

2.41%-10.55%

related to the discounts for 
lack of marketability

The fair value is inversely 
related to discount rate

191

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6 SEGMENT INFORMATION

6.1 Operating segments

The Group operates in the life insurance business segment, the health insurance business segment, the accident insurance 
business segment and other business segment:

(i) Life insurance business (Life)

Life insurance business relates primarily to the sale of life insurance policies, including those life insurance policies without 
significant insurance risk transferred.

(ii) Health insurance business (Health)

Health insurance business relates primarily to the sale of health insurance policies, including those health insurance policies 
without significant insurance risk transferred.

(iii) Accident insurance business (Accident)

Accident insurance business relates primarily to the sale of accident insurance policies.

(iv) Other businesses (Others)

Other businesses relate primarily to income and cost of the agency business in respect of transactions with CLIC, etc., as 
described in Note 33, as well as income and expenses of subsidiaries.

The  segment  information  submitted  by  the  Group  to  the  operating  decision-maker  is  prepared  in  accordance  with  ASBE, 
among  which  insurance  contracts-related  data  is  prepared  in  accordance  with  ASBE  No.  25  –  Direct  Insurance  Contracts 
(Caikuai [2006] No. 3), ASBE No. 26 – Reinsurance Contracts (Caikuai [2006] No. 3) and Regulations regarding the Accounting 
Treatment of Insurance Contracts (Caikuai [2009] No. 15), and financial instruments-related data is prepared in accordance 
with ASBE No. 22 – Recognition and Measurement of Financial Instruments (Caikuai [2006] No. 3), ASBE No. 23 – Transfer 
of Financial Assets (Caikuai [2006] No. 3), ASBE No. 24 – Hedging (Caikuai [2006] No. 3) and ASBE No. 37 – Presentation 
of Financial Instruments (Caikuai [2014] No. 23).

6.2 Allocation basis of income and expenses

Investment income, fair value change gain or loss, exchange gain or loss, etc., are allocated to each segment in proportion 
to the average insurance contract reserve and insured deposit and investment funds of the corresponding segment at the 
beginning and end of the period. Business and management fees are allocated to each segment based on the unit cost of 
products in each corresponding operating segment.

6.3 Allocation basis of assets and liabilities

In  addition  to  premiums  receivable,  reinsurance  reserves  receivable,  insured  loans  pledged,  separate  account  assets, 
claims  payable,  insured  reserves  and  investment  funds,  reserves  for  various  insurance  contracts,  and  separate  account 
liabilities, which are directly recognised to each segment, other financial assets and financial liabilities shall be apportioned 
to  each  segment  in  proportion  to  the  average  insurance  contract  reserves  and  insured  reserves  and  investment  funds  of 
the corresponding segments at the beginning and end of the period.

192

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)6 SEGMENT INFORMATION  (continued)

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Life

Health

Accident

Others

Elimination

Total

RMB million

I. Operating income
Premiums earned

Premium income
Less: P remiums ceded to reinsurers
Change in unearned  
premium reserves

Investment income

Including: I nvestment income from 

associates and joint ventures

Other gains
Fair value gains/(losses)
Foreign exchange gains/(losses)
Other operating income

Including: i nter-segment transactions

Gains/(losses) on disposal of assets

II. Operating expenses

Surrenders
Claims expense
Less: C laims recoverable from reinsurers
Increase in insurance contracts reserve
Less: I nsurance reserves recoverable from 

695,053
511,355
512,622
(1,267)

–
177,373

8,816

87
3,894
165
2,110

–

69
(689,444)
(46,383)
(103,907)
506
(375,952)

119,459
106,757
114,023
(6,110)

(1,156)
12,287

607

6
268
11
125

–

5
(117,405)
(2,335)
(63,894)
6,164
(31,089)

14,424
14,029
14,735
(618)

(88)
386

19

–
8
–
1

–

–
(13,625)
(22)
(7,018)
339
(170)

12,655
–
–
–

–
581

(916)

51
(1)
(557)
12,582

3,732

(1)
(8,876)
–
–
–
–

reinsurers

97

151

39

–

Policyholder dividends resulting from 

participation in profits

Tax and surcharges
Underwriting and policy acquisition costs
Administrative expenses
Less: E xpenses recoverable from reinsurers
Other operating expenses

Including: i nter-segment transactions

Impairment losses

III. Operating profit

Add: N on-operating income
Less: N on-operating expenses

IV. Net profit before income tax

Supplementary Information:
Depreciation and amortisation expenses

(11,614)
(889)
(47,281)
(24,825)
376
(30,238)

(3,484)

(49,334)

5,609

81
(425)

5,265

(81)
(202)
(9,833)
(10,592)
342
(2,629)

(240)

(3,407)

2,054

6
(29)

2,031

2,804

1,118

–
(21)
(4,260)
(2,059)
10
(353)

(8)

(110)

799

–
(1)

798

233

–
(305)
(1,718)
(3,600)
–
(3,103)

–

(150)

3,779

7
(2)

3,784

861

(3,732)
–
–
–

–
–

–

–
–
–
(3,732)

(3,732)

–
3,732
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
3,732

3,732

–

–

–
–

–

–

837,859
632,141
641,380
(7,995)

(1,244)
190,627

8,526

144
4,169
(381)
11,086

–

73
(825,618)
(48,740)
(174,819)
7,009
(407,211)

287

(11,695)
(1,417)
(63,092)
(41,076)
728
(32,591)

–

(53,001)

12,241

94
(457)

11,878

5,016

The reconciliation of segment information to the consolidated statement of comprehensive income is as follows:

For the year ended 31 December 2023

Segment information

Operating income: 837,859
Net profit before income tax: 11,878

Adjustment

IFRS 9

IFRS 17

RMB million

(60,745)
(6,895)

(432,368)
39,593

Consolidated statement of  
comprehensive income

Total revenue: 344,746
Profit before income tax: 44,576

193

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6 SEGMENT INFORMATION  (continued)

Item

I.  Assets

Cash fund
Financial assets at fair value through profit 

or loss

Financial assets purchased under 

agreements to resell

Interest receivables
Premiums receivables
Unearned premium reserves receivable from 

reinsurers

Claim reserves receivable from reinsurers
Reserves for life insurance receivables from 

reinsurers

Reserves for long-term health insurance 

receivables from reinsurers

Loans
Term deposits
Available-for-sale financial assets
Held-to-maturity investments
Long-term equity investments
Statutory deposits
Separate account assets
Total distributable assets
Undistributable assets
Other assets
Total
II. Liabilities

Financial liabilities at fair value through profit 

or loss

Financial assets sold under agreements to 

repurchase
Claims payable
Policyholder deposits
Unearned premium reserves
Claim reserves
Reserves for life insurance
Reserves for long-term health insurance
Long-term borrowings
Separate account liabilities
Other distributable liabilities
Total distributable liabilities
Non-distributable liabilities
Other liabilities

Total

Life

Health

Accident

Others

Elimination

Total

As at 31 December 2023

RMB million

132,636

235,852

16,213
47,248
8,119

–
–

700

–
570,812
371,105
2,099,921
1,591,004
215,217
5,278
7
5,294,112

5,106

200,368
60,979
466,619
–
–
3,981,728
–
–
7
35,745
4,750,552

9,135

16,244

1,117
3,254
12,939

586
313

–

4,573
30,172
25,560
144,633
109,581
14,823
364
–
373,294

352

13,800
5,302
19,864
10,490
20,608
–
266,376
–
–
2,291
339,083

289

513

35
103
463

56
334

–

–
673
808
4,569
3,462
468
11
–
11,784

11

436
311
–
3,730
3,853
1,705
–
–
–
71
10,117

7,506

1,270

122
274
–

–
–

–

–
1,982
6,658
13,924
2,394
27,098
680
8,409
70,317

–

2,100
–
–
–
–
–
–
12,719
8,409
–
23,228

–

–

–
–
–

–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

149,566

253,879

17,487
50,879
21,521

642
647

700

4,573
603,639
404,131
2,263,047
1,706,441
257,606
6,333
8,416
5,749,507

138,972
5,888,479

5,469

216,704
66,592
486,483
14,220
24,461
3,983,433
266,376
12,719
8,416
38,107
5,122,980

295,457
5,418,437

The reconciliation of segment information to the consolidated statement of financial position is as follows:

Segment information

As at 31 December 2023

Adjustment

IFRS 9

IFRS 17

Impact of 
Deferred tax

RMB million

 Consolidated statement of 
financial position

Assets: 5,888,479
Liabilities: 5,418,437

198,743
590

(279,280)
(102,426)

(5,856)
(1,549)

Assets: 5,802,086
Liabilities: 5,315,052

194

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6 SEGMENT INFORMATION  (continued)

For the year ended 31 December 2022

Life

Health

Accident

Others

Elimination

Total

I. Operating income
Premiums earned

Premium income
Less: P remiums ceded to reinsurers
Change in unearned premium 

reserves
Investment income

Including: I nvestment income from 

associates and joint ventures

Other gains
Fair value gains/(losses)
Foreign exchange gains/(losses)
Other operating income

Including: i nter-segment transactions

Gains/(losses) on disposal of assets

II. Operating expenses

Surrenders
Claims expense
Less: C laims recoverable from reinsurers
Increase in insurance contracts reserve
Less: I nsurance reserves recoverable from 

681,622
484,504
485,642
(1,138)

–
202,599

3,909

104
(8,139)
871
1,568

–

115
(669,864)
(35,268)
(77,609)
406
(424,827)

122,358
108,791
115,329
(6,695)

157
13,949

266

7
(554)
59
98

–

8
(114,912)
(1,835)
(56,803)
6,013
(36,662)

reinsurers

(33)

91

Policyholder dividends resulting from 

participation in profits

Tax and surcharges
Underwriting and policy acquisition costs
Administrative expenses
Less: E xpenses recoverable from reinsurers
Other operating expenses

Including: i nter-segment transactions

Impairment losses

III. Operating profit

Add: N on-operating income
Less: N on-operating expenses

IV. Net profit before income tax

Supplementary Information:
Depreciation and amortisation expenses

(20,566)
(900)
(37,731)
(25,505)
284
(28,159)

(2,988)

(19,956)

11,758

94
(413)

11,439

(119)
(204)
(11,396)
(10,174)
718
(3,183)

(203)

(1,358)

7,446

6
(28)

7,424

RMB million

15,031
14,530
14,219
(437)

748
520

10

–
(21)
2
–

–

–
(13,088)
(19)
(6,271)
301
285

253

–
(21)
(4,165)
(2,751)
23
(672)

(8)

(51)

1,943

–
(1)

10,243
–
–
–

–
707

(557)

65
(37)
(1,001)
10,510

3,199

(1)
(7,007)
–
–
–
–

–

–
(136)
(1,485)
(3,783)
–
(1,572)

–

(31)

3,236

8
(2)

1,942

3,242

(3,199)
–
–
–

–
–

–

–
–
–
(3,199)

(3,199)

–
3,199
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
3,199

3,199

–

–

–
–

–

–

826,055
607,825
615,190
(8,270)

905
217,775

3,628

176
(8,751)
(69)
8,977

–

122
(801,672)
(37,122)
(140,683)
6,720
(461,204)

311

(20,685)
(1,261)
(54,777)
(42,213)
1,025
(30,387)

–

(21,396)

24,383

108
(444)

24,047

5,291

3,028

1,126

327

810

The reconciliation of segment information to the consolidated statement of comprehensive income is as follows:

For the year ended 31 December 2022

Segment information

Operating income: 826,055
Net profit before income tax: 24,047

Adjustment

IFRS 9

IFRS 17

RMB million

N/A
N/A

(455,194)
46,013

Consolidated statement of  
comprehensive income

Total revenue: 370,861
Profit before income tax: 70,060

195

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
6 SEGMENT INFORMATION  (continued)

Item

I.  Assets

Cash fund
Financial assets at fair value through profit 

or loss

Financial assets purchased under 

agreements to resell

Interest receivables
Premiums receivables
Unearned premium reserves receivable from 

reinsurers

Claim reserves receivable from reinsurers
Reserves for life insurance receivables from 

reinsurers

Reserves for long-term health insurance 

receivables from reinsurers

Loans
Term deposits
Available-for-sale financial assets
Held-to-maturity investments
Long-term equity investments
Statutory deposits
Separate account assets
Total distributable asset
Undistributable assets
Other assets
Total
II. Liabilities

Financial liabilities at fair value through profit 

or loss

Financial assets sold under agreements to 

repurchase
Claims payable
Policyholder deposits
Unearned premium reserves
Claim reserves
Reserves for life insurance
Reserves for long-term health insurance
Long-term borrowings
Separate account liabilities
Other distributable liabilities
Total distributable liabilities
Non-distributable liabilities
Other liabilities
Total

Life

Health

Accident

Others

Elimination

Total

As at 31 December 2022

RMB million

114,111

208,103

35,956
48,606
8,268

–
–

603

–
563,977
447,250
1,608,279
1,468,207
218,649
5,280
7
4,727,296

3,112

137,761
57,178
355,743
–
–
3,605,769
–
–
7
34,504
4,194,074

7,766

14,162

2,447
3,308
10,966

726
441

–

4,294
29,727
30,438
109,451
99,919
14,880
359
–
328,884

212

9,375
3,327
18,999
9,474
22,232
–
233,663
–
–
2,287
299,569

293

534

92
125
463

48
295

–

–
815
1,147
4,126
3,766
561
14
–
12,279

8

353
314
–
3,634
3,921
1,467
–
–
–
84
9,781

6,783

983

38
270
–

–
–

–

–
1,971
6,732
16,252
2,312
27,089
680
–
63,110

12

1,465
–
–
–
–
–
–
12,774
–
–
14,251

–

–

–
–
–

–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

128,953

223,782

38,533
52,309
19,697

774
736

603

4,294
596,490
485,567
1,738,108
1,574,204
261,179
6,333
7
5,131,569

120,415
5,251,984

3,344

148,954
60,819
374,742
13,108
26,153
3,607,236
233,663
12,774
7
36,875
4,517,675

289,188
4,806,863

The reconciliation of segment information to the consolidated statement of financial position is as follows:

Segment information

As at 31 December 2022
Adjustment
IFRS 17

IFRS 9

Impact of 
Deferred tax

Consolidated statement  
of financial position

Assets: 5,251,984
Liabilities: 4,806,863

N/A
N/A

(265,735)
(171,768)

23,819
–

Assets: 5,010,068
Liabilities: 4,635,095

RMB million

196

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
7 PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

Office 
equipment, 
furniture and 
fixtures

Buildings

62,954
1,619
114
(1,201)

63,486

(16,640)
(2,107)
405

(18,342)

(24)
–
2

(22)

8,884
244
1,020
(185)

9,963

(6,319)
(1,120)
178

(7,261)

–
–
–

–

46,290

45,122

2,565

2,702

Motor 
vehicles

Assets under 
construction

Leasehold 
improvements

Total

RMB million

1,268
–
189
(112)

1,345

(1,071)
(95)
109

(1,057)

–
–
–

–

197

288

5,026
(2,063)
2,220
–

5,183

–
–
–

–

(1)
–
–

(1)

5,025

5,182

2,206
192
–
(183)

2,215

(1,724)
(240)
165

(1,799)

–
–
–

–

482

416

80,338
(8)
3,543
(1,681)

82,192

(25,754)
(3,562)
857

(28,459)

(25)
–
2

(23)

54,559

53,710

Cost
As at 1 January 2023
Transfers upon completion
Additions
Disposals

As at 31 December 2023

Accumulated depreciation
As at 1 January 2023
Charge for the year
Disposals

As at 31 December 2023

Impairment
As at 1 January 2023
Charge for the year
Disposals

As at 31 December 2023

Net book value
As at 1 January 2023

As at 31 December 2023

197

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
7 PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT  (continued)

Office 
equipment, 
furniture and 
fixtures

Buildings

59,826
3,174
64
–
(110)

62,954

(14,644)
(2,079)
83

(16,640)

(24)
–
–

(24)

8,394
286
503
–
(299)

8,884

(5,786)
(819)
286

(6,319)

–
–
–

–

45,158

46,290

2,608

2,565

Motor 
vehicles

Assets under 
construction

Leasehold 
improvements

Total

RMB million

1,311
–
1
–
(44)

1,268

(996)
(118)
43

(1,071)

–
–
–

–

315

197

6,790
(3,622)
2,124
(266)
–

5,026

–
–
–

–

(1)
–
–

(1)

6,789

5,025

2,433
93
–
–
(320)

2,206

(1,671)
(335)
282

(1,724)

–
–
–

–

762

482

78,754
(69)
2,692
(266)
(773)

80,338

(23,097)
(3,351)
694

(25,754)

(25)
–
–

(25)

55,632

54,559

Cost
As at 1 January 2022
Transfers upon completion
Additions
Transfers into investment properties
Disposals

31 December 2022

Accumulated depreciation
As at 1 January 2022
Charge for the year
Disposals

As at 31 December 2022

Impairment
As at 1 January 2022
Charge for the year
Disposals

As at 31 December 2022

Net book value
As at 1 January 2022

As at 31 December 2022

As  at  31  December  2023,  the  net  book  value  of  buildings  above  which  were  in  process  to  obtain  title  certificates  was 
RMB4,617 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB6,459 million).

198

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8 LEASES

(a) Right-of-use assets

Cost
As at 1 January 2023
Additions
Deductions

As at 31 December 2023

Accumulated depreciation
As at 1 January 2023
Charge for the year
Deductions

As at 31 December 2023

Impairment
As at 1 January 2023

As at 31 December 2023

Net book value
As at 1 January 2023

As at 31 December 2023

Cost
As at 1 January 2022
Additions
Deductions

31 December 2022

Accumulated depreciation
As at 1 January 2022
Charge for the year
Deductions

As at 31 December 2022

Impairment
As at 1 January 2022

As at 31 December 2022

Net book value
As at 1 January 2022

As at 31 December 2022

Buildings

Others

Total

RMB million

4,201
636
(1,267)

3,570

(2,392)
(938)
1,239

(2,091)

–

–

1,809

1,479

3
1
–

4

(2)
(1)
–

(3)

–

–

1

1

4,204
637
(1,267)

3,574

(2,394)
(939)
1,239

(2,094)

–

–

1,810

1,480

Buildings

Others

Total

RMB million

5,370
639
(1,808)

4,201

(2,853)
(1,138)
1,599

(2,392)

–

–

2,517

1,809

2
1
–

3

(1)
(1)
–

(2)

–

–

1

1

5,372
640
(1,808)

4,204

(2,854)
(1,139)
1,599

(2,394)

–

–

2,518

1,810

The  Group  had  neither  significant  profit  from  subleasing  right-of-use  assets  nor  profit  or  loss  from  sale  and  leaseback 
transactions for the year ended 31 December 2023 (2022: same).

The Group’s right-of-use assets include the above assets and land use rights disclosed in Note 13.

