New York to Oversee AIG Sales; Regulate Credit Swaps as Insurance

New York State Insurance Superintendent Eric Dinallo, who heads a national panel of state regulators overseeing possible sales of assets by American International Group (AIG), has asked an investment advisory firm to help.

Centerview Partners will assist the department, which regulates a number of the AIG insurance units, in assessing the terms of any potential sales of regulated entities, according to Dinallo.

“Because of the efficacy of state-based insurance regulation, AIG’s insurance subsidiaries are financially strong and will be a part of the solution as AIG works toward stability,” Dinallo said. “It is critical to ensure policyholders’ interests are protected during this process.”

Any significant transaction affecting an AIG insurance company, including any sale, will need approval from state regulators.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) named Dinallo chair of the 50-state working group established to oversee AIG insurance interests and ensure that policyholders of the insurance subsidiaries remain protected. This oversight will continue as AIG operates under the credit facility offered by the Federal Reserve. Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Joel Ario is vice-chair of the working group.

Centerview Partners, based in New York, operates an investment banking advisory practice and a private equity business.

Credit Swaps

Also New York State said it will, beginning in January, regulate part of the credit default swap market which has to date been unregulated and has been a major contributor to the financial crisis on Wall Street.

New York Governor David A. Paterson called on the federal government to regulate the rest of the massive $62 trillion market.

The New York Insurance Department issued new guidelines that, for the first time, establish that some credit swaps are insurance and therefore subject to state regulation.

“The absence of regulatory oversight is the principal cause of the Wall Street meltdown we are currently witnessing. While I applaud the recent federal intervention to stabilize the market – and thus our entire economy – it is important we also take the next step as a nation by regulating areas of the market which have previously lacked appropriate oversight,” said Paterson.