The continuing saga of AIG.
In a bid to avoid default, the American International Group (AIG) warned regulators that the “company’s collapse could cripple money market funds, force European banks to raise capital, cause competing life insurers to fail and wipe out the taxpayers’ stake in the firm,” reported Bloomberg News on Monday.
AIG is seeking $30 billion in fresh capital to add to the $152 billion of taxpayers’ money already in place. The request came after AIG posted a $61.7 billion fourth quarter loss, the worst quarterly loss in US corporate history.
Quoting from a draft presented by AIG to the Federal Reserve Board and Treasury on February 26, labeled “strictly confidential,” Bloomberg News said the giant insurance firm is appealing for a fourth injection of taxpayers’ money to avoid a “catastrophic” collapse with consequences far worse than the demise of Lehman Brothers six months ago. The AIG statement warns, “What happens to AIG has the potential to trigger a cascading set of further failures which cannot be stopped except by extraordinary means.”
American International Group Inc. used more than $90 billion in federal aid to pay out foreign and domestic banks, some of whom had received their own multibillion-dollar U.S. government bailouts.
The embattled insurer’s disclosure on Sunday came amid outrage on Capitol Hill over its payment of tens of millions in executive bonuses, and followed demands from lawmakers that the names of trading partners who indirectly benefited from federal aid to AIG be made public.
The company, now about 80 percent owned by U.S. taxpayers, has received roughly $170 billion from the government, which feared that its collapse could cause widespread damage to banks and consumers around the globe.
But wait! The best part of the story is yet to come……
The American International Group, which has received more than $170 billion in taxpayer bailout money from the Treasury and Federal Reserve, plans to pay about $165 million in bonuses by Sunday to executives in the same business unit that brought the company to the brink of collapse last year.
Word of the bonuses last week stirred such deep consternation inside the Obama administration that Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner told the firm they were unacceptable and demanded they be renegotiated, a senior administration official said. But the bonuses will go forward because lawyers said the firm was contractually obligated to pay them.
PEOPLE! Time to wake up and smell the damn coffee…..this continues to be a story of Washington helping Wall Street…..time for ANGER and time to retribution.
AIG = Allowing Irreversible Greed.
AIG = All in Greed.
AIG = Arn’t I Greedy.
AIG = A$#holes, in general.
This is sick. Why in the world are we helping these companies that keep sending millions to people who do not know how to run a company? They cry yet get paid millions on the “average joes” taxes. Furthermore, I fear this is just the tip of the iceberg. Look what Enterprise rent-a-car did to get bailout funds:
http://www.butasforme.com/2009/02/25/alert-enterprise-rent-a-car-may-have-fired-employees-as-fake-evidence-when-lobbing-for-bailout-money/
Not to make excuses for these people, but the bailouts are making crooks out of everyone that touches the money.
Morning Jax and thanx for the visit…..I agree with you that there is more to come……..seems since most politicians are crooks anyway, that they would want the stim cash offered to the states……not sure why these a/holes do not want the money unless it is that transparency thingy. AIG says they have to pay the bonuses, that there is nothing they can do about it. May I suggest that the treasury put a stop payment on their check. Stop by anytime always good to have participation.
Hi Chuq! Sorry I’ve been away from a computer for a few days again.
Thanks for posting this. I do appreciate that Pres. Obama is trying to block the AIG bonuses. That’s not a Big Brother move–It’s only fair given that AIG (Assholes in general –thank you, Jax), has taken so much of our taxpayer money. Those AIG guys can go f*ck themselves for all I care.
Hi girl…I was getting worried that you had run away from home…lol……..I have come to the mind that the government needs to nationalize them and dismantle the whole damn operation. Or at least put a “stop payment” on their bailout checks. Welcome back….always good to see you……
@Lobotero–LOL, I almost did run away from home! J/K 😉
“Stop payment on the bailout checks”–brilliant. It’s absolutely outrageous what Wall Street’s getting away with. Thanks for keeping us informed. I haven’t been able to get to much computer much lately, so I’m missing out on a lot of news…!
Morning…..and damn I need coffee! Personally, I say nationalize them and then crush the company! These guys are playing a game of take the money and run….they care NOTHING about the economy or the people. I like revenge!
I try to help everyone keep up to speed since I have so much time on my hands right now…..please do not be a stranger…chuq
I agree–with all the money they’ve taken from us, I say nationalize AIG as well.
It is time to break this company up…if it is too large to fail, then it is too large period and needs to be investigated by the anti-trust people.