Picture this. In November 1994 Hong Kong-based National Mutual Asia, 74 per cent owned by Australia's National Mutual Life Association of Australasia, reported a 36 per cent jump in net profit and announced a deal with a mainland Chinese company designed to enable the insurer to gain a foothold in the fast-growing market.

National Mutual Asia was once the second largest life insurance group in Hong Kong and Macau and following a merger with T & G Mutual Life Society had expanded throughout the Asia Pacific region acquiring companies in Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines.