Multiple Onlookers but No Bidders Yet! Three Insurance Broker Equities to Be Auctioned: Some Targets Have Abnormal Operations and Long-Term Business Suspension

Everyday Economic News Reporter | Yuan Yuan Everyday Economic News Editor | Wei Wenyu

On March 18, a reporter from “Everyday Economic News” (hereinafter referred to as “the reporter”) learned from Alibaba Asset Platform that recently, the equity of three insurance intermediaries will be auctioned through judicial auction, namely Shenzhen Sheng’an Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. (hereinafter “Sheng’an Insurance Brokerage”), Baocheng Insurance Sales Co., Ltd. (hereinafter “Baocheng Insurance Sales”), and Guizhou Zhongyang Insurance Agency Co., Ltd. (hereinafter “Zhongyang Insurance Agency”).

From the current listing situation, there are many onlookers, but no one has registered yet. The reporter noted that compared to the highly capitalized scene of previous years, in the past two years, there have been frequent cases of insurance intermediary equity failing to sell at auction, and market attention to such assets has cooled.

Industry insiders analyze that the current profit model of the insurance intermediary industry is facing challenges. The “reporting and operation as one” policy has compressed fee margins, and the comprehensive reform of auto insurance has further lowered commission rates. Traditional intermediary agencies that rely mainly on “channel” business have seen their profit margins significantly shrink. Holding licenses alone is no longer sufficient for realization; licenses lacking actual business scenarios and digital capabilities are gradually becoming “negative assets.”

According to public information, the equity proportions of the three insurance intermediaries to be auctioned vary. Sheng’an Insurance Brokerage’s auction involves 10% of its equity, with a starting price of 3.0336 million yuan; Baocheng Insurance Sales’s auction involves 100% of its equity, with a starting price of 6.3777 million yuan; Zhongyang Insurance Agency’s auction involves 90% of its equity, with a starting price of 3.072 million yuan.

Image source: Alibaba Asset Platform

These three equity auctions will be held on March 19, March 28, and March 30, respectively. Since insurance intermediary licenses are a type of financial license, the auction announcement reminds bidders to confirm they meet the relevant qualification requirements before participating, and recommends consulting local administrative authorities for specific policies in advance. If the transaction cannot be completed due to the buyer’s lack of qualification, legal consequences such as regret auction will be borne according to law.

Image source: Alibaba Asset Platform

The description of the targets shows that some insurance intermediary equities have certain flaws. For example, Zhongyang Insurance Agency has been listed in the abnormal business directory, and its insurance intermediary license was issued on June 28, 2022. Due to long-term inactivity, the validity and usability of this license cannot be guaranteed; Sheng’an Insurance Brokerage requires bidders to pay a prepayment equal to the full sale price when registering to qualify for participation. If the final auction price exceeds the prepayment, the excess must be paid into the court-designated account within the specified time.

Image source: Alibaba Asset Platform

The reporter noted that as of 7 p.m. on March 18, the number of viewers on the auction pages for the three insurance intermediary equities exceeded 100 each, but no one has registered yet. In fact, since 2021, there have been multiple cases of insurance intermediary equities failing to sell on Alibaba Asset Platform. For example, in 2023, despite measures such as second auctions and price reductions, the 70% equity of Rongchao Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. remained unsold; in 2024, the 100% equity of Meichen Insurance Brokerage Group Co., Ltd., which holds Guangzhou Huixin Insurance Agency Co., Ltd., also failed to sell.

Why are insurance intermediary licenses, once highly sought after by capital, now cooling off?

“The core reason for the decline in capital enthusiasm is that the industry’s development logic has shifted from ‘land grabbing’ to ‘quality improvement and efficiency enhancement’,” said Yuan Shuai, Deputy Director of Investment at the China Urban Development Research Institute. On one hand, regulatory policy changes have reshaped market expectations. The new “National Ten Rules” for the insurance industry strengthen regulatory guidance, promoting high-quality development over scale expansion, significantly raising thresholds for equity transactions and compliance costs, and entering a period of industry valuation system restructuring. On the other hand, the scarcity of licenses is decreasing. With the popularization of internet insurance, the advantages of small and medium-sized intermediaries in attracting traffic and providing services are gradually weakening. Coupled with some agencies’ poor operational efficiency and the fact that many shareholders’ equities are pledged or frozen, investor concerns about potential operational risks are increasing.

As an important part of China’s insurance market, insurance intermediaries play a key role in insurance transactions. However, in recent years, under the background of “reporting and operation as one” and regulatory efforts to “clear虚虚 and improve quality,” the industry has entered a period of development pain.

Gao Chengyuan, President of the Visionary Influence Research Institute, believes that the current market shows a polarized pattern with an intensifying “Matthew Effect.” Leading insurance institutions leverage scale, technological investment, and ecological resources to accelerate integration, while small and medium insurance intermediaries face survival difficulties. The industry’s pain points include serious homogenization—most small and medium agencies still rely on traditional commission models, lacking differentiated service capabilities. Under the dual pressures of regulatory “清虚提质” and market competition, “shell” agencies are being rapidly淘汰. In terms of cross-industry代理, channels like banks and car dealers, though holding traffic advantages, also face revenue declines due to rate reforms. Overall, the market is transitioning from “quantity expansion” to “quality differentiation.”

From the demand side, the insurance intermediary market still has growth potential. Zhi Yuanpei, Vice President of the Investment Professional Committee of the China Investment Association listed companies, said that the long-term driving forces of the industry come from two aspects: one is the increase in insurance density and penetration rate. As residents’ wealth grows and risk awareness strengthens, demand for pension, health, and other保障型 products continues to increase, and the need for professional consulting and customized services rises; the other is that the increasing complexity of insurance products has generated demand for professional services. Products like annuities and increasing benefit whole life insurance have increasingly complex clauses, and consumers’ demand for professional interpretation, claims assistance, and value-added services from intermediaries is growing.

“In the long run, the insurance intermediary market will develop towards ‘professionalization, digitalization, and compliance’,” Yuan Shuai said. Under continuous high-pressure regulatory policies, non-compliant small and medium intermediaries will be gradually淘汰, and market share will concentrate on compliant, service-oriented institutions. Meanwhile, core competitiveness will shift from “customer acquisition” to “service,” with professional risk management and customized product design becoming fundamental. Digital transformation will accelerate, leveraging big data, AI, and other technologies to improve service efficiency, reduce operational costs, and achieve precise customer acquisition and personalized services. Additionally, the trend of cross-border integration will continue, with future emergence of more comprehensive intermediary platforms combining health management, elderly care, wealth management, and other fields, breaking traditional insurance sales boundaries and providing customers with full lifecycle financial services.

Bai Wenxi, Vice Chairman of the China Enterprise Capital Alliance, pointed out that the insurance intermediary industry is undergoing a painful transition from “粗放扩张” (rough expansion) to “提质增效” (quality and efficiency improvement), and capital’s attitude towards licenses is shifting from “speculative pursuit” back to “rational allocation.” This is both a necessary result of strengthened regulation and a sign of the industry’s maturing.

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