Shares of American International Group Inc. rose 0.8% to $57.50 in premarket trading after news late Monday that Chairman Maurice R. "Hank" Greenberg will retire as soon as this week and that he doesn't plan to stand for re-election to the company's board.
Greenberg retired as president and chief executive about two weeks ago, amid concerns of questionable financial transactions that were allegedly used to improperly boost results. Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average member ousted two other executives who refused to cooperate with investigators.
The Wall Street Journal reported that yesterday that lawyers for AIG told regulators that they had uncovered evidence suggesting that the company had misled investors and regulators in regulatory filings. Additionally, AIG lawyers said that 50 company transactions could have resulted in improper accounting on its financial statements totaling $1.5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
Separately, the Journal reported that Warren Buffett, chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., has been called by regulators to answer questions next month about any involvement he might have had in the controversial insurance transaction between a Berkshire unit and AIG.
