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AIG CEO Peter Hancock resigns amid shareholder dissatisfaction

Peter D. Hancock, President and Chief Executive Officer of American International Group (AIG), has announced his intention to resign after the insurance giant posted a disappointing quarterly loss of $3 billion. As AIG’s fifth chief executive since 2015, he will remain in his position until a successor is found.

A graduate of the University of Oxford, Hancock was the vice-chairman of KeyCorp during the financial crisis of 2008. Upon the recommendation of PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, Hancock was recruited in 2010 to join the then-struggling AIG as vice president for finance, risk, and investments.

While he oversaw the repayment of a $185 billion federal bailout that saved AIG, he was unable to keep investors, such as hedge fund billionaires Carl Icahn and John Paulson happy. Icahn and Paulson had threatened a proxy battle after AIG gave up two board seats last year, but they supported Hancock’s plan to cut costs and sell off less profitable assets and insurance policies. Icahn has advocated a comprehensive breakup of AIG.

Hancock said in a statement: “I believe this is the right decision to make for the company and all its stakeholders. Without wholehearted shareholder support for my continued leadership, a protracted period of uncertainty could undermine the progress we have made and damage the interests of our policyholders, employees, regulators, debtholders, and shareholders.”

Prior to his position at KeyCorp, Hancock had a 20-year career at JPMorgan, where he established the Global Derivatives Group, ran the Global Fixed Income business and Global Credit portfolio, and served as the firm’s CEO and Chief Risk Officer. He also co-founded and served as President of Integrated Finance Limited, an advisory firm specializing in strategic risk management and asset management, and innovative pension solutions.