AIG to pay back U.S. taxpayers

American International Group Inc. and the U.S. government agreed on a plan that would see the insurer repay taxpayers fully for bailing it out at the height of the financial crisis.

The plan would see the Federal Reserve Bank of New York getting paid and the U.S. Treasury Department convert $49.1 billion US of preferred stock into 1.66 billion common shares, AIG said on Thursday.

The Treasury will sell its stake in AIG on the open market over time.

AIG will also issue up to 75 million warrants with a strike price of $45 per share to its existing common shareholders.

The conversion will increase the Treasury's stake in AIG to 92.1 percent, but the exchange will not be executed until the Fed's credit facility is repaid in full.

AIG expects to repay and end the Fed credit facility and complete the issuance of common stock to the U.S. Treasury before the end of the first quarter of 2011.