Imagine that. AIG suddenly is interested in reviewing lavish corporate spending on boondoggles and bonuses now that someone in authority stands up to them. Perhaps someone in Congress can take notes and step up since Congress has much more authority and re-written the books to keep Wall Street afloat. I can't wait to hear who else Cuomo is pursuing but am incredibly disappointed that he's the only one taking action.
American International Group, the insurance giant that drew fire for executive "golden parachutes" and an ill-timed junket even as it receives a massive taxpayer bailout, has agreed to mend its ways.
AIGpromised to recover executive payments and other compensation, cancel perks and institute reforms one day after New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo threatened legal action over its controversial spending.
Asked whether his office was investigating other firms' executive compensation, Cuomo said "Yes" but added, "I can't say at this time" which companies. He spoke on a telephone conference call with reporters.
AIG will provide a full accounting of executive compensation and help recover payments that Cuomo contends violated state law, according to a joint statement from the attorney general's office and AIG, issued after Cuomo met with AIG's new chief executive, Edward Liddy, on Thursday.
Those payments include "all forms of compensation paid to former CEO Martin Sullivan and the former head of the (AIG) Financial Products Unit, Joseph Cassano," the statement said.
Cuomo had objected to "extravagant" payments to executives who ran the company into near-collapse, including a $5 million cash bonus and $15 million "golden parachute" to Sullivan earlier this year, as well as a $34 million bonus for Cassano, whose unit generated the bulk of AIG's losses.
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