HUNDREDS OF anxious policyholders thronged insurer AIA Singapore's Customer Service Centre in Finlayson Green on Tuesday. Many wanted to surrender their life insurance policies, on fears and uncertainty over the company's future financial stability.

AIA is a subsidiary of insurance giant AIG which is scrambling to prevent its own collapse. To make matters worse, AIG's credit rating was downgraded by Standard & Poor's Ratings Services on Monday, further rattling investors.

The situation at AIA prompted the Monetary Authority of Singapore to caution policyholders from acting rashly to terminate their AIA policies. Doing so might result in the customers suffering losses from premature surrenders and losing the coverage they might need, it stated.

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