The head of the Shanghai Insurance Regulatory Bureau has announced that they are planning on building an insurance exchange in the Lujiazui area of the Pudong New District and expect to get the pre-construction work done this year.

Pei Guang made the remark at an insurance forum in Shanghai, on April 6, where he explained that they got approval for the project from the State Council in late 2015. Its businesses will cover international reinsurance and shipping insurance and large insurance project bids.

And the China Insurance Regulatory Commission and the city's Insurance Regulatory Bureau, Finance Service Office, and International Group, and other departments and institutions are working together to ensure that the pre-construction work is done properly.

The project drew a lot of attention since it was included in the city's 13th Five-year Plan as a major task for the insurance sector. It is expected to cooperate with an already-established 300-billion-yuan ($45 billion) national insurance investment fund to improve the city's insurance market and contribute to its goal of becoming a global financial center.