CHINA'S insurance regulator will pay 1.6 billion yuan (US$209 million) for 22.5 percent of New China Life Insurance Co, the country's fourth-biggest insurer, Caijing magazine said, without saying where it got the information.

The regulator will use money from China's 8 billion yuan insurance protection fund to buy 270 million shares at 5.99 yuan each from three existing shareholders in New China Life, the Beijing-based magazine said.

The move may be linked to Guan Guoliang, former chairman of the Beijing-based insurer, who the regulator is investigating for alleged misuse of almost 13 billion yuan, the magazine said.

New China Life, set up in 1996, has three foreign investors: Zurich Financial owns 18.9 percent, Meiji Life Insurance Co 4.5 percent and International Financial Corp 1.5 percent. The balance is held by 12 domestic companies.