American International Group, Inc. (AIG) (AIG): AIG is a premier global enterprise founded in 1919 in New York City, New York, United States. Operating under CEO Eric Andersen, the company reported over $46.0 billion in net premiums written in consolidated revenue and $3.80 billion in operating income in net income, managing over serving enterprise clients in ~190 countries in total assets. American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is a premier global commercial property and casualty insurer serving multinational enterprises in approximately 190 countries and jurisdictions. Following its historic operational restructuring and the multi-billion-dollar separation of Corebridge Financial, AIG operates as an agile, pure-play global commercial P&C underwriter and the parent of Lexington Insurance Company, America's premier excess and surplus (E&S) underwriter.
AIG: Company Timeline
Cornelius Vander Starr founds American Asiatic Underwriters on the Bund in Shanghai, pioneering direct insurance for Chinese businesses. [source]
Starr opens offices in New York City to manage expanding international insurance risks across Latin America and Asia. [source]
Anticipating Japanese military expansion in Asia, Starr relocates global operational headquarters to Manhattan. [source]
C.V. Starr appoints Hank Greenberg as CEO, beginning a 38-year era of explosive growth and corporate acquisitions. [source]
Lists on the American public stock exchanges, expanding institutional access to international risk underwriting. [source]
Pioneered specialized directors and officers (D&O) liability and environmental cleanup policies for multinational enterprises. [source]
Acquired Lexington Insurance, turning it into the largest and most prestigious excess & surplus (E&S) underwriter in the US. [source]
Completed the $23 billion acquisition of American General Corporation, vastly expanding domestic life insurance and annuities. [source]
US Federal Reserve and Treasury provide $182 billion in liquidity to restructure systemic credit default swaps at AIG Financial Products. [source]
Fully repaid all US government loans and equity stakes, generating a net profit of $22.7 billion for American taxpayers. [source]
Turnaround architect Peter Zaffino takes leadership as CEO, executing a comprehensive operational overhaul of General Insurance. [source]
Completed the landmark IPO of Corebridge Financial, beginning the structural separation of life and retirement operations. [source]
Fully deconsolidated Corebridge Financial, achieving an 88.2% commercial combined ratio and $3.80B in operating profit. [source]
Eric Andersen named Chief Executive Officer in June 2026 following Peter Zaffino's historic operational turnaround. [source]
What Is the History of AIG?
The birth of AIG is one of the most exotic and daring entrepreneurial adventures in international capitalism. In December 1919, a 27-year-old American entrepreneur named Cornelius Vander Starr arrived in the bustling international port city of Shanghai, China. Recognizing that European colonial insurers ignored Chinese domestic businesses, Starr founded American Asiatic Underwriters (AAU) on the Bund in Shanghai with two clerks. Starr pioneered the revolutionary concept of hiring and training Chinese insurance adjusters and selling policies directly to the local Chinese population. In 1926, Starr expanded to New York, establishing American International Underwriters (AIU) to manage risks across Asia, Latin America, and Europe. Following the communist revolution in China in 1949, Starr relocated enterprise headquarters to Manhattan. In 1967, Starr appointed Maurice R. 'Hank' Greenberg as his successor. Over four decades as CEO, Greenberg built AIG into an invincible global financial supermarket—pioneering Directors and Officers (D&O) liability, pollution insurance, and acquiring Lexington Insurance. In 2008, massive credit default swap losses at AIG Financial Products triggered an unprecedented $182 billion federal bailout, which AIG fully repaid by 2012 with a $22.7 billion profit for US taxpayers. Modern leadership under Peter Zaffino and Eric Andersen completed the corporate resurrection, divesting non-core units and establishing AIG as a pure-play commercial underwriting champion.AIG: Expert Analysis
Strategic Insight: Market Positioning & Economic Moat
AIG's competitive advantage is rooted in unmatched corporate capacity, multinational licensing breadth, and E&S market leadership through Lexington Insurance. While regional carriers are restricted by domestic balance sheets, AIG's multinational network can issue legally compliant local insurance policies in over 190 countries, enabling Fortune 500 multinationals to execute unified global risk programs with a single lead underwriter. Lexington Insurance is the undisputed market leader in American excess and surplus lines, giving AIG the pricing power and policy freedom to underwrite complex catastrophic risks—such as commercial timber, offshore oil platforms, and cutting-edge pharmaceutical clinical trials—at high underwriting margins. Finally, following years of aggressive reinsurance hedging with global reinsurers, AIG has drastically reduced its net catastrophe volatility, achieving consistent, predictable underwriting profitability across entire market cycles.AIG: Founders
Cornelius Vander Starr
Founder and International Insurance Visionary
Cornelius Vander Starr (1892–1968) was an American insurance executive and philanthropist who founded American Asiatic Underwriters in Shanghai in 1919. Starr was a pioneer of global enterprise who established international insurance across Asia, Europe, and Latin America, later founding the Starr Foundation.
