Two thirds of mainland customers in Greater Bay Area want to buy insurance products in Hong Kong, survey shows

Reasonable premiums, wide product range and high yields are the attraction, survey by Deloitte and BOC Life shows

Mainlanders were the biggest spenders on Hong Kong insurance policies before the pandemic brought cross-border traffic to a standstill

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Mainland Chinese were the biggest spenders on Hong Kong insurance policies before the pandemic brought cross-border traffic to a standstill. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 1:00pm, 22 Jul 2022

Almost two thirds of mainland Chinese residents of the Greater Bay Area are interested in buying insurance products in Hong Kong, with critical illness cover at the top of their shopping lists, according to a survey released on Friday.

Reasonable premium prices, a wider range of products and higher yields are the main draw for mainland customers, according to the survey of about 1,000 respondents between February and May.

The results, released in a joint report by Deloitte China and BOC Life, suggest there are enormous business opportunities for Hong Kong’s insurance sector once the border between China and Hong Kong reopens.

“The large population base of the Greater Bay Area has huge market potential and new footholds for development of the insurance industry,” said Wilson Tang, chief executive of BOC Group Life Assurance.

The bay area is a development zone mapped out by Beijing three years ago that aims to promote trade and capital flow among 11 cities in southern China to create an economic powerhouse similar to the bay areas in the US and Japan.

It consists of Hong Kong and Macau as well as nine cities in Guangdong province.