199

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
8 LEASES  (continued)

(b) The amounts recognised in profit or loss in relation to leases are as follows:

As at 31 
December  

2023

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

RMB million

54
939
319

1

1,313

74
1,139
324

–

1,537

Buildings

RMB million

15,226
1
(5)

15,222

(2,033)
(437)
1

(2,469)

13,193

12,753

16,854

16,677

Interest on lease liabilities
Depreciation charge of right-of-use assets
Expense relating to short-term leases
Expense relating to leases of low-value assets  

(except for short-term lease liabilities)

Total

9 INVESTMENT PROPERTIES

Cost
As at 1 January 2023
Additions
Deductions

As at 31 December 2023

Accumulated depreciation
As at 1 January 2023
Additions
Deductions

As at 31 December 2023

Net book value
As at 1 January 2023

As at 31 December 2023

Fair value
As at 1 January 2023

As at 31 December 2023

200

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
9 INVESTMENT PROPERTIES  (continued)

Cost
As at 1 January 2022
Additions
Deductions

31 December 2022

Accumulated depreciation
As at 1 January 2022
Additions
Deductions

As at 31 December 2022

Net book value
As at 1 January 2022

As at 31 December 2022

Fair value
As at 1 January 2022

As at 31 December 2022

Buildings

RMB million

14,971
266
(11)

15,226

(1,597)
(437)
1

(2,033)

13,374

13,193

16,626

16,854

The Company leases part of its investment properties to its subsidiaries and charges rentals based on the areas occupied by 
the respective entities. These properties are categorised as property, plant and equipment of the Group in the consolidated 
statement of financial position.

The  Group  has  no  restrictions  on  the  use  of  its  investment  properties  and  no  contractual  obligations  to  each  investment 
property purchased, constructed or developed or for repairs, maintenance and enhancements.

As at 31 December 2023, the Group had no investment properties for which the title certificates were in process to obtain 
(as at 31 December 2022: nil).

The  fair  value  of  investment  properties  of  the  Group  as  at  31  December  2023  amounted  to  RMB16,677  million  (as  at 
31  December  2022:  RMB16,854  million),  which  was  estimated  by  the  Group  having  regards  to  valuations  performed  by 
independent appraisers. The investment properties were classified as Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy.

The  Group  uses  the  weighted  average  of  market  comparison  approach  and  income  approach  as  its  valuation  method  to 
estimate  the  fair  value  of  its  investment  properties.  Under  the  market  comparison  approach,  the  estimated  fair  value  of 
a  property  is  based  on  the  average  sale  price  of  comparable  properties  recently  sold;  the  income  approach  is  to  convert 
projected  future  incomes  of  investment  properties  into  value  by  rate  of  return,  rate  of  capitalization  or  income  multiplier. 
According  to  the  calculation  results  of  the  above  two  valuation  approaches,  with  consideration  of  the  comprehensive 
adjustment coefficient, which is composed of a number of adjusting factors, including the time and the conditions of sale, 
the geographical location, age, decoration, floor area, lot size of the property and other factors.

Under  the  market  comparison  approach  and  income  approach,  an  increase  (decrease)  in  the  comprehensive  adjustment 
coefficient will result in an increase (decrease) in the fair value of investment properties.

201

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10 INVESTMENTS IN ASSOCIATES AND JOINT VENTURES

As at 1 January
Change of the cost
Share of profit or loss
Dividends declared
Other equity movements
Change of provision for impairment

As at 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

262,485
(8,252)
8,079
(4,854)
1,302
–

258,760

258,933
12,877
3,979
(5,373)
(4,778)
(3,150)

262,488

Movements in the current year

Accounting 
method

Investment 
cost

As at 31 
December  
2022

As at 1 
January 
2023

Change of 
the cost

Share of 
profit or 
loss

Other 
equity 
movements

Provision 
for 
impairment

As at 31 
December  
2023

Percentage 
of equity 
interest

Accumulated 
amount of 
impairment

Dividends 
declared

(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

RMB million

RMB million

53,201
11,245

1,339

10,000

98,085
2,194

98,085
2,194

1,737

1,737

–
–

–

6,061
(2,194)

83

21,569

21,569

(10,000)

1,332

(742)
–

(26)

(789)

Associates
China Guangfa Bank Co., Ltd. (“CGB”) (i)
Sino-Ocean Group Holding Limited 

(“Sino-Ocean”) (ii)

Equity method
Equity method

COFCO Futures Company Limited 

Equity method

Equity method

(“COFCO Futures”)

China Pipe Group Sichuan to East China 
Gas Pipeline Co., Ltd. (“Pipeline 
Company”)

China United Network Communications 
Limited (“China Unicom”) (iii)

Others (iv)

Sub-total

Joint ventures
Joy City Commercial Property Fund L. P. 

(“Joy City”)

Equity method

21,801

22,602

22,602

–

774

(390)

Equity method

59,055

156,641

61,973

208,160

61,970

208,157

Equity method

6,281

5,283

5,283

720

(9,280)

–

–
1,028

1,028

1,438

7,494

293

(298)
590

585

(1,545)

(3,492)

(162)

–
(1,200)

(1,362)

(4,854)

Mapleleaf Century Limited (“MCL”)
Others (iv)

Equity method
Equity method

Sub-total

Total

7,656
50,121

64,058

220,699

3,553
45,492

54,328

3,553
45,492

54,328

262,488

262,485

(8,252)

8,079

1,241
–

1

(8)

66

100

1,400

–

(230)
132

(98)

1,302

–
–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–
–

–

–

104,645
–

43.686%
29.59%

–
(5,862)

1,795

35.00%

12,104

43.86%

23,052

10.03%

62,683

204,279

5,414

66.67%

75.00%

3,025
46,042

54,481

258,760

–

–

–

(505)

(6,367)

–

–
–

–

(6,367)

(i)   The  2022  final  dividend  of  RMB0.078  in  cash  per  ordinary  share  was  approved  and  declared  in  the  Annual  General 

Meeting of CGB on 20 June 2023. The Company received a cash dividend of RMB742 million.

(ii)  The  Group  made  adjustments  to  the  profit  or  loss  on  the  basis  of  the  statement  of  comprehensive  income  and  the 
statement of changes in equity for 2023 provided by Sino-Ocean Group. The profit and loss adjustment amount for 2023 
is RMB -2,194 million, and the carrying amount of Sino-Ocean held by the Group as at 31 December 2023 was 0.

202

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10 INVESTMENTS IN ASSOCIATES AND JOINT VENTURES  (continued)

(iii) The  2022  final  dividend  of  RMB0.0427  in  cash  per  ordinary  share  was  approved  and  declared  in  the  Annual  General 
Meeting of China Unicom on 29 June 2023. The Company received a cash dividend of RMB136 million. The 2023 interim 
dividend of RMB0.0796 in cash per ordinary share was approved and declared in the Annual General Meeting of China 
Unicom on 9 August 2023. The Company received a cash dividend of RMB254 million.

  On 31 December 2023, the stock price of China Unicom was RMB4.38 per share.

(iv) The Group invested in real estate, industrial logistics assets and other industries through these enterprises.

(v)  There is no significant restriction for the Group to dispose of its associates and joint ventures.

As at 31 December 2023, the major associates and joint ventures of the Group are as follows:

Name

Associates
CGB
Sino-Ocean
COFCO Futures
Pipeline Company
China Unicom

Joint ventures
Joy City
MCL

Place of incorporation

Percentage of equity  

interest held

PRC
Hong Kong, PRC
PRC
PRC
PRC

The British Cayman Islands
The British Virgin Islands

43.686%
29.59%
35.00%
43.86%
10.03%

66.67%
75.00%

As at 31 December 2022, the major associates and joint ventures of the Group are as follows:

Name

Associates
CGB
Sino-Ocean
COFCO Futures
Pipeline Company
China Unicom

Joint ventures
Joy City
MCL

Place of incorporation

Percentage of equity  

interest held

PRC
Hong Kong, PRC
PRC
PRC
PRC

The British Cayman Islands
The British Virgin Islands

43.686%
29.59%
35.00%
43.86%
10.03%

66.67%
75.00%

203

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10 INVESTMENTS IN ASSOCIATES AND JOINT VENTURES  (continued)

The following table illustrates the financial information of the Group’s major associates and joint ventures as at 31 December 
2023 and for the year ended 31 December 2023:

CGB

Sino-Ocean

COFCO 
Futures

Pipeline 
Company

China 
Unicom

Joy City

MCL

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

3,509,522
3,232,537
276,985

206,172
185,380
20,792

26,169
22,585
3,584

21,814
7,430
14,384

662,845
304,910
357,935

9,629
7
9,622

24,127
12,826
11,301

231,993
251

7,029
9,514

3,571
–

14,384
362

159,241
15,565

9,622
(1,501)

11,301
(7,267)

232,244

16,543

3,571

14,746

174,806

8,121

4,034

43.686%

29.59%

35.00%

43.86%

10.03%

66.67%

75.00%

104,645
–

104,645

69,678
16,019
2,841
18,860

5,862
(5,862)

–

43,380
(20,985)
(243)
(21,228)

1,795
–

1,795

3,779
239
3
242

12,104
–

12,104

6,213
3,030
–
3,030

23,052
–

23,052

379,643
18,713
319
19,032

5,414
–

5,414

155
141
–
141

3,025
–

3,025

973
371
(444)
(73)

Total assets
Total liabilities
Total equity
Total equity attributable to equity 
holders of the associates and 
joint ventures
Total adjustments (i)
Total equity attributable to equity 
holders of the associates and 
joint ventures after adjustments

Proportion of the Group’s 

ownership

Gross carrying value of the 

investments

Impairment provision
Net carrying value of the 

investments

Total revenues
Net profit/(loss)
Other comprehensive income
Total comprehensive income

204

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10 INVESTMENTS IN ASSOCIATES AND JOINT VENTURES  (continued)

The following table illustrates the financial information of the Group’s major associates and joint ventures as at 31 December 
2022 and for the year ended 31 December 2022:

Total assets
Total liabilities
Total equity
Total equity attributable to equity 
holders of the associates and 
joint ventures
Total adjustments (i)
Total equity attributable to equity 
holders of the associates and 
joint ventures after adjustments

Proportion of the Group’s 

ownership

Gross carrying value of the 

investments

Impairment
Net carrying value of the 

investments

Total revenues
Net profit/(loss)
Other comprehensive income
Total comprehensive income

CGB

Sino-Ocean

COFCO 
Futures

Pipeline 

Company China Unicom

Joy City

MCL

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

3,417,906
3,156,057
261,849

246,072
198,186
47,886

29,306
25,889
3,417

37,315
1,369
35,946

644,687
297,413
347,274

9,710
22
9,688

23,957
12,773
11,184

216,858
369

31,747
(7,790)

3,407
–

35,946
384

154,370
16,038

9,688
(1,764)

11,184
(6,447)

217,227

23,957

3,407

36,330

170,408

7,924

4,737

43.686%

29.59%

35.00%

43.86%

10.03%

66.67%

75.00%

98,085
–

98,085

75,154
15,528
(2,765)
12,763

8,056
(5,862)

2,194

42,447
(15,650)
(6,186)
(21,836)

1,737
–

1,737

3,222
219
6
225

21,569
–

21,569

6,097
3,128
–
3,128

22,602
–

22,602

361,123
16,651
190
16,841

5,283
–

5,283

(145)
(164)
10
(154)

3,553
–

3,553

883
774
(1,750)
(976)

(i)   Total adjustments include accounting policy difference adjustments, fair value adjustments and other adjustments.

The Group had no contingent liabilities with the associates and joint ventures as at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 
2022. The Group had a capital contribution commitment of RMB13,638 million with associates and joint ventures as at 31 
December  2023  (as  at  31  December  2022:  RMB15,231  million).  The  capital  contribution  commitment  amount  has  been 
included in the capital commitments in Note 38.

205

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS

11.1 Term deposits

Maturing:

Within one year
After one year but within five years

Sub-total

Impairment provision

Total

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

174,513
238,951
413,464

(209)

413,255

183,832
301,735
485,567

–

485,567

As  at  31  December  2023,  the  Group’s  term  deposits  of  RMB1,506  million  were  deposited  in  banks  for  risk  reserves  of 
enterprise annuity fund investments and risk reserves of personal endowment security management business, which are 
restricted  to  use  (as  at  31  December  2022,  the  Group’s  term  deposits  of  RMB2,175  million  were  deposited  in  banks  for 
risk reserves of enterprise annuity fund investments, risk reserves of personal endowment security management business 
and backing overseas borrowings, which are restricted to use).

11.2 Statutory deposits – restricted

contractual maturity schedule:

Within one year
After one year but within five years

Sub-total

Impairment provision

Total

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

517
6,010
6,527

(7)

6,520

3,933
2,400
6,333

–

6,333

Insurance companies in China are required to deposit an amount that equals 20% of their registered capital with banks in 
compliance  with  regulations  of  the  NFRA.  These  funds  may  not  be  used  for  any  purpose  other  than  for  paying  off  debts 
during liquidation proceedings.

206

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.3 Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost

Trust schemes
Debt investment plans
Others (i)

Sub-total

Impairment provision

Total

By place of listing:

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (ii)

Total

(i)   Other Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost mainly include large-denomination certificates of deposits.

(ii)   Unlisted debt investments mainly include non-publicly traded trust schemes and debt investment plans.

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

123,996
53,255
34,448

211,699

(350)

211,349

637
132
57
210,523

211,349

Fair value hierarchy

Trust schemes
Debt investment plans
Others

Total

Contractual maturity schedule

Maturing:

Within one year
After one year but within five years
After five years but within ten years
Over ten years

Total

As at 31 December 2023

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

–
–
178

178

–
–
2,437

2,437

128,994
55,494
32,276

216,764

128,994
55,494
34,891

219,379

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

44,921
92,002
67,097
7,329

211,349

207

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.4 Investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds
Others (i)

Total

By place of listing:

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (ii)

Total

Contractual maturity schedule
Maturing:

Within one year
After one year but within five years
After five years but within ten years
Over ten years

Total

Impairment provision

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

494,830
1,717,598
408,921
22,752
100,068

2,744,169

395,189
58
179
2,348,743

2,744,169

172,999
398,475
207,198
1,965,497

2,744,169

(1,432)

(i)  Other investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income mainly include trust schemes and debt investment plans. 

(ii)   Unlisted debt investments include those traded on the Chinese interbank market and those not publicly traded.

208

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.5 Investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

Common stocks
Preferred stocks
Others (i)

Total

By place of listing:

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Unlisted (ii)

Total

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

14,787
50,445
72,773

138,005

56,962
8,891
72,152

138,005

(i)  Other investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income mainly include perpetual bonds.

(ii)  Unlisted equity investments include those not traded on stock exchanges, which are mainly perpetual bonds.

In 2023, the Group disposed of investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income amounted 
to RMB2,713 million, and the net cumulative gains of RMB96 million on disposal was transferred from other comprehensive 
income to retained earnings.

The  dividends  income  of  investment  in  equity  instruments  at  fair  value  through  other  comprehensive  income  recognised 
during the year are described in Note 22.

209

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.6 Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss

Debt investments

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds
Others (i)

Sub-total

Equity investments

Funds
Common stocks
Others (ii)

Sub-total

Total

Debt investments

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Unlisted (iii)

Sub-total

Equity investments

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (iii)

Sub-total

Total

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

3,622
6,813
187,138
315,435
230,771

743,779

206,963
415,413
339,220

961,596

1,705,375

50,058
693,721

743,779

422,464
41,877
10,230
487,025

961,596

1,705,375

(i)  Other debt investments under financial assets at fair value through profit or loss mainly include trust schemes and debt investment plans.

(ii)  Other equity investments under financial assets at fair value through profit or loss mainly include perpetual bond, private equity funds and unlisted equities.

(iii)  Unlisted  debt  investments  include  those  traded  on  the  Chinese  interbank  market  and  those  not  publicly  traded.  Unlisted  equity  investments  refer  to 
investments that are not traded on stock exchanges, mainly perpetual bonds, private equity funds and open-ended funds with public market price quotations.

210

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.7 Held-to-maturity securities

Debt securities

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds

Total

Debt securities

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (i)

Total

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

378,105
1,004,162
178,203
13,734

1,574,204

231,704
144
62
1,342,294

1,574,204

(i)  Unlisted debt securities refer to debt securities traded in Chinese interbank market.

As at 31 December 2022 there was no provision for impairment of held-to-maturity securities held by the Group.

Debt securities – fair value hierarchy

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

As at 31 December 2022

Level 1

Level 2

Total

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds

Total

240,597
104,751
719
–

346,067

177,217
976,103
185,426
15,993

1,354,739

417,814
1,080,854
186,145
15,993

1,700,806

Debt securities – contractual maturity schedule

Maturing:

Within one year
After one year but within five years
After five years but within ten years
Over ten years

Total

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

33,961
160,527
83,894
1,295,822

1,574,204

211

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.8 Loans

Loans
Impairment

Net value

Maturing:

Within one year
After one year but within five years
After five years but within ten years
Over ten years

Total

Impairment

Net value

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million
(Restated (i))

344,426
(2,343)

342,083

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million
(Restated (i))

52,989
180,686
97,081
13,670

344,426

(2,343)

342,083

(i)  Under IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts, policy loans are no longer accounted for as a separate financial asset and should be accounted for as fulfilment cash 

flow of the relevant policies.

212

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.9 Available-for-sale securities

Available-for-sale securities, at fair value
Debt securities

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Subordinated bonds
Others (i)

Sub-total

Equity securities

Funds
Common stocks
Preferred stocks
Others (i)

Sub-total

Available-for-sale securities, at cost

Equity securities

Others (i)

Total

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

47,188
313,270
188,563
156,024
174,398

879,443

131,897
414,148
50,522
244,964

841,531

17,134

1,738,108

213

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.9 Available-for-sale securities (continued)

Debt securities

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (ii)

Sub-total

Equity securities

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (ii)

Sub-total

Total

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

85,450
38
94
793,861

879,443

420,287
59,495
59
378,824

858,665

1,738,108

(i)  Other available-for-sale securities mainly include unlisted equity investments, private equity funds, trust schemes and perpetual bonds.

(ii)  Unlisted debt securities are those traded on the Chinese interbank market and those not publicly traded. Unlisted equity securities include those not traded 
on stock exchanges, which are mainly open-ended funds with public market price quotations, wealth management products and private equity funds.

Debt securities – contractual maturity schedule

Maturing:

Within one year
After one year but within five years
After five years but within ten years
Over ten years

Total

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

118,373
206,086
239,004
315,980

879,443

214

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.10 Securities at fair value through profit or loss

Debt securities

Government bonds
Government agency bonds
Corporate bonds
Others (i)

Sub-total

Equity securities

Funds
Common stocks
Others

Subtotal

Total

Debt securities

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (ii)

Sub-total

Equity securities

Listed in Mainland, PRC
Listed in Hong Kong, PRC
Listed overseas
Unlisted (ii)

Sub-total

Total

As at  
31 December  

2022

RMB million

1,805
9,622
152,347
27,755

191,529

13,444
18,552
265

32,261

223,790

36,455
21
293
154,760

191,529

16,901
637
4,233
10,490

32,261

223,790

(i)  Other debt securities at fair value through profit or loss mainly include inter-bank certificates of deposits.

