Updated at 4.30pm: Ping An Insurance, the mainland's second-largest life insurer, will buy the remaining 27 per cent of shares in Ping An Bank that it does not already own from HSBC Holdings to strengthen its banking business. HSBC said in a statement yesterday that the Hong Kong-listed mainland insurer would buy the 27 per cent stake for about US$29.4 million (HK$229 million) through Shenzhen Commercial Bank, which is 89.36 per cent owned by Ping An Group. 'The transaction is part of Ping An Group's consolidation of its banking business within Shenzhen Commercial Bank,' HSBC added. Ping An, which earlier this month raised 38.9 billion yuan in a Shanghai share sale, plans to develop into a full service financial group in the next three to five years by boosting its banking and asset management business to match its main insurance business. Ping An Bank, previously named Fujian Asia Bank, was acquired by HSBC and China Ping An Trust & Investment, a subsidiary of Ping Group, in 2003. It had assets of 1.1 billion yuan at the end of December, 2005. Ping An Insurance also bought control of Shenzhen Commercial Bank for 4.9 billion yuan last September.
