人民群众对AIG很愤怒

pennbrook

A tidal wave of public outrage over bonus payments swamped American International Group yesterday. Hired guards stood watch outside the suburban Connecticut offices of AIG Financial Products, the division whose exotic derivatives brought the insurance giant to the brink of collapse last year. Inside, death threats and angry letters flooded e-mail inboxes. Irate callers lit up the phone lines. Senior managers submitted their resignations. Some employees didn't show up at all.

"It's a mob effect," one senior executive said. "It's putting people's lives in danger."

Politicians and the public spent yesterday demanding that AIG rescind payouts that they said rewarded recklessness and greed at a company being bailed out with $170 billion in taxpayer funds. But company officials contend that the uproar is scaring away the very employees who understand AIG Financial Products' complex trades and who are trying to dismantle the division before it further endangers the world's economy.

"It's going to blow up," said a senior Financial Products manager, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak for the company. "I have a horrible, horrible, horrible feeling that this is going to end badly."

President Obama yesterday vowed to "pursue every legal avenue to block these bonuses." But that pledge might have came too late. About $165 million in retention payments started to go out Friday to employees at Financial Products, after numerous discussions with the Treasury Department and the Federal Reserve.

Attorneys working for the Fed had been examining the matter for months and determined that the retention payments couldn't be touched because AIG would face costly lawsuits and be subject to penalties from states and foreign governments. Administration officials said over the weekend that they agreed with that assessment.

AIG disclosed its retention-payment program more than a year ago, and the amount of the bonuses -- more than $400 million for Financial Products alone -- had been widely reported. But as the payments were coming due in recent days, the White House began to express its indignation.

Pressure on the 370-person Financial Products unit, based primarily in Connecticut and London, grew even more intense yesterday when New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo threatened to issue subpoenas if the company failed to provide details about recipients of the retention payments.

The payments represent only the most contentious of a larger group of bonuses being paid throughout AIG. The company's top seven officials, including chief executive Edward M. Liddy, agreed in November to forgo bonuses through this year.

After a Wednesday call between Liddy and Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, AIG agreed to restructure payments for the next 43 highest-ranking officers at the company, who are to receive half of their bonuses -- which total $9.6 million -- immediately, one-quarter July 15 and the rest Sept. 15. The last two payments would depend on whether the company makes progress in restructuring its business and paying back taxpayers. In addition, the company is set to pay another $600 million in retention awards to about 4,700 people throughout its global insurance units.

But each dollar remains in question after the president's reprimand yesterday and the deluge of rage from legislators and the American public. Government leaders already say they plan to recoup some of the bonus and retention pay while restructuring the company. In addition, administration officials said that the Treasury is planning to try to recover some of the bonus money by adding provisions to the additional $30 billion it gave AIG access to earlier this month.

The payment plan had been no secret.

Beginning in the first quarter of 2008, AIG disclosed the plan to offer retention awards at Financial Products. The unit had already begun to hemorrhage money, a problem that would later grow exponentially. The unit's executives, fearing they might lose valuable employees in the tumultuous months to come, successfully negotiated more than $400 million for their workers, to be paid this month and again next year.

At the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, which has directly overseen AIG since its federal takeover in September, officials have studied the possibility of rescinding or delaying the bonuses. They even brought in outside lawyers for advice. The conclusion: If the bonuses weren't paid, the AIG staffers would be able to sue the company and probably would win, not just what they were owed but also punitive damages that would make the ultimate cost perhaps two to three times as high as the bonuses themselves.

Moreover, Fed officials also hope to keep current employees with the company. The senior executives whose decisions caused the company's collapse are long gone. Most of those left behind are trying to unwind complicated derivative contracts. Completing that process correctly is essential to preserving as much value as possible for taxpayers, officials at both the government and AIG have argued. If it is mishandled, it could expose taxpayers to billions of dollars in additional losses.

Law professors agreed with the Fed's assessment but said AIG employees could still agree to reduce their own bonuses.

And the outrage expressed by the president and lawmakers was designed to put pressure on these officers to do just that, the legal experts said.

