The Five Dumbest Things on Wall Street This Week

Hanking Privileges Greenberg goes loudly

2. Hankering

Believe it or not, AIG (AIG Quote) investors just got another reason to thank Hank.

Yes, former chief Hank Greenberg believes he is worthy of some overdue praise.

AIG restated five years' worth of financials Tuesday, wiping out some $4 billion of earnings over that period. The news came on the heels of an accounting scandal that led to Greenberg's ouster.

Greenberg left this spring after regulators took aim at the company's accounting. Last week, New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer filed a suit charging Greenberg with orchestrating a series of accounting tricks to help prop up AIG's stock price.

The accounting scandal and the battle with Greenberg had threatened to destabilize the company. But new CEO Martin Sullivan lauded AIG's workers for hanging in there despite the uncertainty.

"I am pleased that we have completed our internal review and filed our 2004 Form 10-K, which reflects the results of our detailed and thorough review of AIG's major business units globally," Sullivan said in Tuesday morning's press release. "I want to thank our 92,000 employees who have worked so hard throughout this period serving our customers and building new relationships, as well as those who conducted and assisted in the review process."

Meanwhile, Greenberg has a distinctly different view of who deserves credit for AIG's success. "We believe that today's 10-K confirms that AIG remains in every respect a highly successful and financially solid company reflecting the significant contributions made over many years by former management," Greenberg's lawyers said Tuesday.

Our hat's off to you, Hank.

To view Colin Barr's humorous video take on the former AIG CEO's hankering for praise, click here.