| TAX-NEWS.COM
Swiss Life (Liechtenstein) AG is opening a branch office in Singapore to enable the company to benefit from growth opportunities in Asia within the rapidly expanding global market in structured insurance solutions for international high net worth individuals. .
China Life invests $300m in Visa IPO
China Life Insurance Co, the nation's largest insurer, said it invested $300 million in Visa Inc's initial public offering, and plans further investments in the US and Europe to diversify its portfolio. "We're also considering other IPO investments overseas, particularly in financial institutions since that's our home turf," Qu Jiahao, the assistant general manager of China Life's investment management division, said in a phone interview today. Visa "is more of a financial investment for now. We're not looking at any strategic link-ups with Visa at the moment." China Life, with 925.2 billion yuan ($131 billion) in assets, wants to put more of its money overseas to diversify risk after the nation's benchmark stock index fell 25 percent this year. The insurer aims for strategic equity stakes to make up 5 to 10 percent of its portfolio, Chief Investment Officer Liu Lefei said in November.
Aguirre worked for year to require insurance coverage for autism
Steven Ugol turned 5 on Saturday. As his mother, Char, prepared for his birthday festivities, she had other reasons to celebrate. Thanks to a bill she set in motion almost a year ago, beginning in June of next year insurance companies in Arizona will be forced to cover the costs of treatment for children like her son, who've been diagnosed with autism. Gov. Janet Napolitano signed the bill, known as "Steven's Law," on Friday. Ugol's effort began last July with e-mails to legislators. One those e-mails went to Sen. Amanda Aguirre, D-Yuma. "She wasn't a constituent," Aguirre told The Sun. But Ugol's appeal tugged at Aguirre's heart strings and the senator set to work a year ago to craft a bill requiring insurance companies to cover the cost of treatment for autistic children. As a health care professional, she had worked with a child with autism in the early 1980s. "At the time, we knew little about it," Aguirre said.
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