AIG sells off its Taiwan business

Insurer AIG has said it is selling its Taiwanese life insurance
business to an investor group for $2. 15 bn (£1.4 bn). AIG will
transfer its 97.5 % stake in Nan Shan, Taiwan's third-biggest life
insurer, to a consortium led by Hong Kong's Primus Financial. AIG is
selling assets in an effort to repay US government aid. It was bailed
out in 2008 at a cost of $182.5 bn. It made a $1.82 bn profit in the
three months to June, after a loss of $5.4 bn in the same period of
2008. It was the first quarterly profit since 2007 for AIG, which is
now 80 % state-owned. Nan Shan has four million customers in Taiwan,
giving it a market share of 10 %. Its current management team will
remain in place after the deal and the firm's existing brand will be
retained. As well as Primus, the consortium also includes Hong Kong
investment firm China Strategic Holdings.