Insurance giant American International Group Inc (AIG) has today revealed it has been fielding inquiries from companies considering buying a stake in the life and retirement (L&R) business which the insurer is seeking to divest. Citing the words of AIG president Peter Zaffino (pictured) during a conference call with analysts, Bloomberg highlighted that AIG has received inquiries from parties interested in a strategic alignment and in potentially purchasing the 19.9% stake in L&R.
“We are pleased with the level of interest and quality potential partners for the life and retirement business,” Zaffino said, “and believe a sale of a minority stake could be an attractive option for AIG, and shareholders and other stakeholders.”
The comments follow the organisation’s announcement last year that it is looking to separate the L&R business from its property-casualty operation. Bloomberg reported that Zaffino, who is set to become CEO in March, has said the business is carefully weighing up its options, which include selling the stake to a third party or a minority public offering. He noted that the current expectation is that an initial disposition of 19.9% of L&R will generate net proceeds, some portion of which can be used toward further share repurchases.
He also stated that based on AIG’s efforts to prepare the L&R business for a divestment that the belief is that no additional equity capital will be required, due to the improvements the insurer has seen in its subsidiary capital positions over the last few years. Bloomberg revealed that AIG shares rose 0.7% to $42.43 at 9:59 a.m. in New York (2:59 p.m in London). The news follows the release of AIG’s Q4 2020 results earlier in the week which highlighted how the insurer has been hit by catastrophes including COVID-19.