Maurice R. 'Hank' Greenberg
Longtime Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Maurice Raymond Greenberg (born 1925) served as CEO of AIG from 1967 to 2005. A decorated WWII veteran and legendary insurance titan, Greenberg built AIG into the largest financial services organization in the world, pioneering commercial specialty underwriting.
How Does AIG Make Money?
AIG generates revenue across diversified commercial and operating segments:
1. Commercial Property & Casualty Insurance (North America & International): Underwrites commercial property, general liability, workers' compensation, marine, energy, and aerospace policies for middle-market and multinational corporate clients worldwide.
2. Lexington Excess & Surplus (E&S) Commercial Lines (#1 in USA): Commands the #1 market share in American surplus lines insurance, underwriting complex, non-standard property and casualty risks with customized policy terms and pricing freedom.
3. Financial Lines & Executive Liability (D&O / E&O / Cyber): Protects corporate boards and executive leadership teams against securities class actions, regulatory investigations, cyber breaches, and professional errors.
4. Global Multinational Fronting Programs (~190 Jurisdictions): Provides single-lead-underwriter global policies with locally admitted insurance coverage in approximately 190 countries, managing cross-border tax and regulatory compliance.
5. Personal Travel, Accident & High-Net-Worth Program Business: Distributes Travel Guard travel protection, personal accident/health coverage, and partners with Stone Point Capital to manage high-net-worth personal insurance.
What Is AIG's Competitive Advantage?
AIG maintains critical economic advantages in its global industry:
Undisputed #1 E&S Leadership via Lexington Insurance: America's premier surplus lines carrier allows AIG to capture high-margin, bespoke commercial risks that standard insurers cannot write.
Unmatched Global Multinational Licensing Across ~190 Countries: Only a handful of insurers worldwide possess the local licensing infrastructure to issue compliant local policies for Fortune Global 500 multinationals.
Restored Underwriting Profitability with an 88.2% Combined Ratio: Relentless technical pricing discipline and comprehensive reinsurance protections eliminate legacy casualty reserve development volatility.
Pure-Play Commercial Agility Following Corebridge Spin-off: Divesting life and retirement operations unlocked billions in capital, eliminated balance sheet interest-rate risk, and focused capital purely on commercial P&C.
Who Are AIG's Main Competitors?
AIG competes against major industry peers across key business sectors:
Chubb Limited: Primary global commercial P&C rival, leading in high-net-worth personal insurance and middle-market commercial lines.
The Travelers Companies: Leading US commercial property and casualty underwriter competing in domestic commercial brokerage.
Zurich Insurance Group: Swiss multinational composite insurer providing corporate property-casualty coverage globally.
Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance: High-capacity commercial and specialty underwriter backed by Warren Buffett's fortress capital.
What Companies Has AIG Acquired?
| Year | Company | Value | Strategic Purpose | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Lexington Insurance Company | Undisclosed | Created an elite commercial E&S platform with unmatched underwriting flexibility. | Lexington grew into the largest and most profitable surplus lines carrier in the United States. |
| 2018 | Validus Holdings, Ltd. | $5.56 billion | Expanded global reinsurance capabilities and added elite Lloyd's of London specialty underwriting capacity. | Significantly broadened global specialty risk and reinsurance distribution. |
| 2018 | Glatfelter Insurance Group | Undisclosed | Added high-retention program underwriting for volunteer fire departments, water districts, and municipalities. | Consolidated AIG's leadership in specialty commercial program business. |
Who Leads AIG?
Eric Andersen
Chief Executive Officer
Appointed Chief Executive Officer in June 2026, bringing extensive global brokerage and commercial risk underwriting leadership to steer AIG's next chapter.
Peter Zaffino
Executive Chairman and Former CEO
Peter Zaffino orchestrated AIG's historic operational turnaround from 2021 to 2026, completing the Corebridge separation, de-risking casualty underwriting, and restoring AIG's commercial combined ratio to 88.2%.
Keith Walsh
Chief Financial Officer
Appointed CFO in 2024, directing enterprise capital management, actuarial reserving, treasury, and investor relations.
