Asian Hedge Fund Manager, Long Short Equity, Macro

David Mudd

Equity Bottom-Up

ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance C / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/zhongan-online-p-c-insurance-c" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:23681:1" rel="noopener">ZhongAn Online P&amp;C Insurance C (6060 HK)</a> is benefiting from the cross-selling opportunities  generated through the eco-systems of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group-holding-ltd-d7b798e2-202d-4e01-9a1e-799e2ae8f0c7" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28434:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba Group Holding (9988 HK)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tencent-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:26:1" rel="noopener">Tencent (700 HK)</a>, its parent companies</li>
<li>Largest solely online insurance company in China with Rmb 30B gross premiums written in 2023.</li>
<li>Expertise and cross-selling from <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/ping-an-insurance-grp-co-of-china-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12880:1" rel="noopener">Ping An Insurance (H) (2318 HK)</a> , another parent company with a jointly run auto insurance business.</li>
</ul>



ZhongAn Online P&amp;C Insurance C (6060 HK) is benefiting from the cross-selling opportunities  generated through the eco-systems of Alibaba Group Holding (9988 HK) and Tencent (700 HK), its parent companies
Largest solely online insurance company in China with Rmb 30B gross premiums written in 2023.
Expertise and cross-selling from Ping An Insurance (H) (2318 HK) , another parent company with a jointly run auto insurance business.


Baba's Babies: Co-Parenting Works! Zhong An Online P&C Insurance

Founder of Antler Capital

Stanley Tsai, CFA

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

In the spirit of the long-awaited UEFA Euro 2020, we present our inaugural "China Financials: Silver Linings Playbook", which summarizes our views on the names that are best positioned to navigate an environment of progressively slower credit growth, tighter liquidity and rising defaults. 
Our screen consists of 100+ stocks in the A/H share universe, as well as a select number of international / non-traditional names that have significant exposures to China's financial system. We have a preference for larger-cap and liquid names, which are then filtered by our opinions on their fundamentals, value, momentum and recent trading volumes. We also try to make our selections versatile and less vulnerable to single-factor movements.
Each player's position on the pitch and the team formation itself convey incremental information about our thoughts on the sector's performance over a three to six-month horizon. To the extent possible, we intend to update our ideas on a periodic basis. This provides a feedback loop with our other ongoing research on the industry.
However, our team selections are not investment recommendations. Instead, they are meant to give structure to our analysis. The playbook allows us to articulate our views on the sector in a timely, concise manner. Our objective is to ensure we don't throw the baby out with the bathwater as sentiments on the sector remain bleak.
With that out of the way, the following is our starting XI. We will dive deeper into our rationale for our selections in the remainder of this insight (Exhibit 1).
<table class="table table-striped">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 726.047px;">Exhibit 1: China Financials | Silver Linings Playbook</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 726.047px;">
<figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/213/768/original/image_768460236451623962508577.png?1623962508" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="213768"></figure>

Source: Our analysis
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
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In the spirit of the long-awaited UEFA Euro 2020, we present our inaugural "China Financials: Silver Linings Playbook", which summarizes our views on the names that are best positioned to navigate an environment of progressively slower credit growth, tighter liquidity and rising defaults. 
Our screen consists of 100+ stocks in the A/H share universe, as well as a select number of international / non-traditional names that have significant exposures to China's financial system. We have a preference for larger-cap and liquid names, which are then filtered by our opinions on their fundamentals, value, momentum and recent trading volumes. We also try to make our selections versatile and less vulnerable to single-factor movements.
Each player's position on the pitch and the team formation itself convey incremental information about our thoughts on the sector's performance over a three to six-month horizon. To the extent possible, we intend to update our ideas on a periodic basis. This provides a feedback loop with our other ongoing research on the industry.
However, our team selections are not investment recommendations. Instead, they are meant to give structure to our analysis. The playbook allows us to articulate our views on the sector in a timely, concise manner. Our objective is to ensure we don't throw the baby out with the bathwater as sentiments on the sector remain bleak.
With that out of the way, the following is our starting XI. We will dive deeper into our rationale for our selections in the remainder of this insight (Exhibit 1).



