Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT), Britain's largest quoted insurance broker, is to meet with the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) next week in a bid to learn more details of the surprise closing of its Beijing representative office in September.
JLT chief executive Ken Carter said he was still unsure why the office - which trades under the name Jardine Insurance Brokers (JIB) - was closed. He said the group's representative office in Guangzhou remained open.
The CIRC reportedly banned JIB's chief representative Wang Jiacong from broking operations, and said the action was part of an industry-wide effort to purge the non-life insurance sector of alleged widespread unlicensed broking activities.
British-based insurance broker Sedgwick has also faced the wrath of the CIRC, although it has now been allowed to resume operations.
New World Infrastructure also reportedly was compelled to stop broking activities on the mainland.
Mainland authorities have not licensed any foreign companies to undertake insurance broking, although Sedgwick was granted a licence allowing it to act in a consultative role.
