Chinese insurer rolls out ancient tree protection scheme
Ping An Insurance Group, the Shenzhen-headquartered Chinese financial services firm, has announced a new initiative integrating insurance coverage with the preservation of ancient trees, unveiled during COP30 in Belém.
Ancient trees are vital in tackling climate change because they are important long-term carbon storage units and form the foundation of a resilient, biodiverse ecosystem.
China is home to an abundance of ancient trees, but their preservation poses a complex challenge for private insurers, who struggle to quantify their value and monitor them effectively due to their wide dispersal.
The insurer is now rolling out a tree protection programme that uses environmental sensors and wireless communications to monitor crucial indicators such as soil moisture, air quality and tree health around the clock. All data is uploaded to the cloud in real time, providing caretakers with more accurate and timely information.
Two years ago, Ping An launched Guangdong’s first ancient-tree insurance, creating a full-chain model incorporating “pre-disaster prevention, in-disaster emergency response and post-disaster compensation” mechanisms.
As of October 2025, the project has provided more than RMB 700mn (approximately USD 98bn) in risk protection for over 55,000 ancient and notable trees nationwide.
Beyond tree preservation, Ping An also provides insurance coverage for carbon-sequestering ecosystems, including forests, grasslands, wetlands and marine environments. By the end of 2024, Ping An’s Carbon Sink Insurance had expanded to cover 18 provinces and municipalities across China.
The firm, which is listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, has also ramped up its green investments. As of 30 June 2025, Ping An’s green investments totalled RMB 144.482bn (approximately USD 20bn), green loan balances reached RMB 251.746 bn (around USD 35.3 bn), and premium income from green insurance during the first three quarters amounted to RMB 55.279 bn (about USD 7.7 bn).
