Tidjane Thiam bid for AIA, the Asian wing of the crisis-stricken AIG. A public battle ensued, with some investors complaining about the $35.5 billion price Prudential was offering to pay. The bid eventually failed, after the AIG board rejected a revised lower bid. AIA was later floated on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the value of the company quickly rose above Prudential’s original bid price. Thiam came under strong personal criticism following the failure of the bid, partly as a result of the costs incurred by the company in pursuing the bid. However, he was re-elected as CEO at the May
First National Financial Corporation administration. By the end of that year, First National had a total of $99.4 billion in mortgages under administration. In October 2017, First National Financial Corporation announced it had reached $100 billion in mortgages under administration. On October 1, 2015, Queen’s University’s School of Business changed its name to The Stephen J.R. Smith School of Business in honour of the $50 million donation made by Stephen Smith, Chairman, CEO and Co-founder of First National Financial Corporation. On November 16, 2018 The Canadian Business Hall of Fame announced the chairman and CEO of First National Financial LP, Stephen Smith, as its