AIG P&C Spin-off Includes Canadian Operations

AIG’s Canadian commercial operations will join the rest of its
commercial and P&C units under AIU Holdings, Inc., the company’s
planned P&C spin-off.

The new holding company, announced earlier today, will unite AIG’s
P&C operations worldwide, including its Canadian arm, according to
Joe Norton, the company’s director of corporate communications.
AIU will have a separate board of directors, management team and brand
from AIG, but the overall shift will not affect day-to-day business at
its Canadian operations, AIG Commercial Insurance Company of Canada,
Norton told CI today.

This morning, AIG named Kristian Moor as president of AIU Holdings.
At present, Moor is president and CEO of AIG Property Casualty Group.
Nicholas Walsh will be vice chairman, and John Doyle, president and CEO
of AIG Commercial Insurance, will play a lead role in creating the new
holding company, according to a company statement.
AIU Holdings, Inc. will encompass operations in 130 countries and jurisdictions
with more than 44,000 employees.

Establishing an independent entity “will assist AIG in preparing
for the potential sale of a minority stake in the business,” the
statement notes.

AIG’s general insurance operations took a hit in the final quarter
of 2008, according to its latest financial results: the sector posted
a US$2.8 billion operating loss in the fourth quarter, stemming from
$2 billion in goodwill impairment charges from acquisitions—of
Hartford Steam Boiler, 21st Century and Transatlantic—and also
saw $1.2 billion in investment losses. General insurance net premiums
written fell by 16.3%–to $9.2 billion for the quarter, while commercial
insurance net premiums written dropped by 22.1% to $4.4 billion for the
period. While commercial insurance renewal premium retention stabilized
early this year, “new business premium decreased in the fourth
quarter of 2008 from deteriorating economic challenges…and the
market reaction to AIG’s financial challenges,” according
to an AIG financial statement released today.

This story was originally published by Canadian Insurance Top Broker.