HONG KONG and SHANGHAI, Oct. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (hereafter "Ping An" or the "Group", HKEX: 02318; SSE: 601318) has been voted Best Overall Outstanding Company in China and Most Outstanding Company in China – Insurance Sector in the Asia's Outstanding Companies Poll 2020 by financial publication Asiamoney. This is the third consecutive year Ping An has taken the insurance title.
The poll, covering 12 Asia Pacific capital markets, recognizes Asia's most outstanding listed companies in each market and sector in areas such as financial performance, management team excellence, investor relations and corporate social responsibility. This year, more than 880 fund managers, buy-side analysts, bankers and research analysts voted.
Alex Pang, Executive Editor of Asiamoney, said, "Asiamoney has been recognizing excellence in corporate governance among listed companies in Asia for the last three decades. I congratulate Ping An for being voted the overall most outstanding company in China in 2020 and for also being recognized as the most outstanding company in China for the insurance sector for a third year in a row. By consistently setting a high standard in governance and leadership, they and other top-ranked companies in our poll serve as role models, much to the betterment of all stakeholders across the region."
Jason Yao, Co-CEO and Chief Financial Officer of Ping An, said, "It is our great honor to receive the awards from Asiamoney, as they reflect the capital markets' recognition of Ping An's efforts in overall strategy, business performance, shareholder returns and corporate social responsibility. Ping An leverages our local advantages while following global corporate governance standards. We provide financial products and services for 210 million retail customers and 560 million internet users by empowering financial services with technologies, empowering ecosystems with technologies, and empowering financial services with ecosystems. With the aim to become a world-leading technology-powered retail financial services group, we will continue to adopt global best practices to create value for our shareholders, customers, employees, communities, partners and the environment."
Under its "finance + technology" and "finance + ecosystem" strategies, Ping An is undergoing a strategic transformation, using leading technological capabilities to empower its core financial business and accelerate development of its ecosystems for business growth. The operating profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company in the first half of 2020 increased by 1.2% year on year to RMB74,310 million. Total revenue contribution from the technology business in the first half of 2020 increased by 11.2% year on year to RMB42,732 million. Ping An places great importance on strong shareholder returns and declared an interim dividend of RMB0.80 per share in cash, up 6.7% year on year.
Ping An also aims to be a driving force for sustainable development in China and other parts of the world. The Group works with partners to promote a green environment, a harmonious society and a sustainable economy. In 2019, Ping An became a signatory to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI), the first Chinese asset owner to participate in the initiative. In 2020, Ping An became the first Mainland China company to sign onto to the Principles for Sustainable Insurance (PSI), a global sustainability framework of United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI). As of 31 December 2019, Ping An's sustainable insurance insured amount reached RMB121.21 trillion, with 1,053 sustainable insurance products and services and 785 million person-times of sustainable insurance valid coverage, leading sustainable development in China's insurance industry.
In January 2020, Ping An announced it was the first Chinese asset owner to join Climate Action 100+, an investor initiative to ensure the world's largest corporate greenhouse gas emitters take necessary action on climate change.
About Ping An Group
Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An") is a world-leading technology-powered retail financial services group. With over 210 million retail customers and 560 million Internet users, Ping An is one of the largest financial services companies in the world.
Ping An has two over-arching strategies, "pan financial assets" and "pan health care", which focus on the provision of financial and health care services through our integrated financial services platform and ecosystems. Our "finance + technology" and "finance + ecosystem" strategies aim to provide customers and internet users with innovative and simple products and services using technology. As China's first joint stock insurance company, Ping An is committed to upholding the highest standards of corporate reporting and corporate governance. The Group is listed on the stock exchanges in Hong Kong and Shanghai.
In 2020, Ping An ranked 7th in the Forbes Global 2000 list and ranked 21st in the Fortune Global 500 list. Ping An also ranked 38th in the 2020 WPP Kantar Millward Brown BrandZTM Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands list. For more information, please visit www.pingan.cn.
