HONG KONG, Feb 1 (Reuters) - China has approved the sale ofHSBC's remaining $7.5 billion stake in Ping AnInsurance to a group controlled by Thailand's richestman, giving the green light to the country's biggest inbound M&Adeal.
Ping An announced the approval in a filing on the Shanghaistock exchange just hours before a deadline for a decision.
For HSBC Holdings Plc, the sale marks its exitfrom a decade-long interest in China's second-biggest insurerand books it a $2.6 billion post-tax gain from selling what itno longer considers a core asset.
Approval by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC)had been in doubt after media reports last month raisedquestions over the Thai group's funding for the deal.