(ii)  Unlisted debt securities are those traded on the Chinese interbank market and those not publicly traded. Unlisted equity securities are those not traded 

on stock exchanges, which are mainly open-ended funds with public market price quotations.

215

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
11 FINANCIAL ASSETS  (continued)

11.11 Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell

Maturing:

Within 30 days
Above 30 days

Total

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

19,682
77

19,759

38,215
318

38,533

12 FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL ASSETS AND LIABILITIES

The table below presents the carrying amount and estimated fair value of major financial assets and liabilities:

Carrying amount

Estimated fair value (i)

As at  
31 December 
2023

As at  
31 December 
2022

As at  
31 December 
2023

As at  
31 December 
2022

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Investment in debt instruments at amortised 

413,255
6,520
211,349

485,567
6,333
N/A

cost (ii)

Investment in debt instruments at fair value 

2,744,169

through other comprehensive income

Investment in equity instruments at fair value 

138,005

through other comprehensive income

Financial assets at fair value through profit or 

1,705,375

N/A

N/A

N/A

loss

Held-to-maturity securities (ii)
Loans (ii)
Available-for-sale securities, at fair value
Securities at fair value through profit or loss
Financial assets purchased under agreements to 

resell

N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
19,759

1,574,204
342,083
1,720,974
223,790
38,533

413,255
6,520
219,379

2,744,169

138,005

1,705,375

N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
19,759

485,567
6,333
N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A

1,700,806
351,285
1,720,974
223,790
38,533

Cash and cash equivalents
Financial liabilities at fair value through profit or 

149,305
(13,878)

127,594
(3,344)

149,305
(13,878)

127,594
(3,344)

loss

Financial assets sold under agreements to 

(216,851)

(148,958)

(216,851)

(148,958)

repurchase
Bonds payable
Interest-bearing loans and other borrowings

(36,166)
(12,857)

(34,997)
(12,774)

(36,278)
(12,857)

(35,387)
(12,774)

(i)  The estimates and judgements to determine the fair value of financial assets are described in Note 4.2.

(ii)  The  fair  values  of  investment  in  debt  instruments  at  amortised  cost,  held-to-maturity  securities  and  loans  are  determined  by  reference  with  the  debt 

securities which are measured by fair value. Please refer to Note 5.4.

216

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
12 FAIR VALUE OF FINANCIAL ASSETS AND LIABILITIES  (continued)

The fair values of the underlying items of the Group’s Insurance contracts with direct participation features are as follows:

Cash and cash equivalents
Term deposits
Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive 

income

Investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive 

income

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Held-to-maturity securities
Loans
Available-for-sale securities, at fair value
Securities at fair value through profit or loss
Other miscellaneous items

Total

13 OTHER ASSETS

Land use rights (i)
Investments receivable and prepaid
Disbursements
Due from related parties
Prepayments to constructors
Tax prepaid
Others (ii)

Total

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

47,693
131,206
12,163
1,077,916

61,599

589,031
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
167,942

34,993
197,000
N/A
N/A

N/A

N/A
564,510
178,972
715,824
59,482
186,876

2,087,550

1,937,657

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

7,861
7,765
4,662
1,005
95
–
15,930

37,318

8,092
1,029
3,299
963
77
171
8,373

22,004

(i)   The Group’s right-of-use assets include the above land use rights and right-of-use assets disclosed in Note 8.

(ii)   As at 31 December 2023, other items in the Group’s other assets were mainly subsidiary real estate related assets.

During  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  the  Group  recognised  an  expected  credit  loss  of  RMB65  million  on  other 
receivables (2022: an assets impairment loss of RMB36 million), and at 31 December 2023, the provision for impairment 
of other receivables is RMB720 million (As at 31 December 2022: RMB639 million).

217

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS

14.1 Significant actuarial assumptions

(1) Estimates of future cash flows

All of the future cash flows within the boundary of each group of contracts are included in the measurement of each group 
of insurance contracts.

The Group estimates cash flows which are expected in the future and the timing and probability that they will occur based 
on  the  information  available  at  the  reporting  date.  In  making  these  expectations,  the  Group  uses  information  about  past 
events, current conditions and forecasts of future conditions. The Group’s estimate of future cash flows is the probability-
weighted mean of a range of scenarios that reflect the full range of possible outcomes.

The Group adjusts the estimates of future cash flows to reflect the time value of money.

Assumptions  used  to  develop  estimates  about  future  cash  flows  are  reassessed  by  the  Group  at  the  reporting  date  and 
adjusted where required.

Significant actuarial assumptions used are discussed below:

Discount rates

Based  on  the  information  available  at  the  reporting  date,  the  Group  applies  the  bottom-up  approach  in  determining  the 
discount  rate  for  future  cash  flows  of  the  insurance  contracts  by  adjusting  tax  premium  and  liquidity  premium  based  on 
the risk-free yield curve. The assumed spot discount rates are as follows:

As at 31 December 2023
As at 31 December 2022

Discount rate assumptions

2.57% ~ 4.80%
2.59% ~ 4.80%

218

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.1 Significant actuarial assumptions (continued)

(1) Estimates of future cash flows (continued)

Mortality/Morbidity

The  mortality  and  morbidity  assumptions  are  based  on  the  Group’s  historical  mortality  and  morbidity  experience.  The 
assumed mortality rates and morbidity rates vary with the age of the insured and contract type.

The  Group  bases  its  mortality  assumptions  on  the  China  Life  Insurance  Mortality  Table  (2010-2013),  adjusted  where 
appropriate  to  reflect  the  Group’s  recent  historical  mortality  experience.  The  main  source  of  uncertainty  with  insurance 
contracts is that epidemics and wide-ranging lifestyle changes could result in deterioration in future mortality experience. 
Similarly, continuing advancements in medical care and social conditions may push forward improvements in longevity.

The Group bases its morbidity assumptions for critical illness products on analysis of historical experience and expectations 
of future developments. There are two main sources of uncertainty. Firstly, wide-ranging lifestyle changes could result in 
future deterioration in morbidity experience. Secondly, future development of medical technologies and improved coverage 
of  medical  facilities  available  to  policyholders  may  bring  forward  the  timing  of  diagnosing  critical  illness,  which  demands 
earlier payment of the critical illness benefits.

Expense assumptions

Expense  assumptions  are  based  on  the  information  available  at  the  reporting  date  with  the  consideration  of  previous 
expense studies and future trends. Expense assumptions are affected by certain factors such as future inflation and market 
competition which bring uncertainty to these assumptions.

Lapse rates

The  lapse  rates  are  affected  by  certain  factors,  such  as  future  macro-economy,  availability  of  financial  substitutions,  and 
market  competition,  which  bring  uncertainty  to  these  assumptions.  The  lapse  rates  are  determined  with  reference  to 
creditable past experience, current conditions, future expectations and other information.

Policy dividend assumption

The policy dividend assumption is uncertainty and is affected by factors such as the expected investment returns, the Group’s 
dividend policy, and the reasonable expectations of policyholders. The Group is obliged to pay 70% or a higher percentage 
as agreed in the insurance policy of the cumulative distributable income to the participating insurance policyholders.

(2) Risk adjustment for non-financial risk

The risk adjustment for non-financial risk is calculated at the Group level and then allocated down to each group of contracts 
in accordance with their risk profiles. The Group determines non-financial risk adjustments based on the confidence interval 
method and at a 75% confidence level.

219

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities

(1)  Reconciliation  of  the  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  and  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  for 
insurance contracts issued

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Liabilities for remaining  
coverage

Excluding loss 
component

Loss 
component

 Liabilities for 
incurred claims

Total

RMB million

4,176,033

20,169

34,873

4,231,075

(122,628)

(20,943)
(16,727)
(160,298)

–

–
–
–

–

–
–
–

–

(2,309)

46,371

(122,628)

(20,943)
(16,727)
(160,298)

44,062

42,118

–
–
42,118

(118,180)

256,720

138,540

(209,261)
704,912
(51,110)
–
653,802

–

–

42,118

12,595
–
10,286

10,286

449

10,735

–
–
–
–
–

–
247
46,618

46,618

–

46,618

209,261
–
–
(255,365)
(255,365)

12,595
247
99,022

(61,276)

257,169

195,893

–
704,912
(51,110)
(255,365)
398,437

4,759,114

30,904

35,387

4,825,405

Insurance contract liabilities as at  

1 January 2023

Contracts measured using the modified 
retrospective approach at transition
Contracts measured using the fair value 

approach at transition

Other contracts

Total insurance revenue

Incurred claims and other expenses
Amortisation of insurance acquisition cash 

flows

Losses and reversals of losses on onerous 

contracts

Changes to liabilities for incurred claims

Total insurance service expenses

Insurance service result

Financial changes in insurance contracts
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Investment components

Premiums received
Insurance acquisition cash flows paid
Claims and other expenses paid

Total cash flows

Insurance contract liabilities as at  

31 December 2023

220

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(1)  Reconciliation  of  the  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  and  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  for 
insurance contracts issued  (continued)

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

Insurance contract liabilities as at  

1 January 2022

Contracts measured using the modified 
retrospective approach at transition
Contracts measured using the fair value 

approach at transition

Other contracts

Total insurance revenue

Incurred claims and other expenses
Amortisation of insurance acquisition cash 

flows

Losses and reversals of losses on onerous 

contracts

Changes to liabilities for incurred claims

Total insurance service expenses

Insurance service result

Financial changes in insurance contracts
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Investment components

Premiums received
Insurance acquisition cash flows paid
Claims and other expenses paid

Total cash flows

Insurance contract liabilities as at  

31 December 2022

Liabilities for remaining  
coverage

Excluding loss 
component

Loss 
component

 Liabilities for 
incurred claims

Total

RMB million

3,729,604

10,249

33,480

3,773,333

(107,477)

(17,179)
(2,515)
(127,171)

–

–
–
–

–

–
–
–

–

(1,125)

42,532

(107,477)

(17,179)
(2,515)
(127,171)

41,407

26,979

–
–
26,979

(100,192)

139,633

39,441

(171,236)
622,108
(43,884)
–
578,224

–

–

26,979

10,646
–
9,521

9,521

399

9,920

–
–
–
–
–

–
509
43,041

43,041

–

43,041

171,236
–
–
(212,884)
(212,884)

10,646
509
79,541

(47,630)

140,032

92,402

–
622,108
(43,884)
(212,884)
365,340

4,176,033

20,169

34,873

4,231,075

221

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(1)  Reconciliation  of  the  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  and  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  for 
insurance contracts issued  (continued)

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach

liabilities for remaining 
coverage

liabilities for  
incurred claims

Excluding loss 
component

Loss 
component

Risk 
adjustment 
for non-
financial risk

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

RMB million

Total

Insurance contract liabilities as 

at 1 January 2023

3,411

1,778

29,959

724

35,872

Contracts measured using 

the modified retrospective 
approach at transition

Other contracts

Total insurance revenue

Incurred claims and other 

expenses

Amortisation of insurance 
acquisition cash flows
Losses and reversals of 

losses on onerous contracts

Changes to liabilities for 

incurred claims
Total insurance service 

expenses

Insurance service result

Financial changes in insurance 

contracts

Total amounts recognised in 

comprehensive income

Investment components

Premiums received
Insurance acquisition cash flows 

paid

Claims and other expenses paid

Total cash flows

Insurance contract liabilities as 

(108)
(52,039)
(52,147)

–
–
–

–
–
–

–
–
–

(108)
(52,039)
(52,147)

–

(1,669)

39,196

518

38,045

16,531

–

–

16,531

(35,616)

1,297

(34,319)

(25,665)
79,681

(16,857)
–
62,824

–

689

–

(980)

(980)

–

(980)

–
–

–
–
–

–

–

(3,250)

35,946

35,946

674

36,620

25,665
–

–
(66,101)
(66,101)

–

–

(684)

(166)

(166)

20

(146)

–
–

–
–
–

16,531

689

(3,934)

51,331

(816)

1,991

1,175

–
79,681

(16,857)
(66,101)
(3,277)

at 31 December 2023

6,251

798

26,143

578

33,770

222

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(1)  Reconciliation  of  the  liabilities  for  remaining  coverage  and  the  liabilities  for  incurred  claims  for 
insurance contracts issued  (continued)

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

liabilities for remaining  
coverage

liabilities for  
incurred claims

Excluding loss 
component

Loss 
component

Risk 
adjustment for 
non-financial 
risk

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

RMB million

Total

Insurance contract liabilities as 

at 1 January 2022

3,766

699

31,225

693

36,383

Contracts measured using 

the modified retrospective 
approach at transition

Other contracts

Total insurance revenue

Incurred claims and other 

expenses

Amortisation of insurance 
acquisition cash flows
Losses and reversals of 

losses on onerous contracts

Changes to liabilities for 

incurred claims
Total insurance service 

expenses

Insurance service result

Financial changes in insurance 

contracts

Total amounts recognised in 

comprehensive income

Investment components

Premiums received
Insurance acquisition cash flows 

paid

Claims and other expenses paid

Total cash flows

Insurance contract liabilities as 

(18,160)
(37,247)
(55,407)

–
–
–

–
–
–

–
–
–

(18,160)
(37,247)
(55,407)

–

(691)

37,718

648

37,675

17,045

–

–

–

1,770

–

–

–

–

17,045

1,770

–

(3,783)

(634)

(4,417)

17,045

(38,362)

1,079

1,079

33,935

33,935

1,385

–

642

(36,977)

(22,770)
76,305

(16,913)
–
59,392

1,079

–
–

–
–
–

34,577

22,770
–

–
(58,613)
(58,613)

14

14

17

31

–
–

–
–
–

52,073

(3,334)

2,044

(1,290)

–
76,305

(16,913)
(58,613)
779

at 31 December 2022

3,411

1,778

29,959

724

35,872

223

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(2) Reconciliation of fulfilment cash flows and contractual service margin for insurance contracts issued

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

Risk 
adjustment for 
non-financial 
risk

Contractual 
service margin

Total

RMB million

Insurance contract liabilities as at 1 January 

2023

3,413,416

34,186

783,473

4,231,075

contractual service margin

22,655

29

(22,684)

–

–

(65,689)

(65,689)

–
(6,658)
(6,658)

(1,771)
–
(1,771)

–
–
(65,689)

(51,821)

1,249

51,093

11,413
(17,753)

242
242

(24,169)

231,656

207,487

704,912
(51,110)
(255,365)
398,437

661
1,939

5
5

173

2,569

2,742

–
–
–
–

–
28,409

–
–

(37,280)

22,944

(14,336)

–
–
–
–

(1,771)
(6,658)
(74,118)

521

–

12,074
12,595

247
247

(61,276)

257,169

195,893

704,912
(51,110)
(255,365)
398,437

4,019,340

36,928

769,137

4,825,405

Contractual service margin recognised for 

the service provided

Change in the risk adjustment for non-

financial risk

Current experience adjustment
Changes relating to current service

Impact of insurance contracts initially 

recognised in the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to 

Changes in estimates without adjustment to 

contractual service margin
Changes relating to future service

Changes to liabilities for incurred claims

Changes relating to past service

Insurance service result

Financial changes in insurance contracts
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Premiums received
Insurance acquisition cash flows paid
Claims and other expenses paid

Total cash flows

Insurance contract liabilities as at 31 

December 2023

224

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(2)  Reconciliation  of  fulfilment  cash  flows  and  contractual  service  margin  for  insurance  contracts 
issued  (continued)

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

Risk  
adjustment for 
non-financial 
risk

Contractual 
service margin

Total

RMB million

Insurance contract liabilities as at 1 January 

2022

2,930,016

37,884

805,433

3,773,333

Contractual service margin recognised for 

the service provided

Change in the risk adjustment for non-

financial risk

Current experience adjustment
Changes relating to current service

Impact of insurance contracts initially 

recognised in the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to 

contractual service margin

Changes in estimates without adjustment to 

contractual service margin
Changes relating to future service

Changes to liabilities for incurred claims

Changes relating to past service

Insurance service result

Financial changes in insurance contracts
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Premiums received
Insurance acquisition cash flows paid
Claims and other expenses paid

Total cash flows

Insurance contract liabilities as at 31 

December 2022

–

–

(43,273)

(43,273)

–
(13,495)
(13,495)

(2,017)
–
(2,017)

–
–
(43,273)

(48,984)

1,790

47,966

53,731

9,937
14,684

506
506

1,695

116,365

118,060

622,108
(43,884)
(212,884)
365,340

(4,906)

(48,825)

(63)
(3,179)

3
3

(5,193)

1,495

–
(859)

–
–

(44,132)

22,172

(3,698)

(21,960)

–
–
–
–

–
–
–
–

(2,017)
(13,495)
(58,785)

772

–

9,874
10,646

509
509

(47,630)

140,032

92,402

622,108
(43,884)
(212,884)
365,340

3,413,416

34,186

783,473

4,231,075

225

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(3) Impact of the initial recognition of the insurance contracts issued in the current period

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

2023

Non-onerous 
contracts

Onerous 
contracts

Non-onerous 
contracts

Total

RMB million

2022

Onerous 
contracts

RMB million

Total

Estimates of the present value of 

future cash inflows
Insurance acquisition cash flows
Others

Estimates of the present value of 

future cash outflows

Risk adjustment for non-financial risk
Contractual service margin

Total

(773,096)
53,205
667,559

720,764

1,239
51,093

–

(14,355)
1,649
13,217

(787,451)
54,854
680,776

(715,190)
44,060
621,391

(22,061)
2,610
20,206

(737,251)
46,670
641,597

14,866

735,630

665,451

22,816

688,267

10
–

521

1,249
51,093

521

1,773
47,966

–

17
–

772

1,790
47,966

772

(4) Expected amortisation of contractual service margin

The expected amortisation of contractual service margin provided in the table below represents the amount by which the 
carrying value of the Group’s contractual service margin at 31 December 2023 is expected to be apportioned to future years 
on the basis of the unit of coverage, which does not include contractual service margin for future new business, accrued 
interest, etc., and therefore there may be differences with the amortisation of contractual service margin in future years.

