Ping An’s HSBC Breakup Gambit Shows Peter Ma’s Thirst for Change
- Geopolitical risk concerns, performance spur spinoff proposal
- HSBC pushes back against proposal to carve out Asian business
This article is for subscribers only.
Peter Ma isn’t afraid of dramatic change.
In the past three years, the 66-year-old chairman of China’s biggest insurer has slashed more than 800,000 roles, or 60% of his army of life insurance agents, in a painful reform to boost productivity and restore value for Ping An Insurance (Group) Co. He’s repeatedly restructured the company he built over three decades, shuttering unpromising businesses and striking out into new areas, in his pursuit of growth.