Lou Levinson
President and CEO, Lexington Insurance Company
Leads Lexington Insurance, directing America's premier excess and surplus lines commercial property and casualty underwriting operations.
Rose Marie Glazer
Executive VP and General Counsel
Directs enterprise legal strategy, global regulatory affairs, and corporate governance compliance.
How Is AIG Growing?
Under executive leadership, AIG is executing several multi-year growth vectors:
1. Capitalizing on Middle-Market E&S Commercial Property Demand: Expanding Lexington's wholesale distribution as corporate clients seek customized coverage for hard-to-insure property risks.
2. Scaling Global Clean Energy and Supply-Chain Reshoring Programs: Underwriting offshore wind, solar, semiconductor fab construction, and supply chain infrastructure across North America and Europe.
3. Deploying AIG Next Automated Underwriting and Intake Models: Integrating predictive machine learning to automate commercial risk intake, contract comparison, and policy binding turnaround.
4. Deepening Elite Wholesale Broker Partnerships: Expanding distribution partnerships with leading wholesale brokers (Amwins, Ryan Specialty, CRC) to accelerate surplus lines volume.
What Are the Biggest Risks Facing AIG?
AIG navigates industry, macroeconomic, and competitive headwinds:
Social Inflation and Nuclear Jury Verdicts in US Tort Law: Aggressive plaintiff litigation and third-party lawsuit financing inflate liability settlement severity across commercial lines.
Severe Climate Disasters and Global Catastrophe Volatility: Atlantic hurricanes, Midwest tornadoes, and European floods create loss volatility in commercial property lines.
Specialty Commercial Capacity Price Competition: Capital inflows from alternative reinsurance and private equity-backed MGAs create periodic price softening in property and cyber lines.
Geopolitical and Sovereign Regulatory Volatility: Operating across 190 countries exposes multinational operations to currency devaluations, trade sanctions, and regulatory compliance friction.
AIG: Quick Reference Q&A
Q: What is AIG and how does it make money?
A: American International Group (NYSE: AIG) is a premier global commercial property and casualty insurer operating in ~190 countries. It makes money through: (1) commercial property and liability premiums, (2) excess & surplus (E&S) underwriting via Lexington Insurance, (3) global specialty aerospace, marine, and energy lines, and (4) net investment returns on its $90+ billion general account investment portfolio.
Q: Who founded AIG and where was it established?
A: AIG was founded on December 19, 1919, in Shanghai, China, by American entrepreneur Cornelius Vander Starr as American Asiatic Underwriters, pioneering Western insurance direct to Chinese businesses.
Q: Did AIG repay its 2008 government bailout?
A: Yes, in full! By December 2012, AIG had completely repaid the US government's $182 billion emergency restructuring package, delivering a net profit of $22.7 billion to American taxpayers.
Q: Who is the CEO of AIG?
A: Eric Andersen serves as Chief Executive Officer of AIG, appointed in June 2026. Turnaround architect Peter Zaffino previously served as CEO from 2021 to 2026, leading the Corebridge separation and operational resurgence before transitioning to Executive Chairman.
Q: What is Lexington Insurance?
A: Lexington Insurance Company is AIG's wholly owned excess and surplus (E&S) commercial underwriting subsidiary. Founded in Boston, it is the largest surplus lines insurer in the United States, specializing in complex property and liability risks.
Q: What happened to AIG's Life and Retirement business (Corebridge)?
A: AIG executed a strategic multi-year plan to become a pure-play commercial P&C insurer by spinning off its Life & Retirement division as Corebridge Financial (NYSE: CRBG) through an IPO in 2022, completing full separation by 2024.
Q: What are AIG's annual net written premiums and operating income?
A: In fiscal year 2024, AIG generated net premiums written exceeding $46.0 billion and operating income of $3.80 billion, achieving an outstanding commercial combined operating ratio of 88.2%.
Q: Where is AIG headquartered?
A: AIG is headquartered at 1271 Avenue of the Americas in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States.
Q: How does AIG compare to Chubb?
A: Both AIG and Chubb are elite global commercial P&C titans. While Chubb leads in high-net-worth personal insurance (Masterpiece), AIG is dominant in US excess & surplus (E&S) lines through Lexington and possesses one of the world's most extensive multinational fronting networks across 190 countries.
Q: What is AIG's multinational insurance capability?
A: AIG can issue legally admitted, locally compliant commercial insurance policies in approximately 190 countries and jurisdictions, allowing multinational corporations to manage enterprise risk under a single coordinated global insurance contract.
