Tomorrow Holding’s Bankrupt Insurance Unit Seeks Investors

What’s new: E An Property & Casualty Insurance Co. Ltd., a bankrupt insurance unit of embattled private conglomerate Tomorrow Holding Co. Ltd., is inviting strategic investors for a reorganization in hopes of reviving its business.

The bankruptcy administrator of E An posted an investor recruitment statement on a public platform for bankruptcy reorganization cases Wednesday, less than a week after the company was cleared to start bankruptcy proceedings.

Large and medium-sized financial institutions will be granted priority, according to the statement. Eligible investors should have more than 1 billion yuan ($148 million) in net assets over the past financial year, while those seeking more than a one-third stake must have more than 10 billion yuan of total assets.

Strategic investors must retain their holdings at least five years, according to the statement.

Background: E An was among nine companies affiliated with Tomorrow Holding that financial regulators seized in July 2020 to dismantle the troubled business empire of fallen tycoon Xiao Jianhua.

Founded in 2016 as one of China’s first four internet-based insurers, E An was 70% controlled by Tomorrow Holding through various small shareholders.

On July 15, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission (CBIRC) said it approved in principle for E An to enter bankruptcy reorganization.

As of the end of March, E An had 335 million yuan in total assets with liabilities of 462 million yuan, according to the company’s audit report.

Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for fast news you can use.

Contact reporter Han Wei (weihan@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bob.simison@caixin.com)

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