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Fallout: The Financial Crisis

AIG shares list of bailout recipients

Janet Babin Mar 16, 2009
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Fallout: The Financial Crisis

AIG shares list of bailout recipients

Janet Babin Mar 16, 2009
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TEXT OF STORY

Renita Jablonski: It’s a big business though that’s grabbing most of the attention this morning. Insurance giant American International Group has received $170 billion in government help. Over the weekend, AIG released information about how some of that money is being spent. From North Carolina Public Radio, Marketplace’s Janet Babin has more.


Janet Babin: AIG has released a list of about 80 firms that benefited from the bailout money. The insurance company says paying other banks used up a total of $90 billion in federal rescue cash.

Some of the big winners were investment bank Goldman Sachs — it took in almost $13 billion. A few European banks like Societe General and Deutsche Bank did almost as well.

Congress and taxpayers had been asking AIG where the money went for months. The company finally caved after reports surfaced that it’ll use some of the bailout money to pay employee bonuses. worth at least $165 million. In the very division responsible for the meltdown.

AIG says the bonus pay is set in stone, that it could face lawsuits if doesn’t pay up. The company promised the Obama administration to hold back on future bonus pay.

I’m Janet Babin for Marketplace.

Jablonski: Rather than holding back on future pay, Barney Frank has another idea:

Barney Frank: Since the federal government now essentially owns that company, maybe it’s time to fire some people.

Frank is the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. He made those comments this morning on NBC’s Today Show.

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