Number of years until expected to be amortised

1 year or less (including 1 year)
1 – 3 years (including 3 years)
3 – 5 years (including 5 years)
5 – 10 years (including 10 years)
More than 10 years

Total

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

64,321
119,844
105,156
194,653
285,163

769,137

226

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.2 Insurance contract liabilities (continued)

(5)  Reconciliation  of  contractual  service  margin  for  insurance  contracts  not  measured  using  the 
premium allocation approach

Insurance 
contracts 
measured using 
the modified 
retrospective 
approach at the 
transition date

Insurance 
contracts 
measured using 
the fair value 
approach at the 

transition date Other contracts

Total

RMB million

As at 1 January 2023
Changes relating to current service

Impact of insurance contracts initially recognised in 

the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to 

contractual service margin
Changes relating to future service
Financial changes in insurance contracts

As at 31 December 2023

612,200
(50,470)

133,890
(12,088)

37,383
(3,131)

783,473
(65,689)

–

–

51,093

51,093

(21,347)
(21,347)
17,111

557,494

11,175
11,175
3,932

136,909

(12,512)
38,581
1,901

74,734

(22,684)
28,409
22,944

769,137

Insurance 
contracts 
measured using 
the modified 
retrospective 
approach at the 
transition date

Insurance 
contracts 
measured using 
the fair value 
approach at the 
transition date

Other contracts

Total

As at 1 January 2022
Changes relating to current service

Impact of insurance contracts initially recognised in 

the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to 

contractual service margin
Changes relating to future service
Financial changes in insurance contracts

As at 31 December 2022

RMB million

666,255
(35,167)

139,178
(7,643)

–
(463)

805,433
(43,273)

–

–

47,966

47,966

(36,736)
(36,736)
17,848

612,200

(1,216)
(1,216)
3,571

133,890

(10,873)
37,093
753

37,383

(48,825)
(859)
22,172

783,473

227

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities)

(1) Reconciliation of remaining coverage and incurred claims for reinsurance contracts held

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Assets for remaining coverage 
recovered from reinsurers

Excluding 
loss- recovery 
component

Loss- recovery 
component

Assets for 
incurred claims 
recovered from 
reinsurers

RMB million

Total

Reinsurance contract assets as at 1 January 

2023

12,842

1,990

6,837

21,669

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 1 

January 2023

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

as at 1 January 2023

Allocation of reinsurance premiums paid
Recovery of incurred claims and other 

expenses

Recognition and reversals of loss-recovery 

component

Changes to assets for incurred claims 

recovered from reinsurers
Amounts recovered from reinsurers

Gains or losses on reinsurance contracts

Financial changes in reinsurance contracts held
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Investment components

Reinsurance premiums paid
Incurred claims and other expenses recovered 

from reinsurers

Total cash flows

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

as at 31 December 2023

Reinsurance contract assets as at 31 

December 2023

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 31 

December 2023

(157)

12,685

(4,141)

–

–

–
–

(4,141)

1,337

(2,804)

(1,674)
6,694

–
6,694

14,901

15,043

(142)

–

1,990

–

(196)

389

–
193

193

107

300

–
–

–
–

2,290

2,290

–

22

6,859

–

3,745

–

696
4,441

4,441

–

4,441

1,674
–

(135)

21,534

(4,141)

3,549

389

696
4,634

493

1,444

1,937

–
6,694

(5,868)
(5,868)

(5,868)
826

7,106

24,297

7,087

24,420

19

(123)

228

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(1) Reconciliation of remaining coverage and incurred claims for reinsurance contracts held (continued)

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

Assets for remaining coverage 
recovered from reinsurers

Excluding 
loss- recovery 
component

Loss- recovery 
component

Assets for 
incurred claims 
recovered from 
reinsurers

RMB million

Total

Reinsurance contract assets as at 1 January 

2022

13,314

1,767

2,977

18,058

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 1 

January 2022

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

as at 1 January 2022

Allocation of reinsurance premiums paid
Recovery of incurred claims and other 

expenses

Recognition and reversals of loss-recovery 

component

Changes to assets for incurred claims 

recovered from reinsurers
Amounts recovered from reinsurers

Gains or losses on reinsurance contracts

Financial changes in reinsurance contracts held
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Investment components

Reinsurance premiums paid
Incurred claims and other expenses recovered 

from reinsurers

Total cash flows

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

as at 31 December 2022

Reinsurance contract assets as at 31 

December 2022

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 31 

December 2022

(132)

13,182

(3,423)

–

–

–
–

(3,423)

1,146

(2,277)

(1,604)
3,384

–
3,384

12,685

12,842

(157)

–

1,767

–

(116)

268

–
152

152

71

223

–
–

–
–

1,990

1,990

–

8

(124)

2,985

–

4,269

–

834
5,103

5,103

–

5,103

1,604
–

17,934

(3,423)

4,153

268

834
5,255

1,832

1,217

3,049

–
3,384

(2,833)
(2,833)

(2,833)
551

6,859

21,534

6,837

21,669

22

(135)

229

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(1) Reconciliation of remaining coverage and incurred claims for reinsurance contracts held (continued)

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach

Assets for remaining coverage 
recovered from reinsurers

Assets for incurred claims 
recovered from reinsurers

Excluding 
loss-recovery 
component

Loss-recovery 
component

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

Risk adjustment 
for non-
financial risk

RMB million

(399)

(55)

(454)

(585)

–

–

–
–

(585)

40

(545)

(1,283)
1,714

–
1,714

(568)

(402)

(166)

57

1

58

–

(59)

30

–
(29)

(29)

–

(29)

–
–

–
–

29

28

1

2,757

29

2,786

–

634

–

(799)
(165)

(165)

37

(128)

1,283
–

(2,051)
(2,051)

1,890

1,790

100

12

–

12

–

9

–

(11)
(2)

(2)

–

(2)

–
–

–
–

10

10

–

Total

2,427

(25)

2,402

(585)

584

30

(810)
(196)

(781)

77

(704)

–
1,714

(2,051)
(337)

1,361

1,426

(65)

Reinsurance contract assets as at 1 

January 2023

Reinsurance contract liabilities as 

at 1 January 2023

Net assets/(liabilities) of 

reinsurance contract as at 1 
January 2023

Allocation of reinsurance premiums 

paid
Recovery of incurred claims and 

other expenses

Recognition and reversals of loss-

recovery component

Changes to assets for incurred 

claims recovered from 
reinsurers

Amounts recovered from reinsurers

Gains or losses on reinsurance 

contracts

Financial changes in reinsurance 

contracts held

Total amounts recognised in 
comprehensive income

Investment components

Reinsurance premiums paid
Incurred claims and other expenses 

recovered from reinsurers

Total cash flows

Net assets/(liabilities) of 

reinsurance contract as at 31 
December 2023

Reinsurance contract assets as at 

31 December 2023

Reinsurance contract liabilities as 

at 31 December 2023

230

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(1) Reconciliation of remaining coverage and incurred claims for reinsurance contracts held (continued)

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

Assets for remaining coverage 
recovered from reinsurers

Assets for incurred claims 
recovered from reinsurers

Excluding 
loss-recovery 
component

Loss-recovery 
component

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

Risk adjustment 
for non-financial 
risk

RMB million

Reinsurance contract assets as at 1 

January 2022

Reinsurance contract liabilities as 

at 1 January 2022

Net assets/(liabilities) of 

reinsurance contract as at 1 
January 2022

Allocation of reinsurance premiums 

paid
Recovery of incurred claims and 

other expenses

Recognition and reversals of loss-

recovery component

Changes to assets for incurred 

claims recovered from 
reinsurers

Amounts recovered from reinsurers

Gains or losses on reinsurance 

contracts

Financial changes in reinsurance 

contracts held

Total amounts recognised in 
comprehensive income

Investment components

Reinsurance premiums paid
Incurred claims and other expenses 

recovered from reinsurers

Total cash flows

Net assets/(liabilities) of 

reinsurance contract as at 31 
December 2022

Reinsurance contract assets as at 

31 December 2022

Reinsurance contract liabilities as 

at 31 December 2022

229

(111)

118

(696)

–

–

–
–

(696)

61

(635)

(2,043)
2,106

–
2,106

(454)

(399)

(55)

20

3

23

–

(24)

59

–
35

35

–

35

–
–

–
–

58

57

1

1,013

78

1,091

–

858

–

121
979

979

32

1,011

2,043
–

(1,359)
(1,359)

2,786

2,757

29

7

–

7

–

11

–

(6)
5

5

–

5

–
–

–
–

12

12

–

Total

1,269

(30)

1,239

(696)

845

59

115
1,019

323

93

416

–
2,106

(1,359)
747

2,402

2,427

(25)

231

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(2) Reconciliation of fulfilment cash flows and contractual service margin for reinsurance contracts held

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

Risk 
adjustment for 
non-financial 
risk

Contractual 
service margin

Total

RMB million

Reinsurance contract assets as at 1 January 

2023

27,998

7,870

(14,199)

21,669

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 1 

January 2023

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

(64)

60

(131)

(135)

as at 1 January 2023

27,934

7,930

(14,330)

21,534

Contractual service margin recognised for 

the service provided

Change in the risk adjustment for non-

financial risk

Current experience adjustment
Changes relating to current service

Impact of reinsurance contracts held initially 

recognised in the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to 

contractual service margin

Changes in estimates without adjustment to 

contractual service margin
Changes relating to future service

Changes to assets for incurred claims 

recovered from reinsurers
Changes relating to past service

Gains or losses on reinsurance contracts held

Financial changes in reinsurance contracts held
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Reinsurance premiums paid
Incurred claims and other expenses recovered 

from reinsurers

Total cash flows

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

–

–
(1,097)
(1,097)

(9)

(3,095)

364
(2,740)

696
696

(3,141)

1,500

(1,641)

6,694

(5,868)
826

–

(352)
–
(352)

36

(302)

25
(241)

–
–

(593)

557

(36)

–

–
–

857

–
–
857

(27)

3,397

–
3,370

–
–

4,227

(613)

3,614

–

–
–

857

(352)
(1,097)
(592)

–

–

389
389

696
696

493

1,444

1,937

6,694

(5,868)
826

as at 31 December 2023

27,119

7,894

(10,716)

24,297

Reinsurance contract assets as at 31 

December 2023

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 31 

December 2023

27,197

7,859

(10,636)

24,420

(78)

35

(80)

(123)

232

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(2)  Reconciliation  of  fulfilment  cash  flows  and  contractual  service  margin  for  reinsurance  contracts 
held  (continued)

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach (continued)

Present value 
of future cash 
flows

Risk adjustment 
for non-financial 
risk

Contractual 
service margin

Total

RMB million

Reinsurance contract assets as at 1 January 

2022

34,976

8,653

(25,571)

18,058

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 1 

January 2022

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

(159)

57

(22)

(124)

as at 1 January 2022

34,817

8,710

(25,593)

17,934

Contractual service margin recognised for 

the service provided

Change in the risk adjustment for non-

financial risk

Current experience adjustment
Changes relating to current service

Impact of reinsurance contracts held initially 

recognised in the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to 

contractual service margin

Changes in estimates without adjustment to 

contractual service margin
Changes relating to future service

Changes to assets for incurred claims 

recovered from reinsurers
Changes relating to past service

Gains or losses on reinsurance contracts held

Financial changes in reinsurance contracts held
Total amounts recognised in comprehensive 

income

Reinsurance premiums paid
Incurred claims and other expenses recovered 

from reinsurers

Total cash flows

Net assets/(liabilities) of reinsurance contract 

–

–
257
257

106

(10,729)

256
(10,367)

834
834

(9,276)

1,842

(7,434)

3,384

(2,833)
551

–

(344)
–
(344)

62

(887)

10
(815)

–
–

(1,159)

379

819

–
–
819

(168)

11,616

–
11,448

–
–

12,267

(1,004)

(780)

11,263

–

–
–

–

–
–

819

(344)
257
732

–

–

266
266

834
834

1,832

1,217

3,049

3,384

(2,833)
551

as at 31 December 2022

27,934

7,930

(14,330)

21,534

Reinsurance contract assets as at 31 

December 2022

Reinsurance contract liabilities as at 31 

December 2022

27,998

7,870

(14,199)

21,669

(64)

60

(131)

(135)

233

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(3) Impact of the initial recognition of the reinsurance contracts in the current period

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

Reinsurance 
contracts 
with a net 
gain

Reinsurance 
contracts 
with a net 
cost

Reinsurance 
contracts with 
a net gain

Reinsurance 
contracts with 
a net cost

Total

RMB million

RMB million

Estimates of the present value of 

future cash inflows

Estimates of the present value of 

future cash outflows

Risk adjustment for non-financial risk
Contractual service margin

Total

560

(551)
27
(36)

–

191

(209)
9
9

–

751

(760)
36
(27)

–

1,142

(1,034)
62
(170)

–

4

(6)
–
2

–

Total

1,146

(1,040)
62
(168)

–

(4) Expected amortisation of contractual service margin

The expected amortisation of contractual service margin provided in the table below represents the amount by which the 
carrying  value  of  the  Group’s  contractual  service  margin  at  31  December  2023  is  expected  to  be  apportioned  to  future 
years on the basis of the unit of coverage, which does not include contractual service margin of reinsurance contracts held 
for  future  new  business,  accrued  interest,  etc.,  and  therefore  there  may  be  differences  with    amortisation  of  contractual 
service margin in future years.

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

797
1,587
1,308
2,395
4,629

10,716

Number of years until expected to be amortised

1 year or less (including 1 year)
1 – 3 years (including 3 years)
3 – 5 years (including 5 years)
5 – 10 years (including 10 years)
More than 10 years

Total

234

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
14 INSURANCE CONTRACTS  (continued)

14.3 Reinsurance contract assets/(liabilities) (continued)

(5)  Reconciliation  of  contractual  service  margin  for  reinsurance  contracts  held  not  measured  using 
the premium allocation approach

Reinsurance 
contracts held 
measured using 
the modified 
retrospective 
approach at the 
transition date

(13,806)
857

–

2,962
2,962
(598)

(10,585)

Reinsurance 
contracts held 
measured using 
the modified 
retrospective 
approach at the 
transition date

(25,593)
814

–

11,973
11,973
(1,000)

(13,806)

Other contracts

RMB million

(524)
–

(27)

435
408
(15)

(131)

Other contracts

RMB million

–
5

(168)

(357)
(525)
(4)

(524)

As at 1 January 2023
Changes relating to current service

Impact of reinsurance contracts initially recognised in 

the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to contractual 

service margin

Changes relating to future service
Financial changes in reinsurance contracts held

As at 31 December 2023

As at 1 January 2022
Changes relating to current service

Impact of reinsurance contracts initially recognised in 

the period

Changes in estimates with adjustment to contractual 

service margin

Changes relating to future service
Financial changes in reinsurance contracts held

As at 31 December 2022

Total

(14,330)
857

(27)

3,397
3,370
(613)

(10,716)

Total

(25,593)
819

(168)

11,616
11,448
(1,004)

(14,330)

235

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
15 INTEREST-BEARING LOANS AND OTHER BORROWINGS

Maturity date

Interest rate

8 March 2024
8 March 2024
25 June 2024
27 September 2024
15 June 2034
15 June 2034
15 June 2034

EURIBOR+2.8%
EURIBOR+2.8%
3.08%
6M SOFR+1.15%
LPR (i)
LPR+0.53% (i)
LPR+0.63% (i)

Guaranteed loans
Guaranteed loans
Credit loans
Credit loans
Mortgages loans
Mortgages loans
Mortgages loans

Total

(i)  The adjustment date is 1 January of each year.

16 BONDS PAYABLE

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

773
2,605
2,495
6,984
–
–
–

742
2,450
2,307
6,756
436
51
32

12,857

12,774

As  at  31  December  2023,  all  bonds  payable  were  the  bonds  for  capital  replenishment  (the  “Bond”)  with  a  total  carrying 
amount of RMB36,166 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB34,997 million), and the fair value of RMB36,278 million (as 
at 31 December 2022: RMB35,387 million). The fair value of the Bond was classified as level 2 in the fair value hierarchy. 
The following table presents the par value of the bonds payable:

Issue date

Maturity date

Interest rate p. a.

22 March 2019

22 March 2029

4.28%

Total

As at  
31 December  
2023 

As at  
31 December  
2022 

RMB million

RMB million

35,000

35,000

35,000

35,000

The fair value of bonds payable is based on the valuation results of China Central Depository & Clearing Co., Ltd.

On  20  March  2019,  the  Company  issued  a  bond  in  the  national  inter-bank  bond  market  at  a  principal  amount  of  RMB35 
billion, and completed the issuance on 22 March 2019. The bond has a 10-year maturity and a fixed coupon rate of 4.28% 
per annum. The Company has a conditional right to redeem the bonds at the end of the fifth year. If the Company does not 
redeem the bonds at the end of the fifth year, the coupon rate per annum for the remaining 5 years will be raised to 5.28%.

On 18 February 2024, the Company issued the “Notice of Exercise of Redemption Option of China Life Insurance Company 
Limited 2019 Bonds for Capital Replenishment (Bond Pass-Through) ” and on 22 March 2024, the Company redeemed the 
capital supplementary Bond in full.

Bonds payable are measured at amortised cost as described in Note 2.4.2.

236

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
17 OTHER LIABILITIES

Payable to the third-party holders of consolidated structured entities
Salary and welfare payable
Brokerage and commission payable
Payable to constructors
Interest payable of debt instruments
Agency deposits
Tax payable
Stock appreciation rights (Note 31)
Others

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

(Restated,  

Note 2.1.1.b)

84,295
8,404
4,780
2,189
1,451
1,107
834
181
23,509

73,845
11,735
4,664
2,606
1,241
1,298
704
340
21,318

Total

126,750

117,751

18 FINANCIAL ASSETS SOLD UNDER AGREEMENTS TO REPURCHASE

Interbank markets
Stock exchange markets

Total

Maturing:

Within 30 days
More than 30 days within 90 days

Total

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

150,028
66,823

216,851

216,579
272

216,851

101,641
47,317

148,958

148,958
–

148,958

As  at  31  December  2023,  bonds  with  a  carrying  amount  of  RMB182,528  million  (as  at  31  December  2022:  RMB110,104 
million)  were  pledged  as  collateral  for  financial  assets  sold  under  agreements  to  repurchase  resulting  from  repurchase 
transactions entered into by the Group in the interbank markets.

For  debt  repurchase  transactions  through  the  stock  exchange,  the  Group  is  required  to  deposit  certain  exchange-traded 
bonds into a collateral pool with fair value converted at a standard rate pursuant to the stock exchange’s regulation which 
should  be  no  less  than  the  balance  of  the  related  repurchase  transaction.  As  at  31  December  2023,  the  carrying  amount 
of securities deposited in the collateral pool was RMB310,320 million (as at 31 December 2022: RMB269,925 million). The 
collateral is restricted from trading during the period of the repurchase transaction.

237

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
19 STATUTORY INSURANCE FUND

As required by the former CIRC Order [2008] No. 2, “Measures for Administration of Statutory Insurance Fund”, all insurance 
companies have to pay the statutory insurance fund contribution from 1 January 2009 to 31 December 2022.

Since  January  1,2023,  the  Group  has  paid  the  Insurance  Protection  Fund  in  accordance  with  the  “Measures  for  the 
Administration of the Insurance Security Fund” (Issued by Order no.7 [2022] Former CBIRC, the Ministry of Finance of the 
People’s  Republic  of  China  and  the  People’s  Bank  of  China)  and  the  “Notice  of  the  General  Office  of  the  China  Banking 
and Insurance Regulatory Commission on Matters related to the Payment of Insurance Protection Fund” (No. 2 [2023] of 
the General Office of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission).

The  fund  contribution  is  equal  to  the  product  of  the  business  income  and  the  fund  rate,  which  is  composed  of  the  base 
rate and the risk differential rate, and is equal to the sum of the base rate and the risk differential rate.

(1) Benchmark Interest Rate

•  Short-term health insurance and accident insurance shall be paid at 0.8% of business income;

•  Life insurance, long-term health insurance and annuity insurance shall be paid at 0.3% of business income; Among them, 

investment-linked insurance shall be paid at 0.05% of business income;

(2) Risk differential rate

The risk differential rate is based on the results of the comprehensive solvency risk rating. When the rating is A (including 
AAA, AA and A), B (including BBB, BB and B), C and D, the applicable rate is -0.02%,0%,0.02% and 0.04%, respectively.

When the life insurance protection fund reaches 1% of the total assets of the industry, payment will be suspended. The 
total assets of the industry shall be subject to the data determined by the State Financial Supervision and Regulation.

20 INSURANCE REVENUE

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Amounts relating to the changes in the liabilities for remaining coverage

Expected incurred claims and other expenses
Change in the risk adjustment for non-financial risk
Contractual service margin recognised for the service provided

Amortisation of insurance acquisition cash flows

Sub-total

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach

Total

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

50,712
1,779
65,689
42,118
160,298

52,147

212,445

54,925
1,994
43,273
26,979
127,171

55,407

182,578

238

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
21 INTEREST INCOME

Interest income from financial assets measured at amortised cost (i)
Interest income from investment in debt instruments at fair value through other 

comprehensive income

Total

For the year ended 
31 December
2023

RMB million

33,908

89,086

122,994

(i) 

Interest income from financial assets measured at amortised cost mainly includes interest income arising from cash and cash equivalents, financial assets 
purchased under agreements to resell, investment in debt instruments at amortised cost and term deposits.

Interest income is recognised using the effective interest rate method.

22 INVESTMENT INCOME

Dividends and interest income

Dividends

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Investment in equity instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

Interest income

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss

Sub-total

Realised gains/(losses)

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income

Sub-total

Unrealised gains/(losses)

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss
Stock appreciation rights

Sub-total

Total

For the year ended 
31 December
2023

RMB million

23,893
5,224

25,574

54,691

(41,676)
10,396

(31,280)

(33,074)
129
159

(32,786)

(9,375)

239

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
22 INVESTMENT INCOME  (continued)

Debt securities

– held-to-maturity securities
– available-for-sale securities
– at fair value through profit or loss

Equity securities

– available-for-sale securities
– at fair value through profit or loss

Bank deposits
Loans
Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell

Total

For the year ended 
31 December
2022

RMB million
(Restated (i))

62,883
32,079
5,174

28,934
770
25,161
19,095
713

174,809

(i)  Under IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts, policy loans should be accounted for as fulfilment cash flow of the relevant policies, therefore its interest is no longer 

recognised as interest income.

For the year ended 31 December 2022, interest income included in investment income was RMB145,105 million. Interest 
income was mainly accrued using the effective interest method.

23 NET REALISED GAINS ON FINANCIAL ASSETS

Debt securities

Realised gains or losses (i)
Impairment (ii)

Sub-total

Equity securities

Realised gains or losses (i)
Impairment (ii)

Sub-total

Total

For the year ended 
31 December
2022

RMB million

7,344
1,621

8,965

23,573
(19,831)

3,742

12,707

(i)  Realised gains or losses were generated mainly from available-for-sale securities.

(ii)  During the year ended 31 December 2022, the Group recognised an impairment charge of RMB2,644 million on available-for-sale funds, an impairment 
charge of RMB15,486 million on available-for-sale stock securities, an impairment charge of RMB1,701 million on available-for-sale other equity securities, 
an  impairment  reversal  of  RMB145  million  on  available-for-sale  debt  securities,  for  which  the  Group  determined  that  objective  evidence  of  impairment 
existed. The Group recognised no impairment charge on loans and an impairment reversal of RMB1,476 million on loans during the period.

240

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
24 NET FAIR VALUE GAINS THROUGH PROFIT OR LOSS

Debt securities
Equity securities
Stock appreciation rights
Financial liabilities at fair value through profit or loss

Total

25 INSURANCE SERVICE EXPENSES

Contracts not measured using the premium allocation approach

Incurred claims and other expenses
Amortisation of insurance acquisition cash flows
Losses and reversals of losses on onerous contracts
Changes to liabilities for incurred claims

Sub-total

Contracts measured using the premium allocation approach

For the year ended 
31 December
2022

RMB million

(1,613)
(10,956)
(49)
462

(12,156)

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

44,062
42,118
12,595
247

99,022

51,331

41,407
26,979
10,646
509

79,541

52,073

Total

150,353

131,614

26  NET INVESTMENT RETURNS AND FINANCIAL CHANGES IN INSURANCE 

CONTRACTS

Net investment returns

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

Returns on investment recognised in profit or loss

Interest income
Investment income
Net realised gains on financial assets
Net fair value gains through profit or loss
Investment income from associates and joint ventures
Net expected credit losses
Other impairment losses

Sub-total

Returns/(losses) on investment recognised in other comprehensive income

Total

122,994
(9,375)
N/A
N/A
8,079
1,217
–
122,915

100,909

223,824

N/A
174,809
12,707
(12,156)
3,979
N/A
(3,150)
176,189

(101,161)

75,028

241

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
26 NET INVESTMENT RETURNS AND FINANCIAL CHANGES IN INSURANCE 

CONTRACTS  (continued)

Financial changes in insurance contracts

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

Changes in fair value of underlying items of insurance contracts with 

direct participation features

Interest expense
Changes in interest rates and other financial assumptions

Total financial changes in insurance contracts

Recognised in profit or loss
Recognised in other comprehensive income

Total

27 EXPECTED CREDIT LOSSES

66,193
88,070
104,897
259,160

127,923
131,237

259,160

Investment in debt instruments at fair value through other comprehensive income
Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Other receivables

Total

25,693
73,487
42,896
142,076

148,700
(6,624)

142,076

For the year 
ended 31 
December
2023

RMB million

(1,107)
(59)
(115)
(1)
65

(1,217)

242

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
28 PROFIT BEFORE INCOME TAX

Profit before income tax is stated after charging the following:

Salary and bonus
Social security and other benefits
Depreciation and amortisation
Remuneration in respect of audit services provided by auditors
Others

Less: E xpenses directly attributable to insurance contracts

Insurance acquisition cash flows recognised in liabilities for 

remaining coverage

Amounts recognised in insurance service expenses

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

15,105
7,471
5,016
65
27,013

(19,151)
(17,388)

18,131

17,681
7,476
5,291
53
22,636

(19,719)
(18,206)

15,212

The disclosure above does not include underwriting and policy acquisition costs in the fulfilment cash flows.

29 TAXATION

Deferred  tax  assets  and  liabilities  are  offset  when  there  is  a  legally  enforceable  right  to  offset  current  tax  assets  against 
current tax liabilities and when the deferred income tax relates to the same tax authority.

(a) The amount of taxation charged to net profit represents:

Current taxation – Enterprise income tax
Deferred taxation

Taxation charges

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

1,241
(4,212)

(2,971)

2,190
(242)

1,948

243

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
29 TAXATION  (continued)

(b) The reconciliation  between the Group’s effective tax rate and the statutory tax rate of  25% in the  PRC (2022:  same) 
is as follows:

Profit before income tax

Income tax computed at the statutory tax rate
Adjustment on current income tax of previous period
Non-taxable income (i)
Expenses not deductible for tax purposes (i)
Deductible losses for which no deferred tax asset was recognised
Others

Income tax at the effective tax rate

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

44,576

70,060

11,144
(10)
(18,522)
171
4,034
212

(2,971)

17,515
(246)
(15,932)
311
33
267

1,948

(i)  Non-taxable  income  mainly  includes  interest  income  from  government  bonds,  and  dividend  income  from  applicable  equity  investments.  Expenses  not 

deductible for tax purposes mainly include retiree wages that do not meet the criteria for deduction according to the relevant tax regulations.

(c) As at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 2022, the amounts of deferred tax assets and liabilities are as follows:

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

86,971
(62,540)

24,431
–

48,703
(2,849)

46,126
(272)

Deferred tax assets
Deferred tax liabilities

Net deferred tax assets
Net deferred tax liabilities

244

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
29 TAXATION  (continued)

(c)  As  at  31  December  2023  and  31  December  2022,  the  amounts  of  deferred  tax  assets  and  liabilities  are  as  follows 
(continued):

As  at  31  December  2023  and  31  December  2022,  the  deferred  taxation  was  calculated  in  full  on  temporary  differences 
under the statement of financial position liability method using the principal tax rate of 25%. The movements in deferred 
tax assets and liabilities during the year are as follows:

As at  
31 December  
2022  
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

Impact of  
initial 
application of 
IFRS 9 
(Note 2.1.1.a)

As at 1 January 
2023

Recognised in 
profit or loss in 
the current year

RMB million

Recognised 
in other 
comprehensive 
income in the 
current year

As at  
31 December  

2023

Provision for asset impairment
Accrued payroll
Insurance contract liabilities
Deductible losses
Changes in fair value of the financial 

assets at fair value through profit or 
loss

Changes in fair value of the financial 
assets at fair value through other 
comprehensive income

Fair value changes in securities reflecting 
changes in fair value through net profit

Fair value changes on available-for-sale 

securities

Others

Net value

6,993
2,714
26,545
7,185

–

–

418

852
1,147

45,854

(5,058)
–
–
–

1,935
2,714
26,545
7,185

(324)
(851)
(9,457)
5,170

298
–
32,583
–

1,909
1,863
49,671
12,355

10,356

10,356

9,147

–

19,503

(37,052)

(37,052)

(418)

(852)
–

(33,024)

–

–
1,147

12,830

–

–

–
527

4,212

(25,488)

(62,540)

–

–
(4)

7,389

–

–
1,670

24,431

Impact of  
initial 
application of 
IFRS 17 
(Note 2.1.1.b)

As at 1 January 
2022 
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

Recognised in 
profit or loss in 
the current year

Recognised 
in other 
comprehensive 
income in the 
current year

As at  
31 December  
2022  
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

As at  
31 December  
2021 

Provision for asset impairment
Accrued payroll
Insurance contract liabilities
Deductible losses
Fair value changes in securities reflecting 
changes in fair value through net profit

Fair value changes on available-for-sale 

securities

Others

Net value

7,596
2,883
7,644
–

(2,022)

(22,927)
(534)

(7,360)

–
–
30,541
–

–

–
–

30,541

RMB million

7,596
2,883
38,185
–

(2,022)

(22,927)
(534)

23,181

(603)
(169)
(9,801)
7,185

2,440

–
1,190

242

–
–
(1,839)
–

6,993
2,714
26,545
7,185

–

418

23,779
491

22,431

852
1,147

45,854

Unrecognised  deductible  tax  losses  of  the  Group  amounted  to  RMB7,116  million  as  at  31  December  2023  (as  at  31 
December 2022: RMB3,183 million).

245

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
29 TAXATION  (continued)

(d) The analysis of net deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities is as follows:

Deferred tax assets:

– deferred tax assets to be recovered after 12 months
– deferred tax assets to be recovered within 12 months

Sub-total

Deferred tax liabilities:

– deferred tax liabilities to be settled after 12 months
– deferred tax liabilities to be settled within 12 months

Sub-total

Net deferred tax assets/(liabilities)

30 EARNINGS PER SHARE

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

80,587
6,384

86,971

(60,691)
(1,849)

(62,540)

24,431

39,773
8,930

48,703

(1,396)
(1,453)

(2,849)

45,854

There is no difference between the basic and diluted earnings per share. The basic and diluted earnings per share for the 
year ended 31 December 2023 are calculated based on the net profit for the year attributable to ordinary equity holders of 
the Company and the weighted average of 28,264,705,000 ordinary shares (2022: same).

31 STOCK APPRECIATION RIGHTS

The Board of Directors of the Company approved, on 5 January 2006, an award of stock appreciation rights of 4.05 million 
units and on 21 August 2006, another award of stock appreciation rights of 53.22 million units to eligible employees. The 
exercise  prices  of  the  two  awards  were  HKD5.33  and  HKD6.83,  respectively,  the  average  closing  price  of  shares  in  the 
five trading days prior to 1 July 2005 and 1 January 2006, the dates for vesting and exercise price setting purposes of this 
award. Upon the exercise of stock appreciation rights, exercising recipients will receive payments in RMB, subject to any 
withholding tax, equal to the number of stock appreciation rights exercised times the difference between the exercise price 
and market price of the H shares at the time of exercise.

Stock  appreciation  rights  have  been  awarded  in  units,  with  each  unit  representing  the  value  of  one  H  share.  No  shares 
of  common  stock  will  be  issued  under  the  stock  appreciation  rights  plan.  According  to  the  Company’s  plan,  all  stock 
appreciation rights will have an exercise period of five years from the date of award and will not be exercisable before the 
fourth anniversary of the date of award unless specific market or other conditions have been met. On 26 February 2010, 
the Board of Directors of the Company approved the Proposal on Extension of the Effective Period of Stock Appreciation 
Rights to extend the exercise period of all stock appreciation rights, which is also subject to government policy.

As at 31 December 2023, there were 55.01 million units outstanding and exercisable (as at 31 December 2022: same). As 
at 31 December 2023, the amount of intrinsic value for the vested stock appreciation rights was RMB168 million (as at 31 
December 2022: RMB327 million).

246

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
31 STOCK APPRECIATION RIGHTS  (continued)

The fair value of the stock appreciation rights is estimated at each reporting date using lattice-based option valuation models 
based on expected volatility from 32% to 54%, an expected dividend yield of no higher than 5.34% and a risk-free interest 
rate ranging from 2.43% to 4.69%.

The Company recognised a gain of RMB159 million in the net fair value through profit or loss in the consolidated comprehensive 
income  representing  the  fair  value  change  of  the  rights  during  the  year  ended  31  December  2023  (2022:  The  Company 
recognised a loss of RMB49 million in the net fair value through profit or loss in the consolidated comprehensive income 
representing the fair value change of the rights). RMB168 million and RMB13 million were included in salary and staff welfare 
payable included under other liabilities for the units not exercised and exercised but not paid as at 31 December 2023 (as 
at 31 December 2022: RMB327 million and RMB13 million), respectively. There was no unrecognised compensation cost 
for the stock appreciation rights as at 31 December 2023 (as at 31 December 2022: same).

32 DIVIDENDS

Pursuant to the shareholders’ approval at the Annual General Meeting on 28 June 2023, a final dividend of RMB0.49 (inclusive 
of tax) per ordinary share totalling RMB13,850 million in respect of the year ended 31 December 2022 was declared and paid 
in 2023. The dividend has been recorded in the consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.

Pursuant to a resolution passed at the meeting of the Board of Directors on 27 March 2024, a final dividend of RMB0.43 
(inclusive of tax) per ordinary share totalling approximately RMB12,154 million for the year ended 31 December 2023 was 
proposed  for  shareholders’  approval  at  the  forthcoming  Annual  General  Meeting.  The  dividend  has  not  been  recorded  in 
the consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2023.

33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

(a) Related parties with control relationship

Information of the parent company is as follows:

Relationship with 
the Company

Nature of 
ownership

Legal 
representative

Immediate and 
ultimate holding 
company

State-owned

Bai Tao

Name

Location of 
registration

CLIC

Beijing, China

Principal business

including 

Insurance  services 
receipt  of 
premiums  and  payment  of  benefits  in  respect 
of  the  in-force  life,  health,  accident  and  other 
types  of  personal  insurance  business,  and  the 
reinsurance  business;  holding  or  investing  in 
domestic  and  overseas  insurance  companies 
or  other  financial  insurance  institutions;  fund 
management  business  permitted  by  national 
laws and regulations or approved by the State 
Council  of  the  People’s  Republic  of  China; 
and  other  businesses  approved  by  insurance 
regulatory agencies.

