Reports indicate that Yu Ze, President of PICC Property and Casualty (PICC P&C), has been taken away for investigation, leading to a sharp decline in the stock price of The People's Insurance Company (Group) of China Limited (PICC). Yu Ze, also known as the "Pigeon King" in the industry, is an avid pigeon racing enthusiast.

On December 1, PICC P&C (02328.HK), listed in Hong Kong, opened with a drop of over 6%, while PICC (601319.SH), listed on the A-share market, closed down 4.79%.

Multiple sources report that Yu Ze, Vice President of PICC Group and President of PICC P&C, is under investigation. As of now, the listed company has not issued an official announcement. Yu Ze was last seen attending a company meeting on the afternoon of November 28 (last Friday).

PICC, officially known as The People's Insurance Company (Group) of China, primarily operates its property and casualty insurance business through PICC P&C, which dominates the industry. In 2024, PICC P&C reported premium income of 538.055 billion yuan, with a market share of 31.8%, surpassing Ping An P&C (22.5%) and CPIC P&C (14%). In the first three quarters of this year, PICC P&C's premium income reached 443.182 billion yuan, with a combined ratio of 96.1%, down 2.1 percentage points year-on-year. Net profit surged 50.5% to 40.268 billion yuan.

For the first three quarters of 2025, PICC Group recorded insurance service revenue of 431.339 billion yuan, up 6.8% year-on-year, while PICC P&C contributed 385.921 billion yuan, accounting for 89% of the group's total.

Born in October 1971, Yu Ze graduated from Nankai University in July 1994. From 1994 to 2006, he worked at China Insurance P&C, PICC, and PICC P&C, serving as Deputy General Manager of the Vehicle Insurance Division at the Tianjin branch. From 2006 to 2019, he held various roles at Taiping Insurance and Taiping P&C, including General Manager of the Tianjin branch, Marketing Director, Assistant General Manager, and eventually General Manager. Yu Ze rejoined PICC Group in December 2019 as Vice President and concurrently served as Executive Director, Vice Chairman, and President of PICC P&C. PICC's 2024 annual report disclosed Yu Ze's pre-tax salary as 912,800 yuan.

Within PICC, Yu Ze is widely known for his passion for pigeon racing. Since childhood, he has been fascinated by pigeon breeding and actively participates in competitions. During his tenure in Shenzhen, he would fly back to Tianjin every weekend to tend to his pigeons. His exceptional skills in pigeon racing earned him the nickname "Pigeon King."

In recent years, anti-corruption efforts in the insurance sector, including at PICC, have intensified. In May 2022, former PICC P&C President Lin Zhiyong was investigated and later expelled from the Party and dismissed from public office in January 2023. In October 2024, Zhang Xiaoli, former Chairman of PICC P&C's Board of Supervisors, was investigated for bribery involving 9.9 million yuan in illicit gains.