Singapore state investment company Temasek holdings is "seriously considering" bidding for the nearly 16% stake France's AXA holds in Chinese insurer Taikang, a person familiar with the situation said Tuesday.

"They (Temasek) will likely be among a handful of bidders. The deadline for the initial round of bids is Friday," the person told Dow Jones Newswires.

"The bids could come in above US$1.2 billion. AXA wants the sale to be completed by the end of this year," the person added.

AXA has hired Morgan Stanley to advise on the sale.

The person said Taikang is among the top five Chinese life insurers in terms of assets, without elaborating.

Temasek's interest is part of a new drive after a dormant year in investments outside Singapore.

The sovereign wealth fund lost billions of dollars from its holdings in western banks over the past 12 months and only invested in the share offers of companies it controls at home.

People familiar with Temasek's thinking told Dow Jones Newswires last month that the fund has earmarked more than $1.8 billion for investments in China, India and Latin America over the next few months.

-By Costas Paris, Dow Jones Newswires; 65 6415 4151; costas.paris@dowjones.com
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