(Yicai Global) July 19 -- ZhongAn Online P&C Insurance, China's first internet-only insurer, has appointed former joint chief executive officer and deputy general manager Jiang Xing as sole CEO.

Jiang, 42, takes over from Chen Jin, who has stepped down as joint CEO and GM due to personal reasons, the Shanghai-based company said in a statement yesterday.

This is the latest in a series of top management changes at the company. Earlier this year, the CEO of ZhongAn's fintech arm, Chen Wei, and some other senior managers resigned due to high performance pressures.  

Jiang is taking on a challenge. The Hong Kong-listed firm has lost vast amounts of money since going public in 2017. Last year, it lost CNY1.7 billion (USD247 million) and in the previous year CNY997 million. Its shares [HKG:6060] have fallen 57 percent from a 52-week high of HKD43.80 (USD5.61). Today, they gained 2.5 percent to end the week at HKD19 each.

The company puts its poor performance down to an increase in underwriting losses as total premiums rise, weak returns from investments due to poor market conditions and the need for continued capital input and marketing into the firm's tech businesses.

Jiang joined ZhongAn Insurance in April 2014, and took charge of its healthcare, e-commerce and insurance businesses. He had been senior director of e-commerce at Alibaba Group Holding and head of the insurance division at Alibaba's fintech unicorn Ant Financial.

Chen Jin, meanwhile, plans to put more energy into academic research, he said at a press conference. He will retain his positions of executive director of ZhongAn Insurance and ZhongAn Fintech Research Institute and continue to serve as the dean of the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance.