Anbang Insurance Group chairman steps aside, purportedly detained

Anbang Insurance Group said on June 14 that its chairman Wu Xiaohui is stepping aside with a media outlet claiming that he has been detained.

Chairman Wu Xiaohui “is temporarily unable to fulfil his role for personal reasons,” according to a company June 14 statement.

He has authorized relevant senior executives to continue running the business, which is operating as normal, the statement says.

The official statement came hours after Chinese financial magazine Caijing reported the chairman had been taken away for investigation, Reuters reported the same day. The article, citing unnamed sources, was removed shortly after it was posted online, according to the news agency.

Anbang’s business includes property and casualty insurance, life insurance, health insurance, pension insurance, asset management, financial leasing, banking, insurance sales, and insurance brokerage and other financial services.

Established in 2004 by Wu as an automotive and property insurer, Anbang has gained prominence in recent years, buying Dutch insurer Vivat, South Korea's Tong Yang Life Insurance and Strategic Hotels & Resorts in the US.

Beijing-based Anbang is best known overseas for its 2015 purchase of New York's landmark Waldorf Astoria hotel.

But Anbang ran into difficulties recently, failing to close some investments.

Its planned $1.6 billion takeover of US annuities and life insurer Fidelity & Guaranty Life collapsed in April after failing to get the required US regulatory approval.

In addition, China's insurance regulator in May barred Anbang Life Insurance from applying to issue new products for three months amidst an industry-wide crackdown.

A handful of insurers, led by Anbang, had issued higher-yielding products to raise funds to acquire stakes in listed companies.

The chairman of China’s regulator CIRC, Xiang Junbo, was detained for alleged corruption in early April.

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