CHINA’S insurance regulator said late Friday it has suspended Evergrande Life, the insurance arm of China Evergrande Group, from conducting stock market investment due to its speculative, frequent, high-volume trading.

    The China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC) required Evergrande Life to properly address the problem by improving its stock market investment practices and strengthening its risk management, the regulator said in an online statement.

    The CIRC said the insurer does not have a clear asset allocation plan and its trading practice involves “improper use of capital.”

    The move comes amid a wider, intensifying regulatory crackdown on risky activities by some aggressive players in the insurance sector, particularly those engaging in financial market speculation.

    The CIRC said earlier last week it would soon send two inspection teams to check compliance at Evergrande Life and Foresea Life, a unit of financial conglomerate Baoneng Group.

    Evergrande Life and Foresea Life are at the center of a row over insurance companies pumping big funds into equities at an alarming rate.

    Such aggressive stock market investments raised regulators’ hackles. The general fear is that insurers may be making highly leveraged investments using proceeds from sales of risky insurance products.

    The two insurers are also involved in a hostile takeover bid for China Vanke Co., a Shenzhen-listed property developer. Their ongoing tussle started nearly a year ago.

    The Shenzhen Stock Exchange said in November that it has taken measures against accounts related to China Evergrande Group regarding abnormal trading activities in stocks including China Vanke. (SD-Agencies)