insurance

Prudential Financial, Inc. is a financial services company. As of February, 2008, the Company had approximately $784 billion of assets under management. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, the Company offers an array of financial products and services, including life insurance, mutual funds, annuities, pension and retirement-related services and administration, asset management, banking and trust services, real estate brokerage and relocation services, and, through a joint venture, retail securities brokerage services.

MetLife is one of the largest insurers in the U.S. Its biggest subsidiary is Metropolitan Life Insurance Company. The company offers life, disability, auto, and home insurance, as well as retirement products and legal services. It sells to both groups and individuals.

GMAC offers financing to General Motors dealerships and customers, as well as other dealerships. GMAC has also been one of the largest mortgage issuers and servicers in the United States, through its Residential Capital subsidiary, and GMAC insurance sells car and home insurance. GMAC's finance arm also offers financing to middle market businesses.

On November 21 GMAC applied for bank holding status in order to become eligible for federal financial bailout status.

Before it collapsed, AIG, as measured by asset value, was the largest insurer in the world. But in September 2008, after its credit rating went down, AIG was caught without enough collateral for the credit default swaps it had sold to banks around the world, and was forced to accept a massive federal bailout package in order to forestall a collapse. As the size of the company's debts have grown, the U.S. government has readjusted the terms of the bailout, and gradually begun to take over parts of the company.