Jonathan Macey, a professor at Yale Law School, said it was unlikely that any AIG employees would end up suing the company for changing compensation contracts, mainly because their names would be revealed publicly in a lawsuit and they would then be excoriated.

Macey added that the government is caught in a difficult position, squeezed between public outrage over the bonuses and the need to keep AIG Financial Products going so the company can restructure and the government can recoup some of its money.

"What's good for AIG is definitely not good for the country," Macey said. "But now that the government is invested, it may have to do what's good for AIG."

Liddy is scheduled to appear tomorrow in front of a House financial subcommittee.

dennis

沙发

ByStander

A tidal wave of public outrage over bonus payments swamped American International Group yesterday. Hired guards stood watch outside the suburban Connecticut offices of AIG Financial Products, the divi ...
pennbrook 发表于 2009-3-16 23:40

看来政府政客们对岸AIG的BONUS早就知情. 那昨天OB的讲话就只是SHOW给老百姓看的

pennbrook

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A prominent U.S. senator has intimated that executives of the troubled insurer American International Group Inc might consider suicide, adopting what he called a Japanese approach to taking responsibility for their actions.

Senator Charles Grassley, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, made his comments on the Cedar Rapids, Iowa, radio station WMT on Monday.

"The first thing that would make me feel a little bit better toward them (is) if they'd follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I'm sorry, and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide," Grassley said.

"And in the case of the Japanese," he added, "they usually commit suicide before they make any apology."

President Barack Obama on Monday expressed "outrage" about some $165 million of bonuses paid to AIG employees, including some who worked in the unit primarily responsible for the company's troubles.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has said he will subpoena AIG for more information about the bonuses, including the names of the recipients.

Grassley's office did not immediately return a request for comment. A spokesman, Casey Mills, told the Associated Press that the senator "doesn't want U.S. executives" to commit suicide, but that executives who "make a mess of their companies should apologize, as Japanese executives do."

源济

humbletrader

pennbrook

　　3月17日报道 据美联社报道，周一，美国总统奥巴马严厉谴责保险巨头美国国际集团（AIG）的“贪婪与不负责任”，并发誓，要阻止其在从政府接收了过千亿美金的救助资金后还要向高管发放1.65亿美金的奖金。“这是对那些让这家公司免于灭顶之灾的纳税人的侮辱。他们怎么能认为这是正当的呢？”奥巴马质问道，“这不仅仅是钱的问题，更关乎我们的基本价值。”

　　奥巴马积极地参与了其他官员对AIG的批评。这家公司正迅速成为美国救援咏叹调的典型代表。

　　这笔奖金可能对反对华盛顿的运动起到推波助澜的作用，使奥巴马在请求国会批准更多的救助计划上举步维艰，同时还将使奥巴马在其任期之初大力推行的复兴计划陷于危机之中。因此，总统与他的高级官员们力图与AIG的举动划清界限，以控制可能的政治危机，并重振公众对其挽救经济能力的信心。

　　奥巴马在周一有一个预定的演讲，宣布对受衰退影响的小型企业实施新的救助方案。但在演讲之处，奥巴马先表示，他有几句关于AIG的话要说。他曾一度嗓子发哑，随即即兴发表感慨，“请原谅，我由于特别愤怒而无语。”尽管只是一个小插曲，但由此奥巴马传递了他想要表达的严厉。

　　“这是一家由于贪婪和不负责任而陷于金融危机的公司，”奥巴马宣称。

　　他表示，已经要求财长盖特纳（Timothy Geithner）“采取一切法律途径阻止这笔奖金的发放，以保护美国纳税人的利益不受损害。”

　　美国财政部计划修改条款以追回AIG已发放奖金

　　白宫发言人罗伯特•吉布斯（Robert Gibbs）称，政府会修改针对AIG所实施的300亿美元救助计划的条款，以偿还AIG发放的1.65亿美元分红。这一条款不会禁止分红，只是要求AIG对此做合理的解释。