Exhibit 1: China Financials | Silver Linings Playbook





Source: Our analysis




Related Insights
China Macro: Consumers Remain on the Sidelines, as Their Home Equity Grows 
Glut and Famine: We Might See Snow in China This Summer 
China Macro: PPI Peaks, while CPI Eases Tightening Fears 
China Macro: Exports Disappoint, but It's Still Early in the Game 
Glut and Famine: China's Monetary Conditions a Notch Tighter in May 
ICBC: The Bond Identity | A Zero-Growth Dividend Discount Story 
BOC Aviation (2588 HK): The Stars Don't Look Bigger, but They Do Look Brighter

China Financials: Silver Linings Playbook

Fintech & EM-focused Analyst, KT Capital Group

Alec Tseung

Fintech & EM-focused Analyst

Equity Capital Markets

<ul><li>Three major concerns/questions I'd ask regarding the potential IPO of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/waterdrop-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33018:1" rel="noopener">Waterdrop Inc (WDH US)</a>:</li></ul><ol>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/waterdrop-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33018:1" rel="noopener"></a>Single monetization channel: as the company seeks further growth, can it really compete against the distribution channels of the tech and insurance giants in China?</li>
<li>
Insurance/product development potential: does the company have the expertise to develop its own products without just having to rely on the distribution channels?</li>
<li>
Valuation: if the investment thesis is to ride the growth of healthcare and medical insurance spending in China, isn't it more direct to invest in an online (or even traditional) insurer, which is at a much lower valuation?</li>
</ol>

Three major concerns/questions I'd ask regarding the potential IPO of Waterdrop Inc (WDH US):

Single monetization channel: as the company seeks further growth, can it really compete against the distribution channels of the tech and insurance giants in China?

Insurance/product development potential: does the company have the expertise to develop its own products without just having to rely on the distribution channels?

Valuation: if the investment thesis is to ride the growth of healthcare and medical insurance spending in China, isn't it more direct to invest in an online (or even traditional) insurer, which is at a much lower valuation?


Waterdrop Inc: Can the Water Keep Flowing After Its IPO?

KT Capital Group

Principal investments and advisory firm that focuses on connecting the CIS countries with East Asia.

Principal investments and advisory firm

PICC Property & Casualty H / Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>The insurance sector should definitely warrant more investor attention going forward as some insurance names in the region have had a very strong year in 2022.</li>
<li>Two key markets we view positively in 2023 are China's P&amp;C and Korea's L&amp;H insurance markets, given their favorable industry catalysts and tailwinds. </li>
<li>Among all the insurance stocks in these two markets, we believe PICC P&amp;C and Samsung Life will continue to have an exciting year ahead.</li>
</ul>


The insurance sector should definitely warrant more investor attention going forward as some insurance names in the region have had a very strong year in 2022.
Two key markets we view positively in 2023 are China's P&amp;C and Korea's L&amp;H insurance markets, given their favorable industry catalysts and tailwinds. 
Among all the insurance stocks in these two markets, we believe PICC P&amp;C and Samsung Life will continue to have an exciting year ahead.


APAC Insurers Series (#1): A Hidden Gem in This Bear Market?

<ul>
<li>China's motor insurance has been showing signs of growth after years of decline due to deregulations and reforms in the sector.</li>
<li>Motor insurance tailwind will benefit large players the most. Bullish on PICC P&amp;C since it's the largest player in motor insurance and to likely benefit the most from the tailwind.</li>
<li>Bearish on CPIC since its P&amp;C business is much smaller than PICC P&amp;C and Ping An P&amp;C, while its L&amp;H growth continues to be under pressure.  </li>
</ul>


China's motor insurance has been showing signs of growth after years of decline due to deregulations and reforms in the sector.
Motor insurance tailwind will benefit large players the most. Bullish on PICC P&amp;C since it's the largest player in motor insurance and to likely benefit the most from the tailwind.
Bearish on CPIC since its P&amp;C business is much smaller than PICC P&amp;C and Ping An P&amp;C, while its L&amp;H growth continues to be under pressure.  


China

ZhongAn Online P & C Insurance Co., Ltd. operates as an insurance company. The Company develops and sells health, airline, and automotive insurance, and other products. ZhongAn Online P & C Insurance also offers online consumer finance services.

ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance C (6060 HK)

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