AIG sells life insurance premium finance business

Insurer American International Group Inc. said on today that it closed the sale of its life insurance premium finance business for $679.5 million in cash. AIG sold a majority of the U.S. life insurance premium finance portfolio of AIG Credit Corp. and A.I. Credit Consumer Discount Co. to First Insurance Funding Corp., a subsidiary of Wintrust Financial Corp. of Lake Forest, Ill. Upon meeting certain conditions, First Insurance Funding will also purchase an additional amount of certain specified life insurance premium finance assets for $61.2 million, AIG said. The property-casualty premium finance business of A.I. Credit was not included in the deal. During the credit crisis last fall, the U.S. government rescued AIG from the brink of collapse with a loan bailout package worth up to $182.5 billion. The government now owns roughly 80 percent of the huge insurer. AIG is now shedding assets and cutting costs as it restructures. Shares of AIG were unchanged at $13 in morning trading, while shares of Wintrust Financial lost 5 cents to $17.33.