　　吉布斯称，奥巴马和其他政府官员的指责，旨在向分红者施加压力以调低分红的数额。考虑到“公司的业绩”，那些接受巨额分红的人应该“仔细想一想”，继续一意孤行是否合适。

　　检查官将发出传票 要求AIG提供分红详情

　　另一方面，纽约首席检察官安德鲁•科莫（Andrew Cuomo）称，AIG已经过了提供给分红详细信息的最后期限，他会在星期一的时候正式发出传票，要求AIG提供分红的相关信息。科莫称，他的部门会调查，AIG几近崩溃是否有雇员参与其中，以及这1.65美元的分红是否违背了纽约州的相关法律。

　　AIG女发言人克里斯蒂娜•普莱托告诉美联社：“我们在和首席检察官联系。当然，我们会对他的请求做出回应的。”

　　AIG派发奖金成奥巴马的“大麻烦”

　　AIG派发奖金这件事是高度引人瞩目的，如果不把这件事的影响消除，对奥巴马来说也是个很大的麻烦。其中原因在于，这件事的来龙去脉虽然简单，但看起来却集中体现了美国联邦救助计划是如何走入歧途的。

　　“这就是那种会触犯众怒的事情，”纽约大学公共服务学教授保罗•C•莱特说，“这种事常常是看得见摸得着的，是跟普通美国人有关系的事情。他们对信用违约互换（credit default swap）一无所知，但是他们知道奖金是怎么回事。而且，这件事还将会动摇任何在将来推行救助计划的基础。”

　　对AIG的救助计划将花费超过1700亿美元，自9月以来，联邦政府已经有效地通过这个计划持有了AIG80%的股份。

　　对奥巴马的批评声开始响起，同日的一项民意调查显示他的支持率有所下滑。这项由皮尤研究中心进行的民意调查显示，因为奥巴马的对经济策略的选择，使他的支持率由2月份的64%下降到本月的59%，民意调查专家认为，这是因为公众感觉到总统在听取党内意见时更倾向于自由派而非温和派。

　　不过这些民意调查仍然善意地认为，总统的行为是在尽力修复经济，而不是指责他正把经济搞得更糟。

　　皮尤研究中心主任安德鲁·科胡特说，在调查中，公众更多地对银行和企业的不负责任的行为表示愤怒，不过同时也“迁怒于华盛顿”。当然，这些天由于奥巴马的政策，高管的高薪发放有所遏制。

　　AIG高层官员已表明拒绝退回奖金

　　在过去的几天里，奥巴马的尖锐言辞代表了政府不断的“鼓声”，目的是给企业高管施加压力，让他们放弃高额奖金。到目前为止，美国国际集团高层官员已经表明拒绝退回奖金。

　　在上周末给盖特纳的一封信中，由政府任命的AIG首席执行官爱德华•利迪（Edward Liddy）说，奖金本是有法律约束力的义务，而公司“现在的行动被束缚了”。

　AIG的奖金数额将在本周末公布

　　AIG的奖金数额将在本周末公布。同时，AIG从政府援助款中抽调了900亿美元支付给外国以及国内银行也得到了曝光，这些银行中的一部分甚至已经接受了美国政府数十亿美元的救助。

　　这些接受资助的银行有接受资助额达129亿美元的高盛银行以及三家欧洲银行——法国兴业银行，119亿美元；德国德意志银行，118亿美元；英国巴克莱银行，855亿美元。联邦政府正在对美林证券公司的财报进行检查。美林现在作为美国银行的下属公司，也在12月31日收到了68亿美元。

　　这些钱被银行用来填补它们在复杂的金融衍生物投资中的漏洞以及为其他交易提供资金担保。

　　AIG本月财报显示其在去年第四季度亏损617亿美元 ，这创造了有史以来最大的公司亏损记录。

yang9753

..............
But what about the commitment to taxpayers? Here is the second, perhaps more sobering thought: A.I.G. built this bomb, and it may be the only outfit that really knows how to defuse it.

A.I.G. employees concocted complex derivatives that then wormed their way through the global financial system. If they leave — the buzz on Wall Street is that some have, and more are ready to — they might simply turn around and trade against A.I.G.’s book. Why not? They know how bad it is. They built it.

