American International Group Inc. has a hidden jewel that it is about to put on the market: its Japanese headquarters overlooking the Imperial Palace here, which sits on some of the most expensive real estate in the world.

AIG has asked investment bank Merrill Lynch, now part of Bank of America Corp., to help sell the 15-story building, according to Eric Martinez, the chief restructuring officer for AIG Global Real Estate. The building could fetch more than $1bn, other people said.

The sale would go toward repaying U.S. taxpayers for a bailout in September.

Wall Street Journal