Ping An Good Doctor Officially Included in Stock Connect, Enabling Mainland Investors to Trade via Domestic A-share Accounts

VCBeat has learned that starting from September 10, Ping An Good Doctor (01833.HK), China’s leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform, was officially included in the Stock Connect scheme. Eligible investors in mainland China can now directly invest in and trade Ping An Good Doctor shares through their domestic A-share accounts.

Industry insiders pointed out that Ping An Good Doctor, which boasts a substantial user base and service system in the Chinese market, has been included in the Stock Connect of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. This inclusion signifies its recognition by the Hong Kong capital market, reflecting relatively strong financial performance and growth potential. With its entry into the Stock Connect, Ping An Good Doctor can further expand its shareholder base, enhance stock liquidity and visibility in the capital market, thereby improving its shareholder structure and boosting corporate investment value in the long run.

According to a report by VCBeat, driven by rising health awareness, advancements in internet technology, and increasing disposable income among Chinese residents, China’s big health industry has expanded rapidly in recent years. The market size reached RMB 8.6 trillion in 2016 and is projected to reach RMB 26.8 trillion by 2026. Furthermore, favorable national policies have been frequently introduced; the implementation of a series of measures, including the “Opinions on Promoting the Development of ‘Internet + Healthcare’,” has further accelerated the growth of the internet healthcare sector.

In this trillion-yuan blue-ocean market, Ping An Good Doctor leverages its globally leading AI-driven medical technology to integrate its in-house medical team of thousands, externally contracted physicians, and offline medical network resources, creating a closed-loop service ecosystem that combines online consultations with online medication purchases, as well as online consultations with offline medical care.

Currently, Ping An Good Doctor has established partnerships with over 3,100 hospitals (including more than 1,200 Grade A tertiary hospitals), over 2,000 health institutions such as physical examination centers, dental clinics, and medical aesthetics providers, as well as more than 10,000 pharmacies. On the payment side, Ping An Good Doctor is exploring and developing innovative commercial insurance-based healthcare models, providing one-stop healthcare solutions for insurance customers, assisting insurers in managing user health, and enhancing risk control capabilities.

According to the interim report, Ping An Good Doctor’s operating revenue for the first half of 2018 reached RMB 1.123 billion, a year-on-year increase of 150.3%. Of this, revenue from its core business—Family Doctor services—amounted to RMB 186 million, representing a year-on-year growth of 91.4%. As of the end of June 2018, Ping An Good Doctor had accumulated 228 million registered users, with monthly active users (MAUs) reaching 48.6 million, making it the mobile healthcare application with the highest market penetration in China.

According to the “July 2018 Monthly Active Users Ranking for Healthcare Apps” recently released by Analysys, a well-known internet data research institution, the monthly active users (MAU) of the Ping An Good Doctor app were nearly twice the combined total of those ranked second through tenth, and six times that of the second-ranked app, demonstrating a commanding lead in market share within the internet healthcare sector.

While continuously achieving business breakthroughs, Ping An Good Doctor has also actively advanced its internationalization strategy by establishing a Southeast Asian international joint venture with Grab. Leveraging Grab’s strong internet user base and traffic advantages in Southeast Asia, Ping An Good Doctor has exported its high-quality medical services and AI technology to tap into the region’s internet healthcare market, which boasts hundreds of millions of users, thereby laying a solid foundation for building the “world’s largest healthcare ecosystem.”

TIPS：

How Can Users Trade Ping An Healthcare Doctor via the Hong Kong Stock Connect?

1) Possess a domestic A-share securities account (either Shanghai A-shares or Shenzhen A-shares);

2) The average daily assets in the securities account and capital account over the 20 trading days prior to the application for permission activation shall be no less than RMB 500,000;

3) The risk tolerance level shall be no lower than “Aggressive”; the investment horizon shall be no shorter than “Short-term”; and acceptable investment instruments shall include “Equities”.

4) Pass the business knowledge test for Stock Connect (Hong Kong) (tests on various trading platforms);

5) There are no circumstances prohibited or restricted by laws, administrative regulations, departmental rules, etc., that would bar participation in trading of stocks under the Stock Connect (Hong Kong) mechanism.

Investors who meet the aforementioned requirements can apply to activate Stock Connect trading privileges through the trading platforms of major securities brokers, thereby enabling them to commence trading via the Stock Connect program. Alternatively, investors may open an account in person at the designated branch offices of their securities brokers by presenting their valid identity cards. Upon activation of Stock Connect privileges, investors can participate in the trading of eligible Hong Kong-listed stocks directly in Renminbi (RMB) through the trading platforms of major securities brokers.

Ping An Good Doctor is China’s leading one-stop healthcare ecosystem platform, dedicated to providing every family with a family doctor, every individual with an electronic health record, and every person with a personalized health management plan through its “Mobile Healthcare + AI” model. Currently, Ping An Good Doctor has established key business segments including family doctor services, consumer healthcare, the health mall, health management, and health engagement.

As of the end of June 2018, Ping An Good Doctor had accumulated 228 million registered users, with 48.6 million monthly active users at the period-end, making it the mobile health application with the highest coverage in China. Ping An Good Doctor employs an in-house medical team of over 1,000 professionals, has contracted with 4,650 external renowned physicians (all holding the title of associate chief physician or above at Tier-3 Grade-A hospitals), and engages tens of thousands of other contracted external physicians. Empowered by AI technology, the platform provides users with auxiliary diagnosis, rehabilitation guidance, and medication recommendations through 24/7 online consultations. It also collaborates with more than 3,100 offline hospitals (including over 1,200 Tier-3 Grade-A hospitals) to facilitate subsequent triage and referrals, as well as initial offline consultations and follow-up visits.

Meanwhile, Ping An Good Doctor covers more than 2,000 health institutions, including physical examination centers, dental clinics, and medical aesthetics providers, as well as over 10,000 pharmacies, forming a closed-loop service model that integrates online consultations with online medication purchases and online consultations with offline medical care.

In April 2015, the “Ping An Good Doctor” app was officially launched. In May 2016, Ping An Good Doctor completed a $500 million Series A financing round. In December 2017, it secured a $400 million Pre-IPO investment from SoftBank Vision Fund, under Masayoshi Son. On May 4, 2018, Ping An Good Doctor was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange under the stock code 01833.HK, earning the title of the world’s first internet healthcare stock.