AIG CEO Benmosche says no decision yet on AIA, ILFC

NEW YORK (Reuters)—The time is not right for bailed-out insurer American International Group Inc. to take its International Lease Finance Corp. airplane leasing unit public, AIG CEO Bob Benmosche told CNBC television Friday.

In an interview, Mr. Benmosche said AIG had a series of criteria for launching the ILFC offering, which were all "red" now. He said the company wants to see green lights before it proceeds.

AIG filed for an initial public offering of ILFC Holdings Inc. last September, but has not moved forward since then. Mr. Benmosche said AIG still believes ILFC is worth as much as $10 billion and is waiting for the right time to sell.

Earlier this week, one of ILFC's largest competitors, RBS Aviation, was sold in a $7.3 billion deal.

Mr. Benmosche also said AIG has yet to make a decision on how to proceed with its one-third stake in Asian insurer AIA Group Ltd., which it spun off in a 2010 offering.

AIG's shares are held inside a special-purpose vehicle, in which the U.S. Treasury has a preferred interest. At one time, AIG was expected to sell the AIA shares outright to pay off the Treasury, though in recent months the company has suggested it could keep some of the stake.

The Treasury Department still owns 77% of AIG, following the company's $182 billion bailout. At AIG's current stock price, the government is roughly $4.7 billion in the hole on that stake, and Mr. Benmosche said the Treasury was unlikely to sell until it could do so profitably.