Geithner: Failure of AIA Sale Not A Setback

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said this week that the breakdown of the deal for American International Group Inc. (AIG) to sell its Asian life insurance unit to Prudential PLC wasn't a setback in the government's effort to recoup taxpayer money.

Source: Source: Dow Jones | Published on June 4, 2010

"AIG is now free to pursue a bunch of other options to help maximize the return" for taxpayers, Geithner told reporters at a briefing.

Earlier Wednesday, Prudential backed out of its $35.5 billion offer to acquire AIG's AIA Group after failing to renegotiate a lower price for the deal.

AIG had planned to use proceeds of the deal to start repaying the U.S. taxpayers who had bailed it out to the tune of $132 billion.

Geithner praised AIG's management team and board for making "impressive" progress on the restructuring.