ANBANG Insurance Group Co.’s Century Securities was put up for sale Tuesday with a price tag of at least US$560 million — the first of planned asset sales under the watch of the State takeover group that has seized control of the troubled firm.

The government took control of Anbang in February. The State takeover group will control Anbang for at least one year and plans to overhaul its equity structure and seek fresh capital from strategic investors in the private sector.

It plans a number of asset disposals though it has not clarified how many or which assets they will be.

Anbang’s 91.65-percent stake in the brokerage has been put up for sale for at least 3.56 billion yuan (US$558.5 million), the State takeover group said in filings to China Beijing Equity Exchange.

The exchange will conduct an auction if there is more than one bidder.

Preferred investors for the equity transaction should have sufficient capital strength and strong corporate governance, a filing said.

Anbang, once among China’s most aggressive overseas dealmakers and famed for buying New York’s Waldorf Astoria hotel, bought the stake in Century Securities from a group of investors led by Beijing Tourism Group in 2013.(SD-Agencies)