American International Group (AIG) reported a dramatic turnaround in underwriting profitability for the first quarter of 2026, with General Insurance underwriting income surging 220% year-over-year to $774 million. The robust results reflect significant improvements across all three core segments—North America Commercial, International Commercial, and Global Personal—as well as disciplined risk management, favorable reinsurance renewals, and strategic capital deployments.
Catastrophe losses dropped sharply to $180 million in Q1 2026—down from $525 million a year earlier—while favorable net prior-year development rose to $132 million (versus $64 million in Q1 2025), underscoring improved claims reserving accuracy and portfolio stability. The General Insurance combined ratio improved markedly to 87.3—well below the 95.8 recorded in Q1 2025—signaling enhanced underwriting discipline and pricing power.
Net premiums written grew 24% on a reported basis (18% in constant dollars) to $6.2 billion, driven by strong organic growth and recent strategic moves. North America Commercial led the charge with underwriting income jumping to $337 million from $129 million a year ago; net premiums written climbed 37% to approximately $1.6 billion. Global Personal delivered an especially striking reversal—turning a $126 million underwriting loss in Q1 2025 into $169 million in profit—supported by a 17% increase in net premiums written and a combined ratio improvement from 107.9 to 89.4. International Commercial contributed $278 million in underwriting income, up 16% year-over-year.
Chairman and CEO Peter Zaffino, delivering his final quarterly earnings report before transitioning to Executive Chair on June 1, highlighted the momentum: *“We delivered impressive top-line growth… All three segments performed exceptionally well, supported by our recent strategic transactions, favorable January 1 reinsurance renewal outcomes and profitable organic growth.”* His successor, incoming President and CEO Eric Anderson—a seasoned leader from Aon—assumes leadership amid this inflection point.
Strategic initiatives fueling the performance include the launch of Syndicate 2479 with Blackstone and Amwins, an investment in CVC’s private equity secondaries platform, minority stakes in Convex Group and Onex Corporation, and the acquisition of Everest’s global retail portfolio.
Overall, AIG posted net income attributable to common shareholders of $763 million for Q1 2026—up from $698 million a year earlier—powered by underwriting gains and a 17% rise in General Insurance net investment income to $864 million.
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Source: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2026/05/01/867971.htm
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