American International Group has announced that it would sell its 97.5 per cent stake in Taiwan insurance unit Nan Shan to a group of investors led by led by Hong Kong-based Primus Financial. 

The deal is valued at 2.15 billion. 

However, analyst Pandora Lee of UBS, said, “The pricing is tricky. If you just look at the book value of Nan Shan, then the acquisition price is at a 30 percent discount.”

Nan Shan, which is third-largest life insurer in Taiwan, serves over 4 million life insurance policy holders in the country.

Primus Financial has assured that it would keep existing compensation plus benefits for Nan Shan’s employees. The existing Nan Shan management team will also remain in place.

In addition, American Life Insurance Co. is reportedly said to be planning to raise $5 billion in an IPO.

It is worth mentioning here that New York-based AIG has been selling assets to order to repay government aid.

Last year, when the credit crisis hit the financial institutions, the US government rescued the AIG with a loan bailout package worth billions of dollars.