AIG

American International Group (AIG) traces its roots to 1919, when Cornelius Vander Starr began an insurance business in Shanghai that later expanded globally and ultimately became AIG.[1] Over the following decades, AIG assembled a wide portfolio of insurance operations, growing through international expansion and acquisitions into one of the industry's most recognizable global brands.[1]

AIG's scale became a defining vulnerability during the 2008 financial crisis. On September 16, 2008, the Federal Reserve announced an $85 billion credit facility to support AIG, describing the step as aimed at preventing broader systemic disruption.[2] The years that followed were marked by divestitures, simplification, and a renewed emphasis on underwriting discipline and capital management.[1][2]

On the life side, AIG materially expanded its U.S. platform by acquiring American General Corporation in 2001, bringing additional products, distribution relationships, and in-force blocks under the AIG umbrella.[3] In practice, that combination meant blending a global balance sheet with a domestic life franchise, adapting product designs to changing regulation and consumer needs, and navigating the interest-rate-sensitive economics that shape life and annuity pricing across market cycles.

Sources: [1] AIG - History: https://www.aig.com/home/about/history. [2] Federal Reserve press release on AIG credit facility (Sept. 16, 2008): https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/other20080916a.htm. [3] SEC filing related to AIG acquisition of American General (transaction documentation): https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/5272/000095012900000908/y75647e10-12g.htm.