MetLife near deal to buy AIG unit

MetLife Inc. is in the final stages of talks with American International Group Inc. about a deal to buy AIG subsidiary American Life Insurance Co. for about $8 billion in stock and access a bridge loan, according to published reports. The total price for Alico is expected to be $15 billion, with some of the money possibly coming from a $5 billion bridge loan from a consortium of banks including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp., insiders told Bloomberg. The deal with MetLife would put give AIG about $9 billion to put toward its loan from the federal Troubled Asset Relief Program. It could close as soon as Feb. 11, the sources told Bloomberg. Alico, which operates in more than 50 nations around the world but concentrates on Europe and Japan, had other suitors after AIG's 2008 bailout, including China Investment Corp. Ltd. In February of 2009, MetLife came into the picture with an $11.2 billion offer for the unit. Talks of an acquisition revived this month, the reports said. Chris Breslin, a spokesman for MetLife, and Brian Marchiony, a JPMorgan spokesman, both declined to comment. Calls to Bank of America spokesman Scott Silvestri were not immediately returned.