Dismaying to think that the Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. may have to shrink or be broken up to survive.
The Hartford, according to Bloomberg News, is seeking bids from rivals including Travelers Cos. for its flagship property insurance business.
Citigroup Inc. estimates the unit is worth $4 billion to $8 billion.
Travelers and Ace Ltd. may show interest, Bloomberg said, citing people familiar with the talks.
A sale to Travelers, however, would be more bad employment news for Hartford.
The Hartford has more than a third of its 31,000 employees in Connecticut. Travelers also has executive offices in the city.
Chief Executive Officer Ramani Ayer, 61, is weighing more drastic options after Munich-based Allianz’s October $2.5 billion cash infusion failed to stave off rating downgrades.
Talks earlier this year to sell parts of the life operations to Canada’s Sun Life Financial Inc. ended without a deal, the people said.
The Hartford continues to seek other buyers for the parts of its life division that sell group benefits, the people said.
The Hartford, pummeled by credit downgrades after losses in its life division, solicited offers for its profitable property and casualty unit in recent weeks, Bloomberg said.
Bloomberg said the efforts to find buyers may not be necessary if the company received enough federal bailout money.
Ayer has said his firm stands to get as much as $3.4 billion under the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
The Treasury has used the program to shore up banks and has yet to extend it to insurers other than American International Group Inc., according to Bloomberg.
Ayer, who ran the property division before assuming Hartford’s top post in 1997, has been pressured by investors and analysts to consider a breakup, Bloomberg reported. The property business had $6 billion of statutory surplus and $36.7 billion of assets as of Dec. 31.
None of the companies would comment.