247

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(b) Subsidiaries
(i) The table below presents the basic information of the Company’s subsidiaries as at 31 December 

2023:

Name

Place of 
incorporation 
and operation

Percentage of 
equity interest 
held

Registered 
capital

China Life Asset Management Company Limited (“AMC”) (i)

PRC

60.00% directly

RMB4,000 million

China Life Pension Company Limited (“Pension Company”) (i)

PRC

China Life Franklin Asset Management Company Limited 

Hong Kong, PRC

(“AMC HK”)

74.27% directly 
and indirectly
50.00% indirectly

RMB3,400 million

Not applicable

China Life (Suzhou) Pension and Retirement Investment 
Company Limited (“Suzhou Pension Company”) (i)

PRC

100.00% directly 
and indirectly

RMB3,236 million

China Life AMP Asset Management Co., Ltd. (“CL AMP”) (i)

PRC

85.03% indirectly

RMB1,288 million

Principal 
activities

Asset 
management
Pension and 
annuity
Asset 
management
Investment in 
retirement 
properties
Fund 
management
Asset 
management
Investment
Investment

100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% directly

100.00% directly
100.00% directly
100.00% directly
100.00% directly

RMB200 million

Not applicable
Not applicable

RMB6,100 million

Investment

Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable

Investment
Investment
Investment
Investment

100.00% directly

Not applicable

Investment

100.00% directly

Not applicable

Investment

China Life Wealth Management Company Limited (“CL 

PRC

Wealth”) (i)

Golden Phoenix Tree Limited
King Phoenix Tree Limited

Shanghai Rui Chong Investment Co., Limited (“Rui Chong 

Company”) (i)
New Aldgate Limited
Glorious Fortune Forever Limited
CL Hotel Investor, L. P.
Golden Bamboo Limited

Sunny Bamboo Limited

Fortune Bamboo Limited

Hong Kong, PRC
The British 
Jersey Island
PRC

Hong Kong, PRC
Hong Kong, PRC
USA
The British 
Virgin Islands
The British 
Virgin Islands
The British 
Virgin Islands

248

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(b) Subsidiaries (continued)
(i) The table below presents the basic information of the Company’s subsidiaries as at 31 December 

2023  (continued):

Name

China Century Core Fund Limited

China Life (Beijing) Health Management Co., Limited (“CL 

Health”) (i)

China Life Franklin (Shenzhen) Private Equity Investment 
Fund Management Co., Limited (“Franklin Shenzhen 
Company”) (i)

Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Area Guo Yang Guo Sheng 
Investment Partnership (“Guo Yang Guo Sheng”) (ii)

New Capital Wisdom Limited

New Fortune Wisdom Limited

Wisdom Forever Limited Partnership

Ningbo Meishan Bonded Port Area Bai Ning Investment 

Partnership (Limited Partnership) (“Bai Ning”) (ii)
Shanghai Yuan Shu Yuan Pin Investment Management 

Partnership (Limited Partnership) (“Yuan Shu Yuan Pin”) (ii)

Registered 
capital

Principal 
activities

Not applicable

Investment

Place of 
incorporation 
and operation

Percentage of 
equity interest 
held

100.00% 
indirectly

The British 
Cayman 
Islands
PRC

PRC

100.00% directly

RMB1,530 million

100.00% 
indirectly

RMB100 million

Health 
management
Investment

PRC

89.997% directly

Not applicable

Investment

The British 
Virgin Islands
The British 
Virgin Islands
The British 
Cayman 
Islands
PRC

100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly

Not applicable

Investment

Not applicable

Investment

Not applicable

Investment

99.98% directly

Not applicable

Investment

PRC

99.98% directly

Not applicable

Investment

Shanghai Yuan Shu Yuan Jiu Investment Management 

PRC

99.98% directly

Not applicable

Investment

Partnership (Limited Partnership) (“Yuan Shu Yuan Jiu”) (ii)

249

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(b) Subsidiaries (continued)
(i) The table below presents the basic information of the Company’s subsidiaries as at 31 December 

2023 (continued):

Place of 
incorporation 
and operation

Percentage 
of equity 
interest held

Registered 
capital

RMB484 
million
Not 
applicable

Not 
applicable

Not 
applicable

RMB831 
million
Not 
applicable
Not 
applicable

Not 
applicable

Not 
applicable

Principal 
activities

Investment

Investment

Investment

Investment

Investment

Investment

Investment

Investment

Investment

100.00% 
indirectly
99.98% 
directly

99.98% 
directly

99.98% 
directly

100.00% 
indirectly
99.99% 
directly
99.95% 
directly

99.90% 
directly

99.99% 
directly

99.98% 
indirectly

Not 
applicable

Investment

90.81% 
directly
99.99% 
indirectly
99.99% 
indirectly
99.99% 
indirectly

99.50% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly

RMB544 
million
RMB65 
million
RMB1,500 
million
RMB1,551 
million

RMB211 
million
RMB33 
million
RMB6,800 
million

Insurance 
agent
Hotel 
management
Health 
consultation
Investment 
management

Health 
management
Elderly care 
services
Real estate 
management

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

USA

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

PRC

Name

Dalian Hope Building Company Ltd. (“Hope 

Building”) (i)

Shanghai Wansheng Industry Partnership 

(Limited Partnership) (“Shanghai Wansheng”) 
(ii)

Wuhu Yuanxiang Tianfu Investment 

Management Partnership (Limited Partnership) 
(“Yuanxiang Tianfu”) (ii)

Wuhu Yuanxiang Tianyi Investment 

Management Partnership (Limited Partnership) 
(“Yuanxiang Tianyi”) (ii)

Xi’an Shengyi Jingsheng Real Estate Co., Ltd. 

(“Shengyi Jingsheng”) (i)

CBRE Global Investors U. S. Investments I, LLC 

(“CG Investments”)

China Life Guangde (Tianjin) Equity Investment 
Fund Partnership (Limited Partnership) (“CL 
Guang De”) (ii)

Beijing China Life Pension Industry Investment 

Fund (Limited Partnership) (“CL Pension 
Industry”) (ii)

China Life Qihang Phase I (Tianjin) Equity 
Investment Fund Partnership (Limited 
Partnership) (“CL Qihang Fund l”) (ii)
China Life Xing Wan (Tianjin) Enterprise 

Management Partnership (Limited Partnership)
(“CL Xingwan”) (ii)

China Life Nianfeng Insurance Agency Co., Ltd. 

(“CL Nianfeng”) (i)

China Life (Hangzhou) Hotel Co., Ltd. (“CL 

Hangzhou”)(i)

China Life Jiayuan (Xiamen) Health Management 

Company Limited (“CL Jiayuan”)(i)

China Life (Tianjin) Pension & Retirement 
Investment Company Limited (“Tianjin 
Pension Company”)(i)

China Life (Qingdao) Health Management Co., 

Ltd. (“CL Qingdao”) (i)

China Life Qinhuangdao Health and Elderly Care 

Service Co., Ltd. (“CL Qinhuangdao”) (i)
Zhuhai Xinwan Real Estate Co., Ltd. (“Zhuhai 

Xinwan”) (i)

250

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(b) Subsidiaries (continued)

(i) The table below presents the basic information of the Company’s subsidiaries as at 31 December 

2023 (continued):

Notes:

(i)  The above subsidiaries are registered as limited companies in accordance of the Company Law of the People’s Republic 

of China.

(ii)  The above subsidiaries are registered as limited liability partnerships in accordance of the Law of the People’s Republic 

of China on Partnerships.

Non-controlling interests in subsidiaries are not significant to the Company.

(ii)  The  table  below  presents  the  basic  information  of  the  Company’s  major  consolidated  structured 

entities as at 31 December 2023:

Name

Percentage of shares 
held

Trust/investments 
received

Principal activities

CL Asset-Yuanliu No.1 Insurance Asset Management Product

68.75% directly

RMB112,779 million

CL Asset-Yuanliu No.2 Insurance Asset Management Product

75.88% directly

RMB23,648 million

CL Asset-Yuanliu No.3 Insurance Asset Management Product

72.78% directly

RMB21,799 million

China Life-Yunnan Guoqi Reform And Development Equity 

100.00% directly

RMB13,000 million

Investment Plan I

China Life- Hufa No.1 Equity

99.15% directly

RMB11,798 million

CL Investment-China Eastern Airlines Group Equity

100.00% directly

RMB11,000 million

China Life-China Hua Neng Debt-to-Equity Swap

100.00% directly

RMB10,000 million

Shan Guo Tou • Jing Tou Corporate Trust Loan Collective Funds Trust 

98.40% directly

RMB10,000 million

Scheme

Jiao Yin Guo Xin • China Aluminium Co., Ltd. Supply-side Reform 

99.99% directly

RMB10,000 million

Collective Fund Trust Scheme

Bai Rui Heng Yi No.817 Collective Fund Trust Scheme (Zhong Guo 

Guo Xin)

Guang Da • Hui Ying No. 8 Collective Fund

90.00% directly and 
indirectly
89.00% directly

RMB10,000 million

RMB10,000 million

Chongqing Trust Fund • Guo Rong No.4 Collective Fund

85.00% directly

RMB9,992 million

Jiao Yin Guo Xin • Jing Tou Corporate Collective Funds

91.98% directly

RMB9,970 million

Zhong Hang Trust Fund • Tian Qi [2020] No.372 China Eastern 
Airlines Equity Instrument Investment Collective Fund Trust 
Scheme

99.99% directly

RMB9,000 million

Zhong Hang Trust Fund • Tian Qi 21A No.155 China Eastern Airlines 

99.38% directly

RMB8,000 million

Perpetual Bonds Investment Collective Fund Trust Scheme

Kun Lun Trust • China Metallurgical No.1 Collective Fund

86.25% directly

RMB8,000 million

Jiang Su Trust • Xin Bao Sheng No.144 (Jing Tou)

84.00% directly

RMB8,000 million

Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management

Investment 
management
Investment 
management
Investment 
management

251

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(c) Other related parties

Significant related parties

Relationship with the Company

China Life Real Estate Co., Limited (“CLRE”)
China Life Insurance (Overseas) Company Limited (“CL Overseas”)
China Life Investment Management Company Limited (Formerly known as 

Under common control of CLIC
Under common control of CLIC
Under common control of CLIC

“China Life Investment Holding Company Limited”)(“CLI”)
China Life Ecommerce Company Limited (“CL Ecommerce”)
China Life Healthcare Investment company limited (“CLHI”)
China Life Enterprise Annuity Fund (“EAP”)

China Life Property & Casualty Insurance Company Limited (“CLP&C”)
CGB
Sino-Ocean Group

Under common control of CLIC
Under common control of CLIC
A pension fund jointly set up by the 

Company and others

An associate of the Company
An associate of the Company
An associate of the Company

Associated enterprises and joint ventures of the basic and important information related to see note 10.

(d) Registered capital of related parties with control relationship and changes during the year

Name of related party

CLIC
AMC
Pension Company
Suzhou Pension Company
CL AMP
CL Wealth
Rui Chong Company
CL Health
Franklin Shenzhen Company
Shengyi Jingsheng Company
Hope Building
CL Nianfeng
CL Hangzhou
CL Jiayuan
Tianjin Pension Company
CL Qingdao
CL Qinhuangdao
Zhuhai Xinwan

As at  
31 December 
2022

million

RMB4,600
RMB4,000
RMB3,400
RMB2,181
RMB1,288
RMB200
RMB6,100
RMB1,530
RMB100
RMB831
RMB484
RMB544
RMB65
RMB1500
RMB700
–
–
RMB6,800

Increase

million

–
–
–
RMB1,055
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
RMB851
RMB211
RMB33
–

As at  
31 December 
2023

million

RMB4,600
RMB4,000
RMB3,400
RMB3,236
RMB1,288
RMB200
RMB6,100
RMB1,530
RMB100
RMB831
RMB484
RMB544
RMB65
RMB1,500
RMB1,551
RMB211
RMB33
RMB6,800

Decrease

million

–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

The  table  above  does  not  include  the  partnerships  and  the  subsidiaries  which  were  not  set  up  or  invested  in  Mainland 
China that having control relationship with the Group. These partnerships and subsidiaries do not have related information 
about registered capital.

252

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(e) Percentages of holding of related parties with control relationship and changes during the year

Shareholder

As at 31 December 2022

As at 31 December 2023

Percentage of 
holding

Amount

million

Increase

Decrease

million

million

Amount

million

Percentage of 
holding

CLIC

RMB19,324

68.37%

–

–

RMB19,324

68.37%

Subsidiaries

As at 31 December 2022

As at 31 December 2023

AMC
Pension Company

China Life Franklin Asset 
Management Company 
Limited

Suzhou Pension Company
CL AMP

CL Wealth

Golden Phoenix Tree Limited
King Phoenix Tree Limited

Rui Chong Company
New Aldgate Limited
Glorious Fortune Forever 

Limited

CL Hotel Investor, L. P.
Golden Bamboo Limited
Sunny Bamboo Limited
Fortune Bamboo Limited
China Century Core Fund 

Limited
CL Health
Franklin Shenzhen Company

Guo Yang Guo Sheng
New Capital Wisdom Limited

New Fortune Wisdom Limited

Amount

million

RMB1,680
RMB2,746

HKD130

Percentage of 
holding

60.00% directly
74.27% directly 
and indirectly
50.00% 
indirectly

RMB200

RMB2,181 100.00% directly
85.03% 
RMB1,095
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly
–
100.00% 
indirectly
RMB6,100 100.00% directly
RMB1,167 100.00% directly
– 100.00% directly

–
–

RMB285 100.00% directly
RMB3,101 100.00% directly
RMB2,359 100.00% directly
RMB2,435 100.00% directly
100.00% 
USD1,125
indirectly
RMB1,530 100.00% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
RMB2,835 89.997% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly

RMB100

–

–

Increase

Decrease

million

million

–
–

–

–
–

–

RMB264
–

–
–
–

–
–
–
–
–

–
–

–
–

–

–
–

–

–
–

–

–
–

–
–
–

–
–
–
–
–

–
–

–
–

–

Amount

million

RMB1,680
RMB2,746

HKD130

Percentage of 
holding

60.00% directly
74.27% directly 
and indirectly
50.00% 
indirectly

RMB200

RMB2,181 100.00% directly
85.03% 
RMB1,095
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly
RMB264 100.00% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
RMB6,100 100.00% directly
RMB1,167 100.00% directly
– 100.00% directly

–

RMB285 100.00% directly
RMB3,101 100.00% directly
RMB2,359 100.00% directly
RMB2,435 100.00% directly
100.00% 
USD1,125
indirectly
RMB1,530 100.00% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
RMB2,835 89.997% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly

RMB100

–

–

253

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(e)  Percentages  of  holding  of  related  parties  with  control  relationship  and  changes  during  the  year 
(continued)

Subsidiaries (continued)

As at 31 December 2022

As at 31 December 2023

Increase

Decrease

million

million

Amount

million

–

–

USD452

Wisdom Forever Limited 

Partnership

Yuan Shu Yuan Jiu
Yuan Shu Yuan Pin
Shanghai Wansheng
Bai Ning
Hope Building

Yuanxiang Tianfu
Yuanxiang Tianyi
Shengyi Jingsheng

CG Investments
CL Guang De
CL Pension Industry
CL Qihang Fund l
CL Xingwan

CL Nianfeng
CL Hangzhou

CL Jiayuan

Amount

million

USD452

RMB540
RMB540
RMB4,036
RMB1,680
RMB484

RMB502
RMB502
RMB1,093

RMB4,111
RMB1,316
RMB2,392
RMB6,915
RMB3,765

–
RMB65

RMB300

Tianjin Pension Company

RMB1,216

CL Qingdao (i)

CL Qinhuangdao (i)

–

–

Zhuhai Xinwan (i)

RMB3,322

Percentage of 
holding

100.00% 
indirectly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
99.99% directly
99.95% directly
99.90% directly
99.99% directly
99.98% 
indirectly
90.81% directly
99.99% 
indirectly
99.99% 
indirectly
99.99% 
indirectly
–

–
–
RMB12
–
–

–
–
–

–
RMB120
RMB1,595
RMB57
–

–
–

–

–

RMB210

–

–

49.00% 
indirectly

RMB4,344

Percentage of 
holding

100.00% 
indirectly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
99.98% directly
99.98% directly
100.00% 
indirectly
99.99% directly
99.95% directly
99.90% directly
99.99% directly
99.98% 
indirectly
90.81% directly
99.99% 
indirectly
99.99% 
indirectly
99.99% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly
100.00% 
indirectly

RMB35
RMB35
–
–
–

RMB23
RMB23
–

–
–
–
–
–

–
–

–

–

–

–

–

RMB505
RMB505
RMB4,048
RMB1,680
RMB484

RMB479
RMB479
RMB1,093

RMB4,111
RMB1,436
RMB3,987
RMB6,972
RMB3,765

–
RMB65

RMB300

RMB1,216

RMB210

–

RMB7,666

(i) 

In 2023, CL Qingdao, CL Qinhuangdao and Zhuhai Xinwan were newly included in the consolidation scope.

254

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(f) Transactions with significant related parties

Transactions with CLIC and its subsidiaries

2023

2022

Note

RMB million

RMB million

For the year ended 31 December

CLIC

Distribution of dividends from the Company and AMC to 

CLIC

Policy management fee received from CLIC
Asset management fee received from CLIC

CLP&C

Agency fee received from CLP&C
Rental and a service fee received from CLP&C
Dividends from CLP&C
Asset management fee received from CLIC

CLI

Payment of asset management fee to CLI

(i)
(ii.a)

(iii)

(ii.c)

(ii.d)

CLHI

Payment of operation management service fee to CLHI

(vi)

CL Overseas

Asset management fee received from CLIC

(ii.b)

9,806
463
141

1,706
99
80
42

542

74

102

12,941
463
150

1,516
99
75
43

637

96

108

Transactions with associates and joint ventures

2023

2022

Note

RMB million

RMB million

For the year ended 31 December

CGB

Interest received on deposits
Dividends from CGB
Commission expenses charged by CGB
Rental fee from CGB

(iv)

Sino-Ocean

Interest of corporate bonds received from Sino-Ocean

Transaction between other associates and joint ventures 

and the Group
Dividends from other associates and joint  

ventures (Note 10)

Transaction between EAP and the Group

Contribution to EAP

2,453
742
252
163

37

2,747
774
218
173

7

4,032

4,463

1,051

1,355

255

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(f) Transactions with significant related parties (continued)

Transactions between other subsidiaries and the Company

2023

2022

Note

RMB million

RMB million

For the year ended 31 December

Payment of an asset management fee

Payment of an asset management fee to AMC
Payment of an asset management fee to AMC HK
Payment of an asset management fee to Pension Company

(ii.e)
(ii.f)

(v)

Dividends from subsidiaries

Dividends from AMC
Dividends from Pension Company
Dividends from the other subsidiaries

Agency fee received

Agency fee from Pension Company

Rental received

Rental received from Pension Company

Capital increase in subsidiaries (Note 33(e))

Capital contribution to Pension Industry Fund
Capital contribution to Golden Phoenix Tree Limited
Capital contribution to China Life Guangde
Capital contribution to China Life Qihang Fund I
Capital contribution to Shanghai Wansheng

Capital reduction of subsidiaries (Note 33(e))

Capital contribution to Yuanshu Yuanjiu
Capital contribution to Yuanshu Yuanpin
Capital contribution to Yuanxiang Tianfu
Capital contribution to Yuanxiang Tianyi

Transaction between the consolidated structured entities 

and the Company
Distribution of profits from the consolidated structured 

entities to the Company

3,265
11
5

483
248
83

30

75

1,595
264
120
57
12

35
35
23
23

2,872
18
94

549
241
475

57

76

1,888
–
700
850
12

31
31
46
46

20,616

15,686

256

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(f) Transactions with significant related parties (continued)
Notes:

(i)  On  31  December  2021,  the  Company  and  CLIC  renewed  an  Insurance  Agency  Agreement,  effective  from  1  January  2022  to  31  December  2024.  The 
Company performs its duties of insurance agents in accordance with the agreement, but does not acquire any rights and profits or assume any obligations, 
losses and risks as an insurer of the non-transferable policies. The policy management fee is payable annually, and is equal to the sum of (1) the number 
of policies in force as at the last day of the period, multiplied by RMB14.0 per policy and (2) 2.5% of the actual premiums and deposits received during 
the period, in respect of such policies. The policy management fee income is included in other income in the consolidated statement of comprehensive 
income.

(ii.a)  In  December  2022,  CLIC  renewed  an  Asset  Management  Agreement  with  AMC,  entrusting  AMC  to  manage  and  make  investments  for  its  insurance 
funds. The agreement is effective from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025. In accordance with the agreement, CLIC paid AMC a basic service fee for 
the management of insurance funds. The fixed investment management service fee applicable to various investment products (mainly bonds, deposits, 
stocks,  funds,  public  real  estate  investment  trusts,  financial  products,  unlisted  equity,  equity  investment  funds,  derivatives,  liquidity  management  and 
domestic  securities  lending)  was  between  0.02%  and  0.3%.  The  service  fee  was  calculated  on  a  monthly  basis  and  payable  on  a  quarterly  basis,  by 
multiplying  the  average  book  value  of  the  assets  under  management  (net  of  the  funds  and  interests  of  positive  repurchase  transactions,  and  of  book 
balances of products issued by AMC, for which management fee has been paid) at the beginning and the end of any given month by the rate, divided by 
12. The rate applicable to assets issued by AMC, for which management fee has been paid, is subject to relevant legal documents on financial products, 
and no additional management fees shall be paid. At the end of each year, CLIC assessed the investment performance of the assets managed by AMC, 
compared the actual results against benchmark returns and made adjustment to the basic service fee.

