President Obama Seeks To Block AIG (AIG) Executive Bonuses
Tweet
Share
E-mail
Get Alerts AIG Hot Sheet
Price: $76.14 -0.51%
Overall Analyst Rating:
SELL (= Flat)
Dividend Yield: 2.5%
Revenue Growth %: +6.0%
Overall Analyst Rating:
SELL (= Flat)
Dividend Yield: 2.5%
Revenue Growth %: +6.0%
Join SI Premium – FREE
President Barack Obama instructed Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to "pursue every legal avenue" to block $165 million in bonuses to AIG (NYSE: AIG) executives. Obama said Mr. Geithner is working to resolve this matter with AIG's new CEO, Edward Liddy.
Obama's Prepared Remarks:
But before I talk about the new steps we're taking to get credit flowing to small businesses across our country, I want to comment on the news about executive bonuses at AIG.
This is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed.
Under these circumstances, it's hard to understand how derivative traders at AIG warranted any bonuses, much less $165 million in extra pay. How do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?
In the last six months, AIG has received substantial sums from the US Treasury. I've asked Secretary Geithner to use that leverage and pursue every legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole.
I know he's working to resolve this matter with the new CEO, Edward Liddy, who came on board after the contracts that led to these bonuses were agreed to last year.
This isn't just a matter of dollars and cents. It's about our fundamental values.
All across the country, there are people who work hard and meet their responsibilities every day, without the benefit of government bailouts or multi-million dollar bonuses. And all they ask is that everyone, from Main Street to Wall Street to Washington, play by the same rules.
That is an ethic we must demand.
What this situation also underscores is the need for overall financial regulatory reform, so we don't find ourselves in this position again, and for some form of resolution mechanism in dealing with troubled financial institutions, so we have greater authority to protect the American taxpayer and our financial system in cases such as this. We will work with Congress to that end.
Obama's Prepared Remarks:
But before I talk about the new steps we're taking to get credit flowing to small businesses across our country, I want to comment on the news about executive bonuses at AIG.
This is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed.
Under these circumstances, it's hard to understand how derivative traders at AIG warranted any bonuses, much less $165 million in extra pay. How do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat?
In the last six months, AIG has received substantial sums from the US Treasury. I've asked Secretary Geithner to use that leverage and pursue every legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole.
I know he's working to resolve this matter with the new CEO, Edward Liddy, who came on board after the contracts that led to these bonuses were agreed to last year.
This isn't just a matter of dollars and cents. It's about our fundamental values.
All across the country, there are people who work hard and meet their responsibilities every day, without the benefit of government bailouts or multi-million dollar bonuses. And all they ask is that everyone, from Main Street to Wall Street to Washington, play by the same rules.
That is an ethic we must demand.
What this situation also underscores is the need for overall financial regulatory reform, so we don't find ourselves in this position again, and for some form of resolution mechanism in dealing with troubled financial institutions, so we have greater authority to protect the American taxpayer and our financial system in cases such as this. We will work with Congress to that end.
You May Also Be Interested In
- Cardinal Infrastructure prices public offering at $73 per share
- Intel-backed SambaNova in talks for funding at $10 billion valuation - The Information
- KULR Technology CEO issues shareholder letter outlining battery strategy
Create E-mail Alert Related Categories
General News, Hot List, Insiders' Blog, Trader TalkRelated Entities
UBS, Timothy Geithner, Barack ObamaSign up for StreetInsider Free!
Receive full access to all new and archived articles, unlimited portfolio tracking, e-mail alerts, custom newswires and RSS feeds - and more!
