AIG Plans Customer Retention….

This article basically discussed how AIG CEO Edward M. Liddy felt about the future of AIG. He was quoted as saying AIG is” doing very well in the marketplace," regardless of what the opposition might say. He also stated that AIG is focusing on retaining its current customers and is "making good progress."

He mentioned that the company would not lower prices in order to keep customers and will uphold its pricing discipline. He went on to say that although there was a period of concern when the Fed first rescued the company, since then things have calmed down.

Liddy stated that the company also plans to sell off certain assets such as some life insurance and financial product units in order to pay back the federal government’s loan, but it would not be selling its U. S. commercial lines. He plans on making these sells to “brand name” companies.
Finally, Liddy went on to say, "This is a very strong company and we will emerge from this crisis."

My first thought after reading this article was, “How can AIG possibly retain its customers when the company’s name is in the news everyday associated with financial failure?” But then I thought about the huge government bailout and realized that it is completely possible. It made me upset, because it brought me back to the thought that the big financial giants get saved while the little taxpayers suffer the losses. While the bailout of AIG might have been the “right” decision, it just seems that throughout history there have been instances of greed and wild spending by these large firms and the taxpayers have had to pay the bill. Is this not just encouraging other companies to engage in unnecessary risks in the future?