(ii.b)  In 2018, CL Overseas renewed an investment management agreement with AMC HK, effective from 1 January 2018 to 31 December 2022. In accordance 
with  the  agreement,  CL  Overseas  entrusted  AMC  HK  to  manage  and  make  investments  for  its  insurance  funds  and  paid  AMC  HK  a  basic  investment 
management fee and an investment performance fee. The basic investment management fee was accrued by multiplying the weighted average total funds 
by the basic fee rate. The investment performance fee was calculated based on the difference between the total actual annual yields and predetermined 
net realised yield. The basic investment management fee was calculated and payable on a semi-annual basis. The investment performance fee was payable 
according to the total actual annual yield at the end of each year. Upon expiration, the agreement is automatically one-year renewal, if no objections were 
raised by either party upon expiry. The agreement remains effective until 31 December 2023, with no disputes from both parties in 2023.

(ii.c)  On 10 February 2021, CLP&C renewed an Insurance Funds Entrusted Investment Management Agreement with AMC, entrusting AMC to manage and 
make investments for its insurance funds, effective from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2023. In accordance with the agreement, CLP&C paid AMC 
a  fixed  service  fee  and  a  variable  service  fee.  The  fixed  service  fee  was  calculated  on  a  monthly  basis  and  payable  on  an  annual  basis,  by  multiplying 
the average net asset value of assets of each category under management at the beginning and the end of any given month by the responding annual 
investment management fee rate, divided by 12. The variable service fee was payable on an annual basis, and linked to investment performance.

(ii.d)  On  30  June  2023,  the  Company  and  CLI  renewed  an  Entrusted  Investment  Management  and  Operation  Service  Agreement  of  Alternative  Investment 
of Insurance Funds, effective from 1 July 2023 to 31 December 2024. The agreement shall be automatically renewed for one year unless either party 
gives  written  notice  to  the  other  party  not  to  renew  it  90  business  days  prior  to  the  expiration  of  this  agreement.  The  company  entrusts  CLI  with  the 
investment  and  management  of  the  company’s  entrusted  assets  and  provides  operational  services  for  the  equity/real  estate  funds  that  the  company 
entrusts  it  to  manage  and  operate.  The  Company  paid  CLI  an  asset  management  fee,  product  management  fee,  real  estate  operation  management 
service fee, a performance related bonus and consignment operation fee based on the agreement. According to the agreement, the annual investment 
management  service  fee  for  the  new  project  is  0.08%  of  the  balance  of  funds  paid  in  real  time  and  not  withdrawn,  and  the  stock  item  is  calculated 
according to the applicable agreement at the time of investment and the relevant rate of investment guidelines. The fee rate for product management 
does  not  exceed  0.6%  per  year.  The  fee  for  real  estate  operation  and  management  services  is  3%  to  6%  of  the  EBITDA  of  the  related  real  estate 
project. Regarding performance bonuses, for existing non-fixed return projects,15% of the amount exceeding the threshold (8% IRR) will be extracted; 
For  amounts  exceeding  10%  IRR,  an  additional  20%  will  be  extracted.  The  entrusted  operation  fee  is  0.02%  of  the  actual  contributed  capital  balance 
of the entrusted operation projects. In addition, the Company adjusts the investment management fees for fixed-income projects and non-fixed-income 
projects based on the annual evaluation results on CLI’s performance. The adjustment (variable management fee) ranges from negative 2% to positive 
2% of the investment management fee in the current period.

(ii.e)  On  1  January  2023,  the  Company  and  AMC  renewed  an  Insurance  Funds  Entrusted  Investment  Management  Agreement,  effective  from  1  January 
2023 to 31 December 2025. In accordance with the agreement, the Company entrusted AMC to manage and make investments for its insurance funds 
and paid AMC a fixed investment management service fee and a variable investment management service fee. The daily accrued fixed service fee was 
calculated and payable on a quarterly basis, by multiplying the net value of the total investment assets on the day by the variety-based annual investment 
management  fee  rate  divided  by  360;  the  variable  investment  management  service  fee  was  calculated  by  multiplying  7.5%  of  the  current  year’s  fixed 
investment management service fee with the payment ratio determined based on the Company’s annual assessment of AMC and is payable on an annual 
basis. Asset management fees charged to the Company by AMC were eliminated in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income.

257

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued)33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(f) Transactions with significant related parties (continued)
Notes (continued):

(ii.f)  On 29 December 2021, the Company and AMC HK renewed an Insurance Funds Entrusted Investment Management Agreement, which is effective from 
1  January  2022  to  31  December  2024.  In  accordance  with  the  agreement,  the  Company  entrusted  AMC  HK  to  manage  and  make  investments  for  its 
insurance funds and paid AMC HK an asset management fee on a semi-annual basis. The management fee is determined by market-oriented pricing, and 
the maximum investment management fee paid annually is RMB30 million. Asset management fees charged to the Company by AMC HK are eliminated 
in the consolidated statement of comprehensive income.

(iii)  On 31 January 2018, CLP&C and the Company signed a Framework Agreement for Mutual Insurance Sales Business Agency (the Company as the Agent), 
whereby CLP&C entrusted the Company to act as an agent to sell designated P&C insurance products in certain authorised jurisdictions. The agency fee 
was determined based on cost (tax included) plus a margin. The agreement was effective for three years, from 8 March 2018 to 7 March 2021. On 20 
February 2021, CLP&C and the Company renewed the agreement, effective for two years, from 8 March 2021 to 7 March 2023. This agreement was 
automatically renewed for one year to 7 March 2024 upon the expiration of the term.

(iv)  On 11 July 2023, the Company and CGB signed an insurance agency agreement to distribute insurance products. All individual insurance products suitable 
for distribution through bancassurance channels are included in the agreement. CGB provides agency services, including the sale of insurance products, 
collecting premiums and paying benefits. The Company paid the agency commission by multiplying the net amount of total premiums received from the 
sale of each category individual insurance products after deducting the surrender premiums in the hesitation period, by the responding fixed commission 
rate. The commission rates for various insurance products sold by CGB are agreed based on arm’s length transactions. The commissions are payable on 
a monthly basis. The agreement was effective from the signing date to 31 December 2025.

On 27 December 2021, the Company and CGB renewed a Cooperation Agreement for Agency of Corporate Group Insurance Products. All corporate group 
insurance products suitable for distribution through bancassurance channels are included in the agreement. The Company paid the agency commission by 
multiplying the net amount of total premiums received from the sale of each category group insurance product after deducting the surrender premiums, 
by  the  responding  fixed  commission  rate.  The  commission  rates  for  various  insurance  products  sold  by  CGB  are  agreed  by  reference  to  comparable 
market  prices  of  independent  third-parties.  The  commissions  are  payable  on  a  monthly  basis.  The  agreement  is  effective  for  one year  from  1  January 
2022,  with  an  automatic  one-year  renewal,  no  more  than  twice,  if  no  objections  were  raised  by  either  party  upon  expiry.  In  2023,  both  parties  agreed 
that the agreement continued to be effective..

(v)  On 29 December 2021, the Company and Pension Company renewed an Entrusted Agency Agreement for Pension Business Acted by China Life. The 
agreement is effective from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2024. The business means that Pension Company entrusted the Company to cooperate in 
selling  enterprise  annuity  funds,  pension  security  business,  occupational  pension  business  and  the  third-pillar  pension  financial  business.  According  to 
the agreement, the commissions for the cooperative service of enterprise annuity fund management, which is the core business of Pension Company, 
are calculated at 50% to 70% of the annual entrusting management fee revenues, depending on the duration of the agreement. The commissions for 
cooperative  account  management  service  are  calculated  at  60%  of  the  first  year’s  account  management  fee  and  were  only  charged  for  the  first  year, 
regardless  of  the  duration  of  the  agreement.  The  commissions  for  cooperative  investment  management  services,  in  accordance  with  the  duration  of 
the agreement, are calculated at 35% to 60% of the annual investment management fee (excluding risk reserves for investment). For pension security 
business,  the  commissions  of  the  group  pension  plan  are,  in  accordance  with  the  duration  of  the  contracts,  calculated  at  50%  to  3%  of  the  annual 
investment management fee, decreasing annually; the commissions of the personal pension plan are calculated at 30% to 50% of the annual investment 
management fee according to the various rates of the daily management fee applied to the various individual pension management products in all of the 
management years; the cooperative commissions of occupation annuity and third-pillar pension financial business should be determined by both parties 
on a separate occasion. The commissions charged to Pension Company by the Company are eliminated in the consolidated statement of comprehensive 
income of the Group.

(vi)  On  31  December  2021,  the  Company  and  CLHI  renewed  an  aged-care  projects  management  service  agreement,  effective  from  1  January 2022  to  31 
December  2022.  In  2023,  both  parties  agreed  to  automatically  renew  this  agreement  for  one  year  as  along  as  this  would  not  go  against  Listing  Rules 
and  the  regulations  of  the  NFRA.  In  accordance  with  the  agreement,  the  Company  entrusted  CLHI  to  operate  and  manage  existed  aged-care  projects 
and paid CLHI a management service fee. The management service fee was calculated and payable on a quarterly basis, by multiplying the total amount 
of the investments under management (based on the daily weighted average investment amount) by the annual rate of 2%.

258

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(g) Amounts due from/to significant related parties

The following table summarises the balances due from and to significant related parties. The balances of the Group are all 
unsecured. The balances of the Group are non-interest-bearing and have no fixed repayment dates except for deposits with 
CGB, wealth management products and other securities of CGB, and corporate bonds issued by Sino-Ocean.

Amounts due from and to related parties of the Group

Amount due from CLIC
Amount due from CL Overseas
Amount due from CLP&C
Amount due to CLP&C
Amount due from CLI
Amount due to CLI
Amount due from CLRE
Amount due to CLHI
Amount deposited with CGB
Wealth management products and other securities of CGB
Amount due to CGB
Corporate bonds of Sino-Ocean
Amount due from CL Ecommerce
Amount due to CL Ecommerce

Amounts due from and to subsidiaries of the Company

Amount due from CL Hotel Investors, L. P.
Amount due from Pension Company
Amount due from Rui Chong Company
Amount due to AMC
Amount due to Pension Company
Amount due to AMC HK

(h) Key management personnel compensation

Salaries and other benefits

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

549
109
335
(68)
5
(483)
4
(30)
43,707
8,059
(74)
234
3
(18)

6,241
36
10
(1,771)
(73)
(5)

539
118
293
(53)
5
(528)
4
(61)
57,904
8,027
(66)
648
4
(29)

6,137
43
274
(782)
(123)
(7)

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

18

37

The total compensation package for the Company’s key management personnel has not yet been finalised in accordance 
with regulations of the relevant PRC authorities. The compensation listed above is the tentative payment.

259

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
33 SIGNIFICANT RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS  (continued)

(i) Transactions with state-owned enterprises

Under  IAS  24  Related  Party  Disclosures,  business  transactions  between  state-owned  enterprises  controlled  by  the  PRC 
government are within the scope of related party transactions. CLIC, the ultimate holding company of the Group, is a state-
owned enterprise. The Group’s key business is insurance and investment related and therefore the business transactions with 
other state-owned enterprises are primarily related to insurance and investment activities. The related party transactions with 
other state-owned enterprises are conducted in the ordinary course of business. Due to the complex ownership structure, 
the PRC government may hold indirect interests in many companies. Some of these interests may, in themselves or when 
combined with other indirect interests, be controlling interests which may not be known to the Group. Nevertheless, the 
Group  believes  that  the  following  captures  the  material  related  party  transactions  and  has  applied  IAS  24  exemption  and 
disclosed only qualitative information.

As at 31 December 2023, most of the bank deposits of the Group were with state-owned banks; the issuers of corporate 
bonds and subordinated bonds held by the Group were mainly state-owned enterprises. For the year ended 31 December 2023, 
a large portion of group insurance business of the Group were with state-owned enterprises; the majority of bancassurance 
commission charges were paid to state-owned banks and postal offices; and the majority of the reinsurance agreements 
of the Group were entered into with state-owned reinsurance companies.

34 SHARE CAPITAL

Registered, authorised, issued and fully paid
Ordinary shares of RMB1 each

28,264,705,000

28,265 28,264,705,000

28,265

As at 31 December 2023

As at 31 December 2022

No. of shares

RMB million

No. of shares

RMB million

As at 31 December 2023, the Company’s share capital is as follows:

Owned by CLIC (i)
Owned by other equity holders

Including: Domestic listed

Overseas listed (ii)

Total

(i)  All shares owned by CLIC are domestic listed shares.

(ii)  Overseas listed shares are traded on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited.

As at 31 December 2023

No. of shares

RMB million

19,323,530,000
8,941,175,000

1,500,000,000
7,441,175,000

28,264,705,000

19,324
8,941

1,500
7,441

28,265

260

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
35 RESERVES

Unrealised 
gains/ 
(losses) from 
available-
for-sale 
securities (i)

Other 
comprehensive 
income 
reclassifiable 
to profit or loss 
under the equity 
method

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts and 
reinsurance 
contracts 
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Share 
premium

Other 
reserves

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

Other 
comprehensive 
income non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss under the 
equity method

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts 
non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Exchange 
differences 
on translating 
foreign 
operations

Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

Statutory 
reserve fund

RMB million
(a)

Discretionary 
reserve fund

General 
reserve

RMB million
(b)

RMB million
(c)

As at 31 December 2021
Impact of initial application of 
IFRS 17 (Note 2.1.1.b)

As at 1 January 2022 

53,905

1,098

48,919

2,635

–

50,621

45,511

48,320

(1,377)

–

–

19,597

(4)

(112,671)

–

–

–

–

(Restated, Note 2.1.1.b)

53,905

1,098

–
–

–
–

–
–

–
(1,450)

68,516

(71,220)
–

–
–

2,631

(3,015)
–

–
–

(112,671)

5,512
–

–
–

50,621

–
3,932

–
–

45,511

–
5,096

–
–

48,320

–
4,109

–
–

(1,377)

1,102
–

–
–

123

–

123

(1,636)
–

(74)
–

Other comprehensive income
Appropriation to reserves
Other comprehensive income to 

retained earnings

Others

As at 31 December 2022 
(Restated Note 2.1.1.b)

53,905

(352)

(2,704)

(384)

(107,159)

54,553

50,607

52,429

(275)

(1,587)

–

–

–

–
–

–
–

–

249,755

(93,078)

156,677

(69,257)
13,137

(74)
(1,450)

99,033

(i)  Under  IFRS  17  Insurance  Contracts,  changes  in  the  fair  value  of  available-for-sale  securities  attributable  to  policyholders  are  no  longer  measured  and 

accounted for separately and are measured and accounted for within insurance contract liabilities.

261

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
35 RESERVES  (continued)

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts 
and 
reinsurance 
contracts 
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Financial 
assets at 
fair value 
through other 
comprehensive 
income

Other 
comprehensive 
income 
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss under the 
equity method

Share 
premium

Other 
reserves

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

Other 
comprehensive 
income non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss under the 
equity method

Exchange 
differences 
on 
translating 
foreign 
operations

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts 
non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Total

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

Statutory 
reserve 
fund

Discretionary 
reserve fund

General 
reserve

RMB million
(a)

RMB million
(b)

RMB million
(c)

As at 31 December 2022 

(Restated, Note 2.1.1.b)
Impact of initial application of 
IFRS 9 (Note 2.1.1.a)

As at 1 January 2023

Other comprehensive income
Appropriation to reserves
Other comprehensive income to 

retained earnings

Others

53,905

–

53,905

–
–

–
–

As at 31 December 2023

53,905

(352)

–

(352)

–
–

–
380

28

(2,704)

(384)

(107,159)

54,553

50,607

52,429

116,176

113,472

75,073
–

(69)
–

28

(356)

(51)
–

–
–

(55,453)

(162,612)

(97,261)
–

–
–

–

54,553

–
1,753

–
–

–

50,607

–
3,932

–
–

–

52,429

–
1,919

–
–

188,476

(407)

(259,873)

56,306

54,539

54,348

(275)

–

(275)

325
–

–
–

50

(1,587)

–

(1,587)

660
–

(92)
–

–

–

–

(487)
–

67
–

99,033

60,751

159,784

(21,741)
7,604

(94)
380

(1,019)

(420)

145,933

(a)  Pursuant  to  the  relevant  PRC  laws,  the  Company  appropriated  10%  of  its  net  profit  under  Chinese  Accounting  Standards  (“CAS”)  to  statutory  reserve 

which amounted to RMB1,753million for the year ended 31 December 2023 (2022: RMB3,932 million).

(b)  Approved  at  the  Annual  General  Meeting  in  28  June  2023,  the  Company  appropriated  RMB3,932  million  to  the  discretionary  reserve  fund  for  the  year 

ended 31 December 2022 based on net profit under CAS (2022: RMB5,096 million).

(c)  Pursuant to “Financial Standards of Financial Enterprises – Implementation Guide” issued by the Ministry of Finance of the PRC on 30 March 2007, for 
the year ended 31 December 2023, the Company appropriated 10% of net profit under CAS which amounted to RMB1,753 million to the general reserve 
for  future  uncertain  catastrophes,  which  cannot  be  used  for  dividend  distribution  or  conversion  to  share  capital  increment  (2022:  RMB3,932  million). 
In  addition,  pursuant  to  the  CAS,  the  Group  appropriated  RMB166  million  to  the  general  reserve  of  its  subsidiaries  attributable  to  the  Company  in  the 
consolidated financial statements (2022: RMB177 million).

Under related PRC law, dividends may be paid only out of distributable profits. Any distributable profits that are not distributed 
in a given year are retained and available for distribution in the subsequent years.

