20
CAP. 41]
Insurance Companies
[1988 Ed.
Application of assets of insurer with long term business
23. (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3) and section 45(2), the assets representing the fund or funds maintained by an insurer in respect of its long term business shall be applicable only for the purposes of that business.
(2) Where the value of the assets mentioned in subsection (1) is shown, by an investigation to which section 18 applies or which is made in pursuance of a requirement imposed under section 32, to exceed the aggregate of the amount of the liabilities attributable to the insurer's long term business and $2,000,000 or its equivalent, the restriction imposed by that subsection shall not apply to so much of those assets as represents the excess.
(3) Nothing in subsection (1) shall preclude an insurer from exchanging, at fair market value, assets representing a fund maintained by the insurer in respect of its long term business for other assets of the insurer.
(4) Any mortgage or charge shall be void to the extent to which it contravenes subsection (1).
(5) For the avoidance of doubt it is hereby declared that money from a fund maintained by an insurer in respect of its long term business may not be used for the purposes of any other business of the insurer notwithstanding any arrangement for its subsequent repayment out of the receipts of that other business.
(6) No insurer, and no body corporate of which an insurer is a subsidiary, shall declare a dividend to shareholders at any time when the requirements of section 22(3) relating to any fund or funds maintained by the insurer in respect of its long term business have ceased to be satisfied.
(7) Any insurer or body corporate which fails to comply with subsection (1) or (6) commits an offence and is liable to a fine of $100,000 together with a fine of $500 for each day on which the offence continues.
Sanction of High Court for transfer of long term business
24. (1) Where it is proposed to carry out a scheme under which the whole or part of the long term business carried on in Hong Kong by an insurer ("the transferor company") is to be transferred to another insurer ("the transferee company") the transferor company or transferee company may apply to the High Court, by petition, for an order sanctioning the scheme.
(2) The High Court shall not determine an application under this section unless the petition is accompanied by a report on the terms of the scheme by an independent actuary and the High Court is satisfied that the requirements of subsection (3) have been complied with.
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(3) The requirements referred to in subsection (2) are-
(a) that a notice has been published in the Gazette and, except where the High Court has otherwise directed, in an English language newspaper and a Chinese language newspaper (being in each case a newspaper specified in a list of newspapers approved by the Secretary for Administrative Services and Information for the purposes of this section) stating that the application has been made and giving the