By Jean Eaglesham
American International Group said its incoming president, John Neal, will no longer be joining the insurance giant "due to personal circumstances." He was slated to start in two weeks.
The abrupt reversal, disclosed in a securities filing Friday, adds to a period of turmoil at the top of AIG that has seen several executives depart, including a U.S. executive who left last year following criminal charges of sexual assault at a 2024 company event.
An AIG spokesman declined to comment. Neal didn't respond Friday to requests for comment.
Neal was the intended second-in-command to Chief Executive Peter Zaffino. Only last month, AIG created a new team to report to Neal, after a senior North American executive retired for what the company said were health reasons.
Neal earlier this year stepped down as CEO of Lloyd's of London, the world's biggest insurance marketplace. He had committed to join brokerage Aon, before in July announcing the planned move to AIG.
AIG's C-suite has been in flux since the departure last spring of David McElroy, who headed the general insurance unit Neal was due to lead. The 67-year-old executive "agreed with AIG to accelerate his retirement date for personal reasons," AIG said last year.
McElroy's exit followed an incident at an AIG event in March 2024. A client attending the winter summit, at the Spruce Peak resort in Stowe, Vt., alleged McElroy got her drunk and then sexually assaulted her while she was asleep, according to a report by a Stowe detective.
McElroy told the detective he believed they were two consenting adults, the police report said. "He said he also never took off his own clothes so he could not have had sex" with the woman who made the allegations, the report added.
McElroy was charged in late 2024 with four felony counts of sexual assault and lewd conduct. He has entered not guilty pleas. A jury trial is scheduled for next year.
His lawyer David Kirby said that McElroy "categorically denies the charges," adding he looked forward to his day in court. "Until then, the charges should be seen for what they are: mere allegations that are vehemently denied."
AIG this month reported what CEO Zaffino called an "exceptional" performance for the three months through September, returning an additional $1.5 billion to shareholders for a year-to-date tally of $6 billion.
Zaffino has been credited with turning around AIG, which was still struggling with the aftermath of its 2008 bailout when he joined as global chief operating officer in 2017.
As CEO, he's undertaken a significant restructuring of the business -- including hiving off its life and retirement business -- and overseen a marked increase in profitability.
His tenure followed a nearly two-decade tumultuous stretch for the insurance conglomerate that included near bankruptcy, multiple management changes and the selling off of crown jewels to repay one of the U.S. government's biggest bailouts.
Write to Jean Eaglesham at Jean.Eaglesham@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 14, 2025 14:04 ET (19:04 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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