262

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
36 NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

Changes in liabilities arising from financing activities

Other 
liabilities-
payable 
to the 
third-party 
holders of 
consolidated 
structured 
entities

Financial 
assets 
sold under 
agreements 
to 
repurchase

Other 
liabilities-
interest 
payable 
related to 
financing 
activities

Total

Interest-
bearing loans 
and other 
borrowings

Bonds 
payable

Lease 
liabilities

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

At 1 January 2022
Changes from financing cash flows
Foreign exchange movement
Changes arising from losing control 

of consolidated structured 
entities
New leases
Interest expense
Others

At 31 December 2022

At 31 December 2022
Impact of initial application of 

IFRS 9

At 1 January 2023
Changes from financing cash flows
Foreign exchange movement
Changes arising from losing control 

of consolidated structured 
entities
New leases
Interest expense
Others

19,222
(7,587)
1,139

34,994
–
–

–
–
–
–

12,774

12,774

8
12,782
(1,073)
479

–
–
669
–

–
–
3
–

34,997

34,997

1,170
36,167
(1,500)
–

–
–
1,499
–

2,182
(1,307)
–

–
817
74
(197)

1,569

1,569

–
1,569
(1,149)
–

–
810
54
(29)

239,446
(90,711)
–

67,862
5,983
–

–
–
–
223

148,958

148,958

64
149,022
64,330
–

(4)
–
2,882
621

–
–
–
–

73,845

73,845

89
73,934
10,361
–

–
–
–
–

At 31 December 2023

12,857

36,166

1,255

216,851

84,295

359
(5,073)
–

–
–
4,786
–

72

72

(72)
–
–
–

–
–
–
–

–

364,065
(98,695)
1,139

–
817
4,863
26

272,215

272,215

1,259
273,474
70,969
479

(4)
810
5,104
592

351,424

263

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
37 PROVISIONS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES

The following is a summary of the significant contingent liabilities:

Pending lawsuits

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

583

531

The  Group  involves  in  certain  lawsuits  arising  from  the  ordinary  course  of  business.  In  order  to  accurately  disclose  the 
contingent  liabilities  for  pending  lawsuits,  the  Group  analyses  all  pending  lawsuits  on  a  case  by  case  basis  at  the  end  of 
each interim and annual reporting period. A provision will only be recognised if management determines, based on third-
party legal advice, that the Group has present obligations and the settlement of which is expected to result an outflow of 
the Group’s resources embodying economic benefits, and the amount of such obligations could be reasonably estimated. 
Otherwise, the Group will disclose the pending lawsuits as contingent liabilities. As at 31 December 2023 and 31 December 
2022, the Group had other contingent liabilities but disclosure of such was not practical because the amounts of liabilities 
could not be reliably estimated and were not material in aggregate.

38 COMMITMENTS

(a) Capital commitments

The Group had the following capital commitments relating to property development projects and investments:

Contracted, but not provided for

Investments
Property, plant and equipment

Total

(b) Operating lease commitments

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

86,590
1,466

88,056

91,727
1,408

93,135

As lessor, the future minimum rentals receivable under non-cancellable operating leases are as follows:

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

RMB million

RMB million

914
1,413
198

2,525

893
1,478
160

2,531

Not later than one year
Later than one year but not later than five years
Later than five years

Total

264

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
39 STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION AND NOTES TO KEY ITEMS

(a) Statement of financial position

ASSETS
Property, plant and equipment
Right-of-use assets
Investment properties
Investments in subsidiaries
Investments in associates and joint ventures
Term deposits
Statutory deposits – restricted
Investment in debt instruments at amortised cost
Investment in debt instruments at fair value through 

other comprehensive income

Investment in equity instruments at fair value through 

other comprehensive income

Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Held-to-maturity securities
Loans
Available-for-sale securities
Securities at fair value through profit or loss
Reinsurance contract assets
Other assets
Deferred tax assets
Financial assets purchased under agreements to resell
Accrued investment income
Cash and cash equivalents

Total assets

As at  
31 December  

2023

RMB million

As at  
31 December  
2022 

As at  
1 January  

2022

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

RMB million
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

48,775
1,364
6,063
315,929
217,717
322,298
5,801
32,206

2,908,332

117,711
1,462,090
N/A
N/A
N/A
N/A
25,846
29,627
23,020
13,155
70
135,645

5,665,649

49,856
1,595
6,266
246,115
222,069
442,690
5,653
N/A

51,116
2,239
6,191
170,387
216,315
491,332
5,653
N/A

N/A

N/A

N/A
N/A
1,571,892
324,557
1,644,704
93,657
24,096
22,778
45,939
35,816
47,159
119,036

4,903,878

N/A
N/A
1,531,640
410,789
1,370,035
120,191
19,327
28,098
24,059
3,463
47,159
53,593

4,551,587

265

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
39 STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION AND NOTES TO KEY ITEMS  (continued)

(a) Statement of financial position (continued)

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Liabilities
Insurance contract liabilities
Reinsurance contract liabilities
Bonds payable
Other liabilities
Premiums received in advance
Financial assets sold under 
agreements to repurchase

Total liabilities

Equity
Share capital
Reserves (Note 39(b))
Retained earnings

Total equity

As at  
31 December  

As at  
31 December  

2023

2022

As at  
1 January  

2022

RMB million

RMB million
 (Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

RMB million
 (Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

4,859,175
188
36,166
35,784
48,878

203,605

5,183,796

28,265
147,745
305,843

481,853

4,266,947
160
34,997
39,860
49,654

140,591

4,532,209

28,265
95,578
247,826

371,669

3,809,716
154
34,994
40,267
47,546

232,496

4,165,173

28,265
152,959
205,190

386,414

Total liabilities and equity

5,665,649

4,903,878

4,551,587

The Company has elected to account for its investments in associates and joint ventures in separate financial statements under 
the equity method starting from 1 January 2023 in accordance with IAS 27 Separate Financial Statement with retrospective 
adjustment. This retrospection resulted in an increase in investments in associates and joint ventures of RMB52,352 million, 
an  increase  in  retained  earnings  of  RMB49,488  million  and  an  increase  in  reserves  of  RMB2,961  million  as  at  1  January 
2022. Also it resulted in an increase in investments in associates and joint ventures of RMB45,476 million, an increase in 
retained earnings of RMB49,207 million and a decrease in reserves of RMB1,090 million as at 31 December 2022.

266

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
39 STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION AND NOTES TO KEY ITEMS  (continued)

(b) Reserves

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts and 
reinsurance 
contracts 
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Other 
comprehensive 
income 
reclassifiable 
to profit or loss 
under the equity 
method

Unrealised 
gains/ (losses) 
from available-
for-sale 
securities (i)

Share 
premium

Other 
reserves

Other 
comprehensive 
income non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or loss 
under the equity 
method

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts 
non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Exchange 
differences 
on translating 
foreign 
operations

Total

Statutory 
reserve fund

Discretionary 
reserve fund

General 
reserve

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

As at 31 December 2021 
(Restated, Note 
39(a))

Impact of initial application 
of IFRS 17 (Note 
2.1.1.b)

As at 1 January 2022 
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

Other comprehensive 

income

Appropriation to reserves
Other comprehensive 
income to retained 
earnings

Others

As at 31 December 2022 
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

53,360

1,580

47,604

–

–

50,573

45,511

47,409

–

–

19,597

(4)

(112,671)

–

–

–

53,360

1,580

67,201

(4)

(112,671)

50,573

45,511

47,409

–
–

–
–

–
–

–
(646)

(71,779)
–

(1,813)
–

5,512
–

–
3,932

–
5,096

–
3,932

–
–

–
–

–
–

–
–

–
–

–
–

53,360

934

(4,578)

(1,817)

(107,159)

54,505

50,607

51,341

–

–

–

–
–

–
–

–

–

–

–

(1,559)
–

(56)
–

(1,615)

–

–

–

–
–

–
–

–

246,037

(93,078)

152,959

(69,639)
12,960

(56)
(646)

95,578

(i)  Under  IFRS  17  Insurance  Contracts,  changes  in  the  fair  value  of  available-for-sale  securities  attributable  to  policyholders  are  no  longer  measured  and 

accounted for separately and are measured and accounted for within contract liabilities.

267

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
39 STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION AND NOTES TO KEY ITEMS  (continued)

(b) Reserves (continued)

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts 
and 
reinsurance 
contracts 
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Financial 
assets at 
fair value 
through other 
comprehensive 
income

Other 
comprehensive 
income 
reclassifiable 
to profit or loss 
under the equity 
method

Share 
premium

Other 
reserves

Other 
comprehensive 
income non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or loss 
under the equity 
method

Exchange 
differences 
on 
translating 
foreign 
operations

Financial 
changes in 
insurance 
contracts 
non-
reclassifiable 
to profit or 
loss

Total

Statutory 
reserve 
fund

Discretionary 
reserve fund

General 
reserve

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

RMB million

As at 31 December 2022 
(Restated, Note 
2.1.1.b)

Impact of initial application 
of IFRS 9 (Note 
2.1.1.a)

As at 1 January 2023

Other comprehensive 

income

Appropriation to reserves
Other comprehensive 
income to retained 
earnings

Others

53,360

–

53,360

–
–

–
–

As at 31 December 2023

53,360

934

–

934

–
–

–
64

998

(4,578)

(1,817)

(107,159)

54,505

50,607

51,341

121,314

116,736

76,279
–

(71)
–

28

(55,453)

–

–

–

(1,789)

(162,612)

54,505

50,607

51,341

406
–

–
–

(98,034)
–

–
1,753

–
3,932

–
1,753

–
–

–
–

–
–

–
–

192,944

(1,383)

(260,646)

56,258

54,539

53,094

–

–

–

13
–

–
–

13

(1,615)

–

(1,615)

695
–

(92)
–

–

–

–

95,578

65,889

161,467

(487)
–

(21,128)
7,438

67
–

(96)
64

(1,012)

(420)

147,745

268

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
40 DIRECTORS’, SUPERVISORS’, CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S AND SENIOR 
MANAGEMENT’S REMUNERATION

The total compensation package for the directors, supervisors, chief executive and senior management for the year ended 31 
December 2023 in accordance with the related measures for compensation management of the Company has not yet been 
finalised. The amount of the compensation not provided for is not expected to have a significant impact on the Group’s 2023 
consolidated financial statements. The final compensation will be disclosed in a separate announcement when determined.

(a) Directors’ and chief executive’s emoluments

The  aggregate  amounts  of  emoluments  paid  to  directors  and  chief  executive  of  the  Company  for  the  year  ended  31 
December 2023 are as follows:

Name

Bai Tao (i)
Zhao Peng (ii)
Li Mingguang (iii)
Wang Junhui (iv)
Zhuo Meijuan (v)
Lam Chi Kuen
Zhai Haitao
Huang Yiping
Chen Jie

Remuneration 
paid

Benefits in 
kind

Pension 
scheme 
contributions

RMB thousand

–
–
417.7
–
–
420.0
420.0
420.0
420.0

–
–
50.3
–
–
–
–
–
–

–
–
84.2
–
–
–
–
–
–

Total

–
–
552.2
–
–
420.0
420.0
420.0
420.0

(i)   Bai Tao was appointed as the chairman and executive director in May 2022 and did not receive remuneration from the Company.

(ii)   Zhao Peng did not receive remuneration from the Company, and resigned as executive director in August 2023.

(iii)  Li Mingguang did not receive remuneration from the Company from May 2023.

(iv)  Wang Junhui is a non-executive director and does not receive any remuneration from the Company.

(v)   Zhuo Meijuan was appointed as non-executive director in June 2023 and did not receive any remuneration from the Company.

(vi)  The above remuneration was calculated based on the relevant employment period during the reporting period.

269

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
40 DIRECTORS’, SUPERVISORS’, CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S AND SENIOR 
MANAGEMENT’S REMUNERATION  (continued)

(a) Directors’ and chief executive’s emoluments (continued)

The  aggregate  amounts  of  emoluments  paid  to  directors  and  chief  executive  of  the  Company  for  the  year  ended  31 
December 2022 are as follows:

Name

Basic salaries

Performance 
related bonuses

Subtotal of 
salary income

Deferred 
payment 
included in 
salary income

Pension scheme 
contributions

Benefits in kind

RMB thousand

Bai Tao (i)
Zhao Peng (ii)
Su Hengxuan (iii)
Li Mingguang
Huang Xiumei (iv)
Yuan Changqing (iii)
Wang Junhui (v)
Lam Chi Kuen
Zhai Haitao
Tang Xin (vi)
Leung Oi-Sie Elsie (vi)
Huang Yiping (vi)
Chen Jie (vi)

–
–
–
1,432.0
939.8
–
–
300.0
300.0
175.0
175.0
125.0
125.0

–
–
–
1,145.6
728.3
–
–
120.0
120.0
70.0
70.0
50.0
50.0

–
–
–
2,577.6
1,668.1
–
–
420.0
420.0
245.0
245.0
175.0
175.0

–
–
–
687.4
437.0
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–
–
–
144.3
108.6
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–
–
–
288.2
194.2
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

Deferred 
payment 
included in total

Actual paid 
included in total

–
–
–
687.4
437.0
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–

–
–
–
2,322.7
1,533.9
–
–
420.0
420.0
245.0
245.0
175.0
175.0

Total

–
–
–
3,010.1
1,970.9
–
–
420.0
420.0
245.0
245.0
175.0
175.0

(i)   Bai Tao was appointed as the chairman and executive director in May 2022 and did not receive remuneration from the Company.

(ii)   Zhao Peng was appointed as executive director in October 2022 and did not receive any remuneration from the Company.

(iii)  Su Hengxuan and other non-executive directors did not receive remuneration from the Company. Su Hengxuan resigned as executive director in August 

2022 and Yuan Changqing resigned as non-executive director in June 2022.

(iv)  Huang Xiumei resigned as executive director in November 2022 and did not receive any remuneration from the Company from October 2022.

(v)   Wang Junhui is a non-executive director and does not receive any remuneration from the Company.

(vi)  Tang Xin resigned as independent director in March 2022 and continued to perform as independent director until July 2022. Leung Oi-Sie Elsie resigned 

as independent director in July 2022. Huang Yiping and Chen Jie were appointed as independent directors of the Company in July 2022.

(vii)  The above remuneration was calculated based on the relevant employment period during the reporting period, and there is no performance remuneration 

recovery and deduction in 2022.

The compensation amounts disclosed above for these directors and the chief executive for the year ended 31 December 
2022 were restated based on the finalised amounts determined during 2023.

The directors and chief executive received the compensation amounts disclosed above during their term of office in 2023 
and 2022.

In addition to the directors’ emoluments disclosed above, certain directors of the Company received emoluments from CLIC, 
the amounts of which were not apportioned between their services to the Company and their services to CLIC.

270

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
40 DIRECTORS’, SUPERVISORS’, CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S AND SENIOR 
MANAGEMENT’S REMUNERATION  (continued)

(b) Supervisors’ emoluments

The aggregate amounts of emoluments paid to supervisors of the Company for the year ended 31 December 2023 are as 
follows:

Name

Cao Weiqing
Ye Yinglan (i)
Hu Zhijun (ii)
Wang Xiaoqing (ii)
Lai Jun
Niu Kailong (iii)

Remuneration 
paid

Benefits in 
kind

Pension 
scheme 
contributions

RMB thousand

1,267.9
465.1
485.4
452.3
1,021.9
–

151.9
65.3
62.4
62.4
125.5
–

225.2
91.4
87.8
100.1
218.0
–

Total

1,645.0
621.8
635.6
614.8
1,365.4
–

(i)   Ye Yinglan was appointed as employee representative supervisor in June 2023.

(ii)   Hu Zhijun and Wang Xiaoqing resigned as employee representative supervisor in June 2023

(iii)  Niu Kailong did not receive remuneration from the Company.

(iv)  The above remuneration was calculated based on the relevant employment period during the reporting period.

The aggregate amounts of emoluments paid to supervisors of the Company for the year ended 31 December 2022 are as 
follows:

Basic salaries

Performance 
related bonuses

Subtotal of 
salary income

1,148.6
104.4
461.2
306.7
695.3
768.8
–

584.7
83.5
685.2
381.2
1,176.8
1,370.0
–

1,733.3
187.9
1,146.4
687.9
1,872.1
2,138.8
–

Deferred 
payment 
included in 
salary income

350.8
50.1
274.1
152.5
470.7
548.0
–

Pension scheme 
contributions

Benefits in kind

RMB thousand

113.5
14.5
66.4
52.9
117.7
117.3
–

237.6
23.4
115.8
77.4
209.0
210.6
–

Deferred 
payment 
included in total

Actual paid 
included in total

350.8
50.1
274.1
152.5
470.7
548.0
–

1,733.6
175.7
1,054.5
665.7
1,728.1
1,918.7
–

Total

2,084.4
225.8
1,328.6
818.2
2,198.8
2,466.7
–

Name

Jia Yuzeng (i)
Cao Weiqing (i)
Cao Qingyang (ii)
Hu Zhijun (ii)
Wang Xiaoqing
Lai Jun
Niu Kailong (iii)

(i)   Cao Weiqing was appointed as Chairman of the Board of Supervisors in November 2022. Jia Yuzeng resigned as the Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

(ii)   Hu Zhijun was appointed as employee representative supervisor in July 2022, while Cao Qingyang resigned as employee representative supervisor.

(iii)  Niu Kailong did not receive remuneration from the Company.

(iv)  The above remuneration was calculated based on the relevant employment period during the reporting period, and there is no performance remuneration 

recovery and deduction in 2022.

271

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
40 DIRECTORS’, SUPERVISORS’, CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S AND SENIOR 
MANAGEMENT’S REMUNERATION  (continued)

(b) Supervisors’ emoluments (continued)

The  compensation  amounts  disclosed  above  for  these  supervisors  for  the  year  ended  31  December  2022  were  restated 
based on the finalised amounts determined during 2023.

The supervisors received the compensation amounts disclosed above during their term of office in 2023 and 2022.

(c) Five highest paid individuals

For the year ended 31 December 2023, the five individuals whose emoluments were the highest in the Company include 
one supervisor (2022: one director and one supervisor).

Details of the remuneration of the five highest paid individuals are as follows:

Basic salaries, housing allowances, other allowances and benefits in kind
Pension scheme contributions

Total

The emoluments fell within the following bands:

RMB0 – RMB1,000,000
RMB1,000,001 – RMB2,000,000
RMB2,000,001 – RMB3,000,000
RMB3,000,001 – RMB4,000,000
RMB4,000,001 – RMB4,500,000

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

RMB thousand

RMB thousand

6,872.0
1,136.0

8,008.0

12,820.2
1,301.2

14,121.4

Number of individuals

For the year ended 31 December

2023

2022

–
5
–
–
–

–
–
3
2
–

For  the  year  ended  31  December  2023,  no  emoluments  were  paid  by  the  Company  to  the  directors,  chief  executive, 
supervisors or any of the five highest paid individuals as an inducement to join or upon joining the Company or compensation 
for  loss  of  office  as  a  director  of  any  member  of  the  Group  or  of  any  other  office  in  connection  with  the  management 
(2022: nil).

The emoluments of the five highest paid individuals are the total emoluments paid to them during the year.

There was no arrangement under which a director, chief executive or supervisor waived or agreed to waive any remuneration 
during the year.

272

For the year ended 31 December 2023Annual Report 2023 | Financial ReportNotes to the Consolidated Financial Statements (continued) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In case of any discrepancy between the Chinese version and the English version of this report, 
the Chinese version shall prevail; in case of any discrepancy between the printed version and 
the website version of this report, the website version shall prevail.

Office Address : 16 Financial Street, Xicheng District, Beijing, P.  R. China
Telephone        : 86-10-63633333  
Website            : www.e-chinalife.com
E-mail               : ir@e-chinalife.com