AIG and the Treasury would both sell stock in the
offering, which could total more than $10 billion, according to the sources.
That would place it among the largest US stock offerings in history.
The sources are anonymous because these discussions are
not public.
The US government has seen strong market appetite for
stock in bailed-out companies in the past few months, allowing it to be more
aggressive in winding down its unpopular rescue of financial firms and other
businesses.
Earlier this week, the Treasury sold its remaining shares
in Citigroup Inc. for $4.35 each, marking an exit from ownership in the
bailed-out banking giant with a $12 billion gross profit for taxpayers.
General Motors Co.'s initial public offering last month
became the world's biggest, raising $23.1 billion.
"It doesn't strike me as all that aggressive given
what we've seen in the recent sales of GM and Citi," Aite Group analyst
Clark Troy said. "Given those two precedents, as well as the market's willingness
to digest the AIG debt, I don't see 20 percent in the first half of 2011 being
particularly aggressive at all."
An offering of AIG stock could come as early as March,
but the discussions are preliminary, and the exact size and timing have not been
decided, the sources said.
The offering would come after a recapitalization plan,
which simplifies the bailout structure and accelerates the payback schedule,
closes by the end of first quarter.
After that deal closes, the Treasury will own 92.1
percent of AIG, which received a $182.3 billion taxpayer-funded aid package
during the crisis.
AIG executives had previously indicated they were looking
to raise at least $3.5 billion in capital with a debt sale this year and a
stock offering early next year. The company sold $2 billion in debt last week
and was thought to still be looking for at least $1.5 billion from a share
offering.
"We hope to be able to go to the market with a
public offering of AIG this spring, but we have work to do to make that
happen," AIG spokesman Mark Herr said. "We are working as diligently
as we can to achieve this as quickly as possible, subject to market conditions.
"We remain committed to executing the steps and
meeting all conditions in the recapitalization agreement as soon as possible,"
he said.
A Treasury spokesman said the agency was focused on
finishing the restructuring deal.
"We are making good progress on the recapitalization
plan but it is premature to speculate about next steps," he said.
AIG's shares have rallied this year, gaining 45 percent
as the insurer under Chief Executive Robert Benmosche has charted a way out of
government support by stabilizing core operations, tapping the debt markets and
disposing of some assets.
AIG's shares were off 3.8 percent to $42.26 in afternoon
trading on the New York Stock Exchange. But the shares are trading well above
the $30 level, the approximate mark that the Treasury would need to make a
profit on the bailout.
