MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release

Great Eastern and Chongqing Land Properties Group to set up Great Eastern Life Assurance (China)

Singapore, 18 August 2005: Great Eastern Life Assurance Co Ltd and Chongqing Land Properties Group held a ceremony in Chongqing today to sign an agreement to set up a joint venture life insurance company.

On 4 August 2005, Great Eastern Life had received approval from the China Insurance Regulatory Commission to commence preparatory work to establish the joint venture life insurance company with its Chinese partner, Chongqing Land Properties Group.

With its head office in Chongqing, the joint venture life insurance company will be called Great Eastern Life Assurance (China). The initial registered capital is 300 million yuan (S$62 million) or 150 million yuan from each party. There are plans to raise the registered capital to 500 million yuan in three years’ time.

With well-coordinated social economic development in Chongqing and intense financial system reformation within the country in recent years, the insurance industry in Chongqing is advancing at an unprecedented pace.

Currently, the municipality of Chongqing has a total of six life insurance companies and eleven general insurance companies, including one foreign insurance company and one joint-venture insurance company. However, these insurance companies have their head offices elsewhere in China. GEL China is the first foreign joint venture life insurance company with its headquarters based in Chongqing.

This joint venture marks a new phase of development in Chongqing’s insurance industry.

Chongqing Land Properties Group
Set up on 28 February 2003, Chongqing Land Properties Group is a state-owned enterprise under the Chongqing People’s Municipal Government. The Group is responsible for the conservation, improvement, development and management of land in Chongqing. It is also responsible for the redevelopment of old towns and the construction of the social and cultural infrastructure. The Group has assets of nearly 16 billion yuan. It is one of ten state-owned enterprises in Chongqing with assets above 10 billion yuan.

Great Eastern Life
Great Eastern Life is a fully-owned subsidiary of Great Eastern Holdings Ltd, the largest life insurance group in Singapore and Malaysia, with nearly S$38 billion in assets. With two successful distribution channels – the tied agency force and bancassurance – Great Eastern is the market leader in both Singapore and Malaysia, with a market share of 22.9% and 19.2% respectively. It is also the largest public-listed insurance group in South-east Asia. In addition to Singapore where it is headquartered and Malaysia where it has 24 branch offices, Great Eastern also has an office in Brunei, a subsidiary in Indonesia and representative offices in Shanghai and Hanoi.

Venturing into China’s insurance market is a key part of Great Eastern’s regional business development. In line with China’s strategy of economic structure reformation and the “Go-West” policy, Great Eastern has chosen Chongqing to be the bridgehead in its expansion plan into China.

Great Eastern’s Director and Group Chief Executive Officer Tan Beng Lee said, “We are very happy with this development. Chongqing City has a population of over 30 million and an expected growth rate of 8% to 10% a year. The establishment of this joint venture signifies a major step in our regionalisation efforts.”

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About Great Eastern Holdings
Great Eastern Holdings is the largest insurance group in Singapore and Malaysia, with nearly $38 billion in assets and 2.4 million policyholders. With two successful distribution channels – the tied agency force and bancassurance – it is the market leader in both Singapore and Malaysia. It is a subsidiary of OCBC Bank, Singapore’s longest established local bank which has assets of $137 billion and a network of 113 branches and representative offices in 15 countries and territories.

For more information, please contact

Boon-Gek Mudeliar
Head (Corporate Communications)
Tel: 6248 2215
Email: Boon-GekMudeliar@lifeisgreat.com.sg
or
Freddy Er
Senior Vice President & Chief Representative
Shanghai Representative Office
Tel: +86 21 5830 1297 Fax: +86 21 5830 1293
Email: freddyer@lifeisgreat.com.cn