Staff & Directors

‡ deceased

Board of Directors

Maurice R. Greenberg Chairman

Maurice R. Greenberg

Chairman

Mr. Maurice R. Greenberg is Chairman and CEO of C. V. Starr & Co., Inc. He joined C.V. Starr & Co., Inc. as Vice President in 1960, a worldwide insurance and investment company.

Mr. Greenberg retired as Chairman and CEO of American International Group, Inc. (AIG) in March 2005, after serving as Chief Executive Officer from 1967 until March 2005. Under his leadership AIG became the largest insurance company in the world and generated unprecedented value for AIG shareholders. During the nearly 40 years of his leadership, AIG's market value grew from $300 million to $l80 billion. AIG was created by C.V. Starr & Co., Inc.

Mr. Greenberg is Chairman of The Starr Foundation, one of