In a reaction against allegations of accounting fraud, Maurice Greenberg’s lawyers are due to present regulators at the Securities and Exchange Commission with a series of defence white papers.
In an attempt to defend Mr. Greenberg’s accounting techniques during his time as CFO for the world’s largest insurance company, American International Group, lawyers and accountants working for the former executive have signed off on at least one of his accounting decisions, according to reports in the Financial Times.
The comments apparently emerged at a meeting of shareholders at CV Starr – a company controlled by current and former AIG executives.
Mr. Greenberg was forced to step down from his position within AIG last March after an investigation was opened up into the insurer’s accounting methods.
Following his departure, New York attorney general Eliot Spitzer filed a lawsuit against Mr. Greenberg and AIG, alleging the company’s accounts were manipulated in an attempt to deceive shareholders.
According to reports by the FT, AIG and Greenberg will face accusations from Spitzer that include regular involvement in misleading accounting and financial reporting and engaging in multiple fraudulent transactions.
Ironically, following the revelation of the alleged illegal practices that were intended to shore up AIG’s share price, the company has seen a quarter of its stock value disappear.
SEC regulators have yet to bring charges against AIG or Mr. Greenberg.