安邦系股票出現下跌

Listed companies in which Anbang Insurance Group owns significant stakes fell on Wednesday after the insurer acknowledged that chairman Wu Xiaohui, who has been detained by authorities, is “unable to perform its duties”.

安邦保險集團(Anbang Insurance Group)持股量較大的多家上市公司的股價週三出現下跌。此前，安邦承認已被當局帶走的董事長吳小暉“不能履職”。

Anbang had used proceeds from the sale of high-yielding investment products — known as “universal insurance” policies — to buy public and private equity in China and abroad.

安邦曾用銷售名爲“萬能險”的高收益投資產品所得資金，在中國和海外購買公開上市的股票或投資私人股本。

The detention of Mr Wu casts doubt on the company’s future and raises the prospect that it may be forced to sell stakes to meet upcoming maturities or early redemptions by nervous policyholders.

吳小暉被帶走給安邦的未來蒙上疑雲，安邦或許將被迫賣出手中的股票，來償付即將到期的產品或應付緊張的保戶的提前贖回。

Anbang ranked among the 10 largest shareholders in 18 mainland-listed companies at the end of March, with its stakes worth a combined Rmb1.06tn ($155bn), according to data compiled from Wind Information.

萬得資訊(Wind Information)編制的數據顯示，截至3月底，安邦是18家在中國內地上市的公司的前十大股東。

The biggest loser on Wednesday was Shanghai-listed property developer Gemdale Corp, in which Anbang owns 20 per cent stake of tradeable shares, which fell 3.4 per cent.

週三股價跌幅最大的是在滬上市的地產開發商金地集團(Gemdale Corp)，安邦持有該公司20%的流通股，金地的股價收跌4.34%。

China Vanke, the country’s second-largest residential property developer by sales, was down 2.2 per cent at midday in Shenzhen. Anbang built up its Vanke stake in 2015 as part of a high-profile boardroom battle in which Anbang rival Baoneng Group sought to gain control of the developer.

按銷售額計爲中國第二大住宅地產開發商的萬科(China Vanke)，在深市收跌2.95%。2015年，在一場高調的董事會爭鬥戰中，安邦增持了萬科的股份，當時安邦與競爭對手寶能(Baoneng Group)試圖獲得萬科的控制權。

China Merchants Bank, China’s eighth-largest bank by assets, fell 1.3 per cent in Shanghai. China Minsheng Banking Corp, the country’s tenth-largest lender, dropped 0.9 per cent.

以資產規模計爲中國第八大銀行的招商銀行(CMB)，在滬市收跌2.07%。中國第十大銀行民生銀行(CMBC)的股價收跌0.37%。

Mr Wu has long sought control of a large commercial bank, market observers say. That would have allowed Anbang to consolidate the bank’s balance sheet with Anbang’s and use the lender’s funding base to finance acquisitions. Anbang has controlled small, unlisted Chengdu Rural Commercial Bank since 2011.

市場觀察人士稱，長期以來，吳小暉一直尋求控股一家大型商業銀行，這會讓安邦得以將該銀行的資產負債表與安邦的整合在一起，並利用這家銀行的供資基礎爲併購提供所需資金。自2011年以來，安邦已控股規模較小、未上市的成都農商行(Chengdu Rural Commercial Bank)。

But the detention of Mr Wu and a broader regulatory crackdown on universal insurance raises doubts about Anbang’s ability to remain a stock market juggernaut.

但吳小暉被帶走以及監管機構對萬能險的更廣泛整治，令外界懷疑安邦是否仍然有能力在股市呼風喚雨。

Anbang and other insurers rely at least in part on new products in order to raise money needed to meet redemptions and maturities on universal policies. But last month China’s insurance regulator banned Anbang from introducing products for three months as a penalty for “wreaking havoc” on the market with aggressive sales tactics and risky instruments.

爲了籌集到所需的資金應對萬能險的贖回和償付到期產品，安邦和其他保險公司至少在一定程度上依賴於發售新產品。但上月，中國保險業監管機構禁止安邦在3個月內申報新產品，以懲罰其用激進的銷售策略和高風險工具“擾亂”市場秩序。

A similar punishment meted out to Baoneng subsidiary Foresea Life Insurance in December prompted Foresea to plead with regulators to resume approval of new products. Foresea cited risk of social unrest if a protracted ban on new product sales forced the company to default on payouts due to customers.

去年12月，寶能子公司前海人壽(Foresea Life Insurance)受到類似的懲罰，前海被迫懇請監管機構恢復新產品審批。前海指出，若長時間禁止銷售新產品導致該公司無法及時支付應付給客戶的資金，可能會引發社會動盪。

In recent years, China’s insurance regulator significantly loosened longstanding restrictions on what kinds of investments insurers are allowed to make, paving the way for aggressive moves by Anbang, Foresea and others into the domestic stock market and foreign acquisitions.

最近幾年，中國保險業監管機構大大放鬆了長期以來對保險公司可投資種類的限制，這爲安邦、前海和其他保險公司大膽進軍國內股市和開展海外併購創造了條件。

But in recent months, Chinese regulators also have warned insurers not to engage in activist shareholding or interfere with management of listed companies.

然而最近幾個月，中國監管機構還警告保險公司不要參與維權投資或干預上市公司管理。

Problems at Anbang could also hit demand for global private equity, for which Anbang emerged as a frequent bidder for trophy assets. Anbang bought property assets from Blackstone in a string of deals since 2014, including the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York.

安邦的問題可能還會影響對全球私人股本的需求。對全球私人股本而言，安邦已成爲炫耀性資產的頻繁收購者。自2014年以來，安邦通過一系列交易從黑石(Blackstone)手中收購了房地產資產，其中包括紐約華爾道夫酒店(Waldorf Astoria)。