Western firms such as UBS and others have been planning to build onshore business in the Asian giant.

UBS is talking to China Life Insurance Group to launch an asset management joint venture in China, Reuters has quoted unnamed sources as saying.

This news service has contacted the Zurich-listed bank for comment and may update in due course. It had not received a response at the time of going to press.

UBS will hold a majority stake in the business unit which, if finalised, will be China's first foreign majority-owned asset management joint venture with an insurer since it permitted majority foreign holdings in such partnerships in 2019, the news service reported.

One of the sources was quoted as saying that China Life and UBS have signed a memorandum of understanding to set up the joint venture, the formal launch of which will be subject to approval from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission. 

The report said that neither China Life nor UBS had commented. 

Western firms such as UBS and others have been planning to build onshore business in the Asian giant, notwithstanding tensions between Beijing and the West over trade, the national security crackdown on Hong Kong and other matters.