Benmosche Gets $7 Million Salary to Take on AIG Turnaround Task [View All]

Source: Bloomberg

Aug. 18 (Bloomberg) -- American International Group Inc. Chief Executive Officer Robert Benmosche will get a $7 million annual salary to take on a job that has stymied three of his predecessors.

Benmosche, who started this month as CEO and president of AIG, once the world’s largest insurer, will get $3 million in cash and $4 million in common stock, the firm said yesterday in a regulatory filing. Benmosche, 65, also is eligible for as much as $3.5 million a year in long-term incentive awards.

“This is a lot of money, but this kind of pay is not extraordinary for a CEO of a major financial services firm,” said Jeanne Branthover, a managing director at Boyden Global Executive Search Ltd. in New York. “The cash component had to be enough to attract a very strong candidate and give that person enough incentive to make a change.”

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Benmosche’s agreement was approved “in principle” by Kenneth Feinberg, the Obama administration’s so-called special master for pay at firms that took the most bailout funds, AIG said. Benmosche isn’t eligible for severance if he’s terminated.

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