The China Life Insurance Co. has confirmed recently that it is preparing for the launch of the country's first open-end securities investment fund targeting insurance companies.The fund is estimated to have around 6 billion yuan (US$724.64 million) of capital, two-thirds of which will be from China Life Insurance and the rest from other smaller insurance companies. However, the operational framework for the fund is yet to be approved by the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the China Insurance Regulatory Commission, said a June 26 article by Zhengquan Shibao (Securities Times).Industry insiders say that the launch of a fund targeting life insurance companies will change the current situation, in which insurance funds are able to enter the securities market only indirectly. It will also significantly increase the flow of capital into the securities market.

In addition, insurance companies will be able to influence the operation of these funds directly in accordance with their own needs, which will help strengthen Chinese insurance companiesd.