American International Group (AIG)

The American International Building in lower Manhattan

American International Group, Inc.
Type: Public (NYSE:  AIG)
Founded: 1919 in Shanghai, China
Founder(s): Cornelius Vander Starr
Headquarters: American International Building, New York City, New York
Area served: Worldwide
Key people: Edward M. Liddy (Chairman and CEO), David L. Herzog (CFO and EVP)
Industry: Insurance, financial services
Products: Insurance annuities, mutual funds
Market cap: US$ 941.76 million (March 6, 2009)^[1]
Revenue: ▼ US$ 110.064 billion (2008)^[2]
Operating income: ▼ US$ −106.761 billion (2008)^[2]
Net income: ▼ US$ −99.289 billion (2008)^[2]
Total assets: ▼ US$ 860.418 billion (2008)^[2]
Total equity: ▼ US$ 52.710 billion (2008)^[2]
Employees: 116,000 (2008)^[2]
Website AIG.com

American International Group, Inc. (AIG) (NYSE: AIG) is a major American insurance corporation based at the American International Building in New York City. The British headquarters are located on Fenchurch Street in London, continental Europe operations are based in La Défense, Paris, and its Asian HQ is in Hong Kong. According to the 2008 Forbes Global 2000 list, AIG was the 18th-largest public company in the world. It was on the Dow Jones Industrial Average from April 8, 2004 to September 22, 2008.

It suffered from a liquidity crisis after its credit ratings were downgraded below "AA" levels, and the Federal Reserve Bank on September 16, 2008, created an $85 billion credit facility to enable the company to meet collateral and other cash obligations, at the cost to AIG of the issuance of a stock warrant to the Federal Reserve Bank for 79.9% of the equity of AIG. In November 2008 the U.S. government revised its loan package to the company, increasing the total amount to $152 billion. AIG is attempting to sell assets to repay the loans. So far the U.S. government has given the company over $170 billion.

AIG became a target of criticism from the media, Congress, President Obama, and the public following its allocation of about 165 million USD as bonuses to its executives. AIG CEO was grilled in both Congress chambers about the bonuses. This matter, and the large stake US taxpayers own in the company make the limits of US Government involvement in the daily management of the failing company a dilemma yet to be resolved.

Corporate governance

Board of directors

• Edward M. Liddy – Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer, American International Group
• Stephen F. Bollenback – Former Co-Chairman and CEO, Hilton Hotels Corporation
• Martin S. Feldstein – Professor of Economics, Harvard University
• George L. Miles – President and Chief Executive Officer, WQED Multimedia
• Morris W. Offit – Chairman, Offit Capital Advisors LLC
• Michael H. Sutton – Consultant
• Fred H. Langhammer – Chairman, Global Affairs, and former CEO of The Estee Lauder Companies, Inc.
• Virginia M. Rometty – Senior Vice President, Global Business Services, IBM Corporation
• James F. Orr, III – Chairman of the Board of Trustees, The Rockefeller Foundation
• Edmund S.W. Tse – Senior Vice Chairman, Life Insurance, American International Group
• Suzanne Nora Johnson – Director

Notes

References and further reading

• Sjostrom, Jr., William K., The AIG Bailout, (2009)
• "An Insurance Giant, Brought Down". New York Times. 2008-09-27. (Graphic)
• "Losses in Perspective" New York Times. September 17, 2008. (Graphic of AIG quarterly net profit & losses over five years, comparing Finance vs. Insurance activities.)
• Marsh, Bill (2008-09-28). "A Tally of Federal Rescues". New York Times.
• Schneiderman, R.M; Philip Caulfield, Celena Fang, Elisabeth Goodridge and Vikas Bajaj (2008-09-15). "How a Market Crisis Unfolded: Some of the key events in the upheaval.". New York Times. (Graphic and interactive timeline.)
• Shelp, Ronald Kent (2006). Fallen Giant: The Amazing Story of Hank Greenberg and the History of AIG. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. ISBN 047191696X. 

Links

• AIG LIFE Indonesia Website
• AIG Pakistan website
• AIG Website
• Corporate information
• AIG at Google Finance
• AIG at Yahoo! Finance
• AIG at New York Times.
• Reuters, Profile, American International Group Inc (New York Stock Exchange)
• AIG Hands Out $165m in Bonuses - The US Political Spectrum
• 90% Tax on AIG & Others' Bonuses HR1586 passed the house 19Mar2009.

This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.

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Video: Ron Paul on Fox Business News 3/24/09 (Ron Paul on Fox Business News says to let AIG fail )