AIG CEO Ready to ‘Take a Scalpel’ to Reshape Insurer

By | August 8, 2008

  • August 8, 2008 at 1:05 am
    Mongoose says:
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    Now let’s see, was it not Greenberg who by his illegal activity caused AIg to pay some of the highest fines ever?

    Was Greenberg not involved in falsifying reports to the SEC?

    Was Greenberg not also responsible for the Spitzer attacks on AIG?

    Why would the new CEO want to talk to Greenberg unless he was asking for return of stick “given” to Greenberg while CEO which shold be recovered to defer the legal cost and fines the company had to pay for his illegal actions.

    Perhaps AIG needs to seek a new leader who actually knows something about insuracne.

    Last look Citibank isn’t in the best of finacila health & AIG took Willumstad to run it.

    Looks to me like Ol Hank is looking to find someone to help him back into AIg through the back door.

  • August 8, 2008 at 1:31 am
    Frequency Kenneth says:
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    “United, a mortgage insurer, posted a $440 million operating loss in the second quarter. ‘AIG waded into waters it did not fully understand. It is typically an insurer, but really spread out into different risky assets that have only now come home to roost,'”

    Anyone who understands the true nature of the U.S. monetary system-i.e., a monopoly on money and credit creation by a central bank-saw this coming. If you don’t believe this check archived articles at websites such as lewrockwell.com, mises.org, & garynorth.com (as well as many others)which were written as far back as 2005. That AIG didn’t shows that they don’t understand the laws of economics and believed that wealth can be created by merely printing money and extending credit to anybody & everybody. Of course, that’s no surprise because that’s what the most prestigious universities preach (and I mean “preach” in its most literal sense, i.e. as in religious). The unflagging belief in the invincibility of a central bank is probably the world’s most widely practiced religion.

  • August 8, 2008 at 2:04 am
    Ron says:
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    How does a guy with uni-dimensional skills (40 years in banking) suddenly become the saviour of an insurance giant? In his last full-time banking job he was know for cutting jobs. I guess “if the only tool you have is a hammer, then every problem looks like a nail.” Hopefully, the job cuts will be include the idiots that got AIG into this mess and not the people who have contributed to it’s success. Funny how all the Board members, senior managers, and executives who went along for the ride never suffer repercussions.

  • August 8, 2008 at 2:35 am
    Johnny on the Spot says:
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    There’s a saying that goes something like this: “Anyone can handle adversity, if you really want to test someone’s character, give him power.” Judging by that, these execs have very little character.

  • August 8, 2008 at 2:40 am
    ClaimsGirl says:
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    Maybe if AIG knew how to properly bill their insurance customers, they wouldn’t be in as big of a mess as they are. They still have old WC claims from 6 years ago they have never billed for a deductible. I’m not going to tell them how to do THEIR job.

  • August 9, 2008 at 5:42 am
    Pud says:
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    Nobody in AIG saw this coming especially the executives.I mean look what they made on jumping ship with their stock last year.
    Recent Insider Trading Activity: AIG-AMERIC.INT.GRP
    Date Name Transaction Num Shares Price(s) Value
    05/19/08 ROMETTY VIRGINIA M Purchased 2,500 $39.05 97,625.00
    12/06/07 SANDLER ROBERT MICHAEL Sold 17,047 $59.43 1.01 Mil
    11/26/07 MATTHEWS EDWARD EASTON Sold 56,250 $52.76 2.97 Mil
    11/21/07 LANGHAMMER FRED H Purchased 10,000 $51.60 515,975.00
    11/19/07 ORR JAMES F III Purchased 5,000 $55.61 278,025.00
    11/09/07 LANGHAMMER FRED H Purchased 20,000 $55.42 1.11 Mil
    11/09/07 HAMMERMAN STEPHEN LAWRENCE Purchased 1,000 $55.50 55,500.00
    10/17/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 74,100 $66.50 4.93 Mil
    10/15/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 92,200 $68.00 6.27 Mil
    10/12/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 600,000 $68.12 40.87 Mil
    10/09/07 C V STARR & CO INC TRUST Sold 400,000 $69.35 27.74 Mil
    10/09/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 300,000 $69.31 20.79 Mil
    10/08/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 1.10 Mil $69.17 76.09 Mil
    10/03/07 C V STARR & CO INC TRUST Sold 800,000 $68.82 55.06 Mil
    10/03/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 800,000 $68.71 54.97 Mil
    10/01/07 C V STARR & CO INC TRUST Sold 600,000 $67.37 40.42 Mil
    10/01/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 800,000 $67.70 54.16 Mil
    09/27/07 STARR INTERNATIONAL CO INC Sold 600,000 $67.21 40.32 Mil
    09/27/07 C V STARR & CO INC TRUST Sold 600,000 $67.20 40.32 Mil

    The End!

  • August 8, 2008 at 6:27 am
    nask says:
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    Aig is always too proud to learn from their mistake nor being sensitive to the local market environment.

  • August 11, 2008 at 9:04 am
    dabear666 says:
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    Didn’t the veteran AIG P&C insurance execs remember all the problems visited on the P&C industry in the 1980’s when companies gave “the pen” to MGA’s who did all the “underwriting” on business and then basically walked away witha commission while retaining none of the risk and leaving the companies whose paper had been used to suffer large losses?

    Why did they put themselves in a position of being guarantors on obligations that were essentially generated through a similar commission driven underwriting/risk retention origination process.

    If you can’t learn from the past, you will repeat the same mistakes.

  • August 11, 2008 at 9:18 am
    Pud says:
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    No they don;t learn from their mistakes.The problem here is you have continual turnover of employees and the matrix’s the new people use are normally brought by the employye or person that has been there the longest,The old Town Hall Meeting,They use the old ideas because things looked good and low and behold fall victim to the same problems.
    History does repeat itself!

  • August 11, 2008 at 5:28 am
    King Cobra says:
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    Unless I missed something, Hank Greenberg was never convicted of anything. Has someone changed the rules about being innocent until proven guilty?

    Of course he was guilty of building one of the most successful companies in history. Why consult with him, huh?



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