China Approves Capital Increase for Liberty Mutual China Subsidiary

Liberty Insurance Company Limited (LICL) has been granted approval by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) to increase its registered capital by $17.5 million. LICL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. and part of the Liberty Mutual Group.

The company said this capital increase, LICL’s fourth since 2007, was granted in response to its expansion and the need for more capital to meet China’s regulatory solvency requirement.

At present, Liberty has three branches in China: Chongqing in Southwestern China, Beijing in Northern China, and Zhejiang in Eastern China. In March 2011, LICL received CIRC’s approval to establish a fourth branch located in Southern China’s Guangdong Province.

As of Dec. 31, 2010, LICL said it had 72,000 auto policyholders in the markets where it has already operated and ranked fourth among 18 foreign P/C insurance companies operating in China.

Liberty Mutual has had a presence in China since 1996 when it opened a Representative Office in Shanghai. In January 2004, the company received approval to open its first insurance office in Chongqing, positioning Liberty Mutual as the first foreign property/ casualty insurer with a presence in western China. In September 2007, Liberty Mutual received approval to have its Chongqing operation converted to a wholly owned subsidiary, which was named Liberty Insurance Company Limited.

Boston-based Liberty Mutual Group is the third largest property/casualty insurer in the U.S. based on A.M. Best Co.’s report of 2010 net written premium. As of Dec. 31, 2010, Liberty Mutual Group had $112.4 billion in consolidated assets, $95.4 billion in consolidated liabilities, and $33.2 billion in annual consolidated revenue

Topics China Property Casualty