Greenberg sues AIG over 'inflated' shares

Former American International Group Inc Chief Executive Officer Maurice "Hank" Greenberg accused the insurer in a lawsuit of securities fraud after it reported the biggest loss by a publicly traded US firm.

Greenberg sued yesterday in federal court in Manhattan, saying the company's "material misrepresentations and omissions" caused him to acquire New York-based AIG shares in his deferred compensation profit-participation plan at an "artificially inflated price".

The complaint came on the same day that AIG CEO Edward Liddy told Bloomberg News that Greenberg was at the helm during the formation of AIG's financial products unit, which sold derivatives that cost the company more than $30 billion in writedowns and prompted a government rescue. After reporting its fourth-quarter loss widened to $61.7 billion, AIG announced it reached an agreement to restructure its federal bailout.