Insurance giant AIG (AIG 1.70%) announced Sunday that it intends to sell its ordinary shares of AIA Group Ltd., a deal that Bloomberg News says could total $6.5 billion, according to a term sheet obtained by Bloomberg. The proposed sale consists of up to the entirety of AIG's owned shares of the Hong Kong-headquartered insurance company.
AIG holds more than13% of the company's shares prior to the sale, according to Bloomberg, after holding two previous AIA share sales in March and September that raised around $8 billion.
The proposed sale is the latest in AIG CEO Robert Benmosche's efforts to move the company forward from a massive government bailout of more than $180 billion in total during the 2008 financial crisis. AIG stated in its press release that income generated from the sale of AIA's stock will be used for "general corporate purposes."
AIA is Asia's third-largest insurer, and has seen shares rise significantly since its 2010 IPO. AIG has already established other inroads into Asia, including a joint venture to sell life insurance in China.
