Chinatrust may drop bid for AIG unit: source

TAIPEI (Reuters) - Chinatrust (2891.TW), Taiwan's top credit card issuer, will likely pull out of a bid for AIG's (AIG.N) Taiwan insurance unit as its partner, Bain Capital, wants to pull of the race, a source close to the company said on Wednesday.

"Bain Capital has expressed their views that they would not pursue this bid further," said the source, who asked not be identified. "That would affect Chinatrust's willingness to go for the bid," he said, declining to elaborate.

The move means AIG, once of the world's biggest insurer until the U.S. government had to bail it out last year, may not be able to fetch an estimated $2 billion for the Taiwan unit, some sources close to the situation said.

Chinatrust and private equity firm Bain Capital are among the four groups that made it to the final bidding round for the AIG unit, Nan Shan Life.

A rich asking price could once again sink AIG's plan to sell Nan Shan after an attempt at a sale met similar fate earlier this year, sources in Taipei and Hong Kong have said.

Carlyle Group CYL.UL is paring with Fubon Financial (2881.TW) to bid for the unit, Primus Financial is teaming up with China Strategic (0235.HK), while Cathay Financial (2882.TW), Taiwan's biggest financial holding firm, is bidding on its own.

(Reporting by Faith Hung; Editing by David Holmes)