This article provides a brief overview of AIG's operations and explains why AIG suddenly collapsed. It then details the terms of the initial US government bailout and later restructurings. Finally, the article describes the regulatory gap exploited by AIG and ensuing regulatory reform.

There is disagreement about whether large and complex financial institutions should be allowed to use US bankruptcy law to reorganise when they get into financial difficulty. We look at the events surrounding the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy filing for lessons as to whether bankruptcy law could be...