At this point with all the scandals and billions lost, American International Group Inc. (NYSE:AIG) is in need of a new identity, possibly a new name to give people a fresh perspective on the company. Such a move isn't without precedent.
For example, cigarette maker Philip Morris Cos. changed its name to Altria Group Inc. (NYSE:MO) a few years ago. Nobody at the company wanted to say it, but one explanation floating around in the media was to disassociate itself with the stigma of selling cancer-causing cigarettes.
Then there was WorldCom, which was rocked by an accounting scandal that forced it into bankruptcy and led to a criminal conviction of its founder Bernie Ebbers. Upon exiting bankruptcy, the reorganized company adopted the old MCI name before it ultimately was bought by Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ), which itself is a 21st century rename for an amalgamation of old Baby Bells.
But before any name makeover, AIG needs to stop making humongous mistakes with taxpayers' money. The latest saga in AIG's blunder file is, according to Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, the company has paid employees a bigger bonus than expected. Bloomberg News reports that Blumenthal said that the bonus payments AIG executives received totaled $218 million -- more than 30% greater than the widely reported $165 million figure.
"These contracts rip the rug from under AIG's excuses -- revealing no basis under Connecticut law for these mega taxpayer-funded bonuses," Blumenthal said. "AIG's own documents reveal that it turned an emergency bailout into a meritless handout, paying windfalls to employees as reward for financial failure."
On second thought, maybe at this point, a corporate name change wouldn't help AIG, because they've committed so many perceived "crimes" under the eyes of the American taxpayer. Plus, the "witness protection plan" of a name change hasn't worked out so well for others. After all, Altria still peddles cigarettes, and Verizon may offer TV service, but it's still the phone company. - Gerald Magpily
See Bloomberg article
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Every time I start to lose my ire about this whole AIG fracas, I just go back and watch some of the AIG ads from a few years ago. Gets me all worked up again in no time.
Interestingly, AIG has removed its ad gallery from its site, but you can still find some of the ads here: http://urbzen.com/2009/03/23/too-big-to-fail-fail/