Notice is hereby given that a class action lawsuit was filed in the United
States District Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of all
securities purchasers of China Life Insurance Co. Limited (NYSE: LFC) (“China
Life” or the “Company”) between December 22, 2003 and February 3, 2004,
inclusive (the “Class Period”).
If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this
notice or your rights or interests with respect to these matters, please
contact Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP (Marc A. Topaz, Esq. or Stuart L. Berman,
Esq.) toll free at 1-888-299-7706 or 1-610-667-7706, or via e-mail at
info@sbclasslaw.com.
The complaint charges China Life, Wang Xianzhang, Long Yongtu, Chau
Takhay, Miao Fuchun, and Wu Yan, with violations of Sections 10(b) and 20(a)
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder.
More specifically, the Complaint alleges that defendants failed to disclose
and indicate: (1) that China Life and/or its predecessor company had engaged
in a huge financial fraud by misusing 5.4 billion yuan ($652 million) of
funds; (2) that China Life and/or its predecessor company had engaged in
criminal activities by making illegal and unauthorized loans, investments, and
payments; (3) that at the time of its initial public offering (“IPO”) the
National Audit Office of the Peoples Republic of China (“CNO”) had completed
and/or was about to publish its report detailing this huge financial fraud;
and (4) that defendants knew that this information would have a material
impact on the share price of its $3 billion IPO.
On February 3, 2004, Bloomberg reported that the CNO had published its
report detailing the massive fraud at China Life. In the report, the CNO
stated that China Life had misused 5.4 billion yuan ($652 million) of funds,
making illegal and unauthorized loans, investments, and payments. According
to Bloomberg, the CNO’s probe uncovered 28 criminal cases involving 489
million yuan. Additionally, the CNO provided a partial breakdown of more than
35 billion yuan in corruption and irregularities. More specifically, the CNO
found that China Life offered illegal agency services and made unusually high
insurance payments to the amount of 2.38 billion yuan. Moreover, the CNO
reported that the Company used 2.5 billion yuan to make illegal investments
and gave unauthorized loans. Government investigators also found private
caches holding 31.79 million yuan that were set up by the Company.
News of this shocked the market. Shares of China Life fell $2.13 per
share, or 7.4%, to close at $26.67 per share on usually high trading volume on
February 4, 2004.
Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of class members and is
represented by the law firm of Schiffrin & Barroway, which prosecutes class
actions in both state and federal courts throughout the country. Schiffrin &
Barroway is a driving force behind corporate governance reform, and has
recovered in excess of a billion dollars on behalf of institutional and high
net worth individual investors. For more information about Schiffrin &
Barroway, or to sign up to participate in this action online, please visit
http://www.sbclasslaw.com.
If you are a member of the class described above, you may, not later than
May 17, 2004 move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff of the class, if you so
choose. In order to serve as lead plaintiff, however, you must meet certain
legal requirements. You may retain Schiffrin & Barroway, LLP, or other
counsel of your choice, to serve as your counsel in this action.