So as unpalatable as it seems, taxpayers need to keep some of these brainiacs in their seats, if only to prevent them from turning against the company. In the end, we may actually be better off if they can figure out how to unwind these tricky investments.

.....

pennbrook

WASHINGTON – Congressional Democrats vowed Tuesday to all but strip AIG executives of their $165 million in bonuses as expressions of outrage swelled in Congress over eye-catching extra income for employees of a firm that has received billions in taxpayer bailout funds.

"Recipients of these bonuses will not be able to keep all of their money," declared Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, in an unusually strong threat delivered on the Senate floor.

"If you don't return it on your own we will do it for you," said Chuck Schumer of New York.

The bonuses were paid legally, part of a program that had been disclosed in advance in filings that American International Group Inc. made with the government.

House and Senate Democrats were crafting separate bills to tax up to 100 percent of generous bonuses awarded by companies rescued by taxpayer money. Republicans said President Barack Obama's administration should have done more to stop the bonuses.

AIG would not be the only firm named by either Democratic bill, but there was no question whose executives inspired the legislation.

"They're not going to get the financial benefit of those bonuses," said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont.

In the House, Reps. Steve Israel, D-N.Y., and Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, introduced a bill that would that would tax at 100 percent bonuses above $100,000 paid by companies that have received federal bailout money.

"We will use any means necessary," said Ryan. "It boggles my mind how these executives can be so unaware of what the American people are going through."

The Internal Revenue Service currently withholds 25 percent from bonuses less than $1 million and 35 percent for bonuses more than $1 million.

As lawmakers stampeded to the microphones over the American International Group Inc. bonuses, the Obama administration said it was trying to put strict limits on how future government bailout dollars could be used. But sharp questions have been raised about what the administration knew about the bonuses — and when.

Sen. Richard Shelby, the ranking Republican on the Senate Banking Committee, chastised the administration, saying Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner should have blocked the payouts.

"I don't know if he should resign over this," the Alabama senator said. "He works for the president of the United States. But I can tell you, this is just another example of where he seems to be out of the loop. Treasury should have let the American people know about this."

AIG also was raked over the coals at a banking committee hearing on regulating the insurance industry.

"One way or another, we're going to try to figure out how to get these resources back," said Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., the panel's chairman.

"This is ridiculous," exclaimed Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont. He said AIG executives "need to understand that the only reason they even have a job is because of the taxpayers."

Edward Liddy, the CEO of American International Group Inc., is to testify Thursday before a House subcommittee.

On Monday, Obama lambasted the insurance giant for "recklessness and greed" and pledged to try to block payment of the bonuses. Obama said he had directed Geithner to determine whether there was any way to retrieve or stop the bonus money.

The financial bailout program remains politically unpopular and has been a drag on Obama's new presidency, even though the plan began under his predecessor, President George W. Bush. The White House is aware of the nation's bailout fatigue; hundreds of billions of taxpayer dollars have gone to prop up financial institutions that made poor decisions, while many others who have done no wrong have paid the price.

Sen. Charles Grassley suggested in an Iowa City radio interview on Monday that AIG executives should take a Japanese approach toward accepting responsibility by resigning or killing themselves.

"Obviously, maybe they ought to be removed," the Iowa Republican said. "But I would suggest the first thing that would make me feel a little bit better toward them if they'd follow the Japanese example and come before the American people and take that deep bow and say, I'm sorry, and then either do one of two things: resign or go commit suicide."

Grassley spokesman Casey Mills said the senator wasn't calling for AIG executives to kill themselves, but said those who accept tax dollars and spend them on travel and bonuses do so irresponsibly.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said he has issued subpoenas for the names of AIG employees given bonuses despite their possible roles in its near-collapse. Cuomo said his office will investigate whether the bonus payments are fraudulent under state law because they were promised when the company knew it wouldn't have the money to cover them. AIG reported this month that it lost $61.7 billion in the fourth quarter of last year, the largest corporate loss in history, and it has benefited from more than $170 billion in a federal rescue.