* Carlyle, Primus, KKR, MBK, Affinity bid for Nan Shan
* Cathay, Chinatrust, Fubon, Ruentex among Taiwan bidders
* Nan Shan to decide buyer in August or September
TAIPEI, July 4 (Reuters) - About 10 global and Taiwan
financial firms have submitted bids to buy troubled AIG's
(AIG.N) Taiwanese insurance unit, newspapers said on Saturday,
in a deal that could fetch up to over $2 billion.
Global private equity firms Kohlberg Kravis Roberts
[KKR.UL], MBK Partners and Affinity Partners are among the
bidders for AIG unit Nan Shan Life, the Chinese-language
Economic Daily News said, quoting identified sources.
The report comes a day after industry sources told Reuters
that Carlyle [CYL.UL] and Hong Kong-based financial firm Primus
Financial Holdings would submit bids by the end of the Friday
deadline. [ID:nTP305097]
Cathay (2882.TW), Chinatrust (2891.TW), Fubon (2881.TW)
financial firms and conglomerate Ruentex Group in Taiwan have
also handed in their bids, the Economic Daily News quoted the
sources as saying.
All companies were not immediately available for comment.
The bids for Nan Shan ranged from $1.7 billion to $2.5
billion, with AIG expected to make a decision on the buyer in
August or September, the Economic Daily News and the Commercial
Times said.
AIG wants to shed some of its global assets to repay the
U.S. government after a bailout totalling about $180 billion.
Earlier this year, it sold its Taiwan securities unit to
Hong Kong-listed Bank of East Asia (0023.HK) and agreed to sell
its credit card and accounts-receivable business to small
Taiwanese lender Far Eastern International Bank (2845.TW).
[ID:nTP372927] [ID:nTP301470]
If AIG sells Nan Shan, it will not be the first foreign
firm to sell insurance units in Taiwan.
Last October, Holland's ING Groep (ING.AS) sold its
insurance unit to Fubon for $600 million, while Britain's
Prudential (PRU.L) got rid of its Taiwan operation to
Taipei-based China Life (2823.TW) earlier this year.
(Reporting by Lee Chyen Yee; Editing by Valerie Lee)
