A new insurance technology IPO has emerged from Fujian's Xiamen, founded by a 1970s-born Xiamen University alumnus, though the company continues to report operational losses.

With China's internet penetration rate exceeding 78% in 2024, online insurance purchasing has surged, particularly following the pandemic as health risk awareness increased demand for medical and critical illness insurance. This trend has driven significant growth in the insurance industry.

China's insurance market has reached a total premium scale exceeding 5 trillion yuan, with upstream players including listed companies like Ping An Insurance (Group) Company Of China, Ltd., China Life, and China Pacific Insurance. The midstream insurance sales sector is also seeing companies pursuing IPOs.

Recently, Baige Online (Xiamen) Digital Technology Co., Ltd. ("Baige Online") submitted its prospectus to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, seeking a main board listing with Minsheng Capital and BOCI as joint sponsors.

**Founder Background and Company History**

Baige Online was established in 2015 by Fujian Heli Hemei, controlled by Tu Jinbo, and is headquartered in Huli District, Xiamen, Fujian Province.

In 2016, the company acquired Yunnan Baotai Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd. (now Baige Bao Insurance Brokerage Co., Ltd.), which holds a national insurance brokerage business license. The company obtained an internet insurance business sales license in 2017, beginning nationwide insurance brokerage services.

Since 2018, Baige Online has completed multiple funding rounds from investors including Xiamen Huicheng, New Hope, Xiamen Meitong Luqi, and Guangbo. In January 2025, the company's post-investment valuation reached approximately 2.029 billion yuan.

As of August 25, 2025, Tu Jinbo holds approximately 55.58% of voting rights in Baige Online as a controlling shareholder. Other shareholders include New Hope, Gerui Xiamen, Xiamen Fuguo Hao, and Yujin Tongxing.

Tu Jinbo, the 48-year-old founder, earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Xiamen University in 2000 and an Executive Master of Business Administration from City University of Hong Kong in 2021. He previously worked at Ping An Life Insurance Xiamen Branch and served as director and supervisor at Xiamen Demei Investment Holding Co., Ltd. He now serves as Chairman, Executive Director, and CEO of Baige Online.

**Business Model and Revenue Structure**

Baige Online operates as an insurance technology company in the industry's midstream, providing insurance transaction services, precision marketing and digital solutions, and TPA services to insurance companies.

Insurance transaction services, which involve collecting commissions for helping insurance companies deliver underwritten products, account for over 70% of the company's revenue. During the reporting period (2022, 2023, 2024, and January-May 2025), this segment contributed the majority of revenues.

Notably, approximately 99.9% of Baige Online's commission income comes through channel partners, creating high dependency on these relationships. Partnership agreements typically last one year, after which partners may choose to work with competitors or develop competing services.

The company also faces customer concentration risk, with its top five customers generating 55.3%, 69.0%, 77.2%, and 59.3% of total revenue during the respective reporting periods.

**Financial Performance and Persistent Losses**

Despite revenue growth in recent years, Baige Online has reported continuous net losses.

During 2022, 2023, 2024, and January-May 2025, the company generated revenues of approximately 405 million yuan, 660 million yuan, 914 million yuan, and 467 million yuan respectively, with gross margins of 8.3%, 7.9%, 9.1%, 8%, and 9.2%. Corresponding net losses were approximately 25.075 million yuan, 17.18 million yuan, 27.712 million yuan, and 18.679 million yuan.

Sales and distribution expenses during the reporting period were 28.798 million yuan, 40.883 million yuan, 46.531 million yuan, and 24.871 million yuan respectively. R&D expenses were 14.057 million yuan, 15.662 million yuan, 32.431 million yuan, and 18.684 million yuan.

The company attributes its losses to being in transition from the R&D stage to commercialization, requiring substantial upfront R&D and market investment. Additionally, insurance transaction services have been in market for a relatively short time, and the company's focus MaaS support model has not yet begun commercialization.

**Market Outlook and Competition**

China's insurance market reached 5.7 trillion yuan in total premiums in 2024. With growing insurance awareness and expanding sales channels, the market is projected to reach 8.4 trillion yuan by 2029, representing a compound annual growth rate of 8.1% from 2024-2029. Internet insurance accounts for 12.6% of China's total insurance market.

The Chinese internet insurance market reached 563.1 billion yuan in 2024, with the insurance technology market at 85.4 billion yuan. By 2028, these markets are expected to reach 1.05 trillion yuan and 174.7 billion yuan respectively.

However, the industry faces intense competition with over 2,500 professional insurance intermediary institutions nationwide as of 2023. According to consultation data, Baige Online ranks 11th among Chinese internet insurance intermediaries by 2024 total premiums, 5th among Chinese scenario-based internet insurance intermediaries, and first among Chinese third-party scenario-based internet insurance intermediaries with a 3.4% domestic market share.

The "disintermediation" trend, where insurance companies directly reach consumers at lower costs, poses challenges for intermediary service providers like Baige Online. Additionally, competitors can replicate insurance products shortly after launch, often with more competitive pricing.

Overall, while Baige Online operates in a growing internet insurance market with increasing revenues, the company faces intense industry competition and continues reporting losses, highlighting the urgent need to improve its self-sustaining capabilities.