China Insurance Asset Management Association: Insurers' Overseas Investments Reach RMB2.2462 Trillion in 2025

In 2025, insurance funds' overseas investments totaled RMB2.2462 trillion, accounting for 5.4% of the insurance industry's total assets. At the end of 2025, 37 insurance institutions held foreign-currency overseas investment balances of USD90.129 billion, equivalent to RMB633.499 billion, up 13.9% year on year, the fastest growth in nearly five years, with a financial return of 5%. Over the same period, the insurance industry's overseas investment asset income balance was USD4.515 billion, with an average financial return of 5%, up 1 percentage point from 4% in 2024. The regulatory cap on the overseas investment ratio is 15%.

In 2025, insurance funds for overseas investment came from six sources: domestic original insurance premium income, overseas bond issuance, overseas listing financing, domestic guarantee for overseas loans, own funds, and overseas insurance business funds. Domestic original insurance premium income was the main source, accounting for 80%. Outbound channels were led by QDII, supplemented by ODI, with QDII accounting for 58%, down from 70% in 2024. At the end of 2025, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange had approved QDII quotas of USD39.323 billion, with a quota utilization rate of 87%, up 4 percentage points from 2024. In March and August 2026, SAFE expanded QDII quotas twice; in the first eight months of 2026, the insurance industry received an additional USD2.68 billion in approved QDII quotas, benefiting 22 institutions, raising the industry's total QDII quota to USD42.003 billion.

In 2025, 127 insurance institutions conducted Stock Connect investment business. At the end of 2025, Stock Connect investment balances stood at RMB1.61 trillion, up 112% from RMB762.2 billion in 2024; the financial return was 11.9%, down from 15% in 2024. In 2025, insurers invested RMB1.65 trillion in Hong Kong stocks, of which 98% was channeled through Stock Connect and 2% through QDII quotas. Stock Connect investment balances rose to 3.9% of overall investment in 2025, from 1.6% in 2023 and 2.1% in 2024.

Insurance institutions participate in Stock Connect investment through direct investment, entrusted insurance asset management segregated accounts, and purchases of asset management products. Entrusted insurance asset management segregated accounts accounted for 74%, direct investment 13%, purchases of insurance asset management products 6%, and purchases of public fund products and fund and securities asset management plans 3% and 2%, respectively. By holding strategy, OCI long-term holdings accounted for 67% of investment balances, while non-OCI trading strategies accounted for 33%. The average holding period in 2025 was 1.2 years, broadly flat from 2024.

From 2022 to 2025, equities dominated insurers' overseas asset allocation by major asset class. In 2025, unlisted equity and public equity together accounted for more than 50%. Unlisted equity accounted for 31%, down 5 percentage points from 36% in 2024; fixed income accounted for 24%, rising year by year; public equity accounted for 22%, declining year by year; and real estate accounted for 14%, up from 2024. Unlisted equity totaled USD27.8 billion, including USD17 billion in direct equity investment and USD10.8 billion in equity investment funds; public equity totaled USD20.1 billion, including USD18.3 billion in stock investment; fixed income totaled USD21.3 billion, including USD17.3 billion in bond investment; real estate investment totaled USD12.3 billion, including USD8.1 billion in direct real estate investment and USD4.2 billion in real estate investment funds; and money market investment totaled USD8.4 billion, of which money market funds accounted for 41%, or USD3.4 billion.

In terms of return contribution, public equity contributed the most, at 18.4%; returns on unlisted equity, fixed income, and money market edged down, while real estate remained under pressure amid the market environment. At the end of 2025, insurers' overseas investments were mainly concentrated in Hong Kong, at 41%; the United States accounted for 20% and Europe 19%. Under current regulatory rules, insurance funds' overseas investments have covered 25 developed markets and 20 emerging markets across six regions: Europe, Asia, North America, South America, Oceania, and Africa.

By industry, financials, energy, and telecommunications were the top three sectors for Stock Connect investment, while information technology, consumer discretionary, utilities, industrials, and healthcare also continued to draw institutional attention.