AIG has unveiled a new logo as its general insurer Chartis and life and retirement business SunAmerica Financial Group prepare to rejoin the parent brand.

The revamp, which will see Chartis once again trade as AIG and SunAmerica become AIG Life and Retirement, is to be completed by the end of next month.

But the Australian business will continue trading as Chartis until late January or early February before its change to AIG Australia, Chartis Australia CEO Noel Condon told insuranceNEWS.com.au.

He says the rebrand is “quite a substantial piece of work” which will be prolonged locally due to the lengthier Christmas break in Australia.

He says the internal staff reaction to the name change has been “very positive”.

“It marks a comeback which the employees are feeling good about,” Mr Condon said.

But he says the new name will have little impact on brokers, because there will be “no change in attitude to pricing or terms and conditions”.

The rebrand follows AIG’s recovery from the US Government rescue in 2008 during the global financial crisis.

The updated logo sees the traditional white capital letters in a dark-blue box replaced by light-blue capital letters on a white background in a framed, light-blue box.

AIG says the “refreshed” logo will start to feature widely in advertising and marketing in the coming months.

“Our new logo reflects a rebuilt and forward-looking AIG – contemporary, dynamic, transparent and revitalised,” President and CEO Robert Benmosche said.

The rebrand also signals the end of the insurance giant’s return from financial disaster.

Last month the US Government sold more than $US20 billion ($19.5 billion) of AIG stock. It has now recouped its investment in the company and is likely to offload its remaining 15.9% shareholding for a profit next year.

AIG is under review by the US Financial Stability Oversight Council, which is considering designating it a systemically important financial institution – that is, too big to fail. It would join banks and other companies deemed so large or important their collapse could have repercussions across the US economy.

The designation would also mean additional regulatory oversight, with ultimate regulatory responsibility falling on the US Federal Reserve.

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