AIG launches IPO for life and retirement business, renames it Corebridge and reveals new directors

Global re/insurance conglomerate  American International Group (AIG) has unveiled the new board of directors of its life & retirement business as it inches closer to a full separation following the launch of its initial public offering (IPO). The parent company of the business, SAFG Retirement Services, will be rebranded as Corebridge Financial, when it becomes a public company.

AIG called the business “one of the largest providers of retirement solutions and insurance products in the US”. It expects to continue to own more than 50 percent of Corebridge following its IPO.

“Today’s announcement represents continued progress as we prepare our Life & Retirement business to be a standalone company,” said Peter Zaffino (pictured), chairman and chief executive officer of AIG. The insurer believes the move will simplify its corporate structure and “unlock significant value” for stakeholders.

Zaffino will continue to serve as Corebridge chairman with six additional directors of AIG, and Corebridge CEO Kevin Hogan. The newly appointed independent directors will include Alan Colberg, Christopher Lynch, Amy Schioldager, and Trish Walsh.

“Demonstrating another important milestone toward the separation of Life & Retirement from AIG, I am pleased to announce a group of accomplished, experienced and highly credible Directors for Corebridge Financial, the previously announced new name for this business,” Zaffino said.

“We are committed to exceptional corporate governance, which starts with Directors who bring diverse perspectives, experiences, backgrounds, and insights to the boardroom.”

Colberg and Walsh are expected to join the board as of the date of the IPO.

Colberg previously served as the CEO and a director of Assurant, from January 2015 until his retirement in January 2022. Before joining Assurant in March 2011, he was a consultant for Bain & Company, Inc. for 22 years, leading the firm’s global financial services practice.

Walsh has served as chief legal officer of Stripe since January 2020. Prior to that, she was CLO for Voya Financial from 2015 to 2020, and previously served as deputy general counsel at Cigna and MassMutual.

Hogan has served as a director of Corebridge Financial since June 2021. He has also served as president and CEO of Corebridge Financial since December 2014. He was also a founding board member of Alliance for Lifetime Income, where he currently serves as a director. Hogan started his career in 1984 at AIG in New York, and subsequently held management positions in AIG property casualty in Chicago, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore and China and AIG Life & Retirement in China, Taiwan, and New York. From 2009 until re-joining AIG in 2013, he was CEO, global life for the Zurich Insurance Group. Prior to his current role, he served as CEO of AIG’s consumer organisation and senior officer for Japan.

Gray, Lynch and Schioldager have all served as a director of Corebridge Financial since November 2021.

Gray is the president and chief operating officer of Blackstone and joined the board following Blackstone’s 9.9 percent equity investment in the company.

Lynch, an independent consultant since 2007, was the former National Partner in Charge of KPMG LLP’s financial services line of business and has held a variety of positions with KPMG over his 29-year career.

Schioldager is the former senior managing director and global head of beta strategies at investment management firm BlackRock, where she has held various other leadership positions for more than 25 years.

Both Lynch and Schioldager currently serves as director of AIG and will not stand for re-election to the AIG Board at the Annual Meeting in May 2022.

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