AIG Names Schreiber Chief Strategy Officer, Eyes M&A Deals

American International Group Inc. named dealmaker Brian Schreiber chief strategy officer as the insurer shifts to expanding through acquisitions after years of contracting through asset sales to repay a U.S. bailout.

Schreiber, 49, will oversee mergers and acquisitions, global planning, divestitures and communications, the New York- based company said Wednesday in a statement. He’ll report to Chief Executive Officer Peter Hancock and share responsibility for investor relations with Chief Financial Officer David Herzog.

AIG has increased its pace of acquisitions. Hancock announced a deal in January to buy Laya Healthcare to expand in Ireland and last month disclosed that it took a stake in K2 Intelligence as it seeks to offer clients protection from cyber attacks. He worked on acquisitions during an earlier growth period, including the 2001 purchase of American General Corp. for about $23 billion, then was named in 2009 to oversee asset sales.

“Brian, in both operating and transactional roles, has demonstrated seasoned leadership in the best and worst of times for our company,” Hancock said in the statement. “His broad scope of expertise and deep understanding of the company will be enormously valuable in helping us shape our path.”

Schreiber most recently served as deputy chief investment officer, managing a portfolio of $200 billion. He was named to that post in 2013 and assigned to manage holdings including real estate, private equity and hedge funds, while Geoff Cornell was appointed as the other deputy, with oversight of corporate and municipal securities.

In June, AIG committed $1.5 billion to a commercial-lending venture that the insurer co-founded with private equity firm Oak Hill Capital Management. The investment offers “compelling” returns, Schreiber said at the time.

Schreiber was head of strategic planning as AIG crafted plans to exit U.S. ownership, including the sale of reinsurers, non-U.S. life companies and a consumer lender. In 2011, he was named treasurer to help persuade investors to contribute capital AIG needed to replace U.S. funds. The company finished repaying taxpayers in late 2012.

Herzog announced this week that Peter Juhas was stepping down as global head of strategy. Juhas joined in 2011 after previously working at Morgan Stanley, where he spent three years advising the government on its bailout of AIG. He is leaving to pursue “new opportunities,” Herzog said in a memo.

Schreiber started at AIG in 1997 as a portfolio manager in the global investments group, after working as a banker at Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. He has an MBA from Columbia Business School and an undergraduate degree in finance from New York University
–With assistance from Zachary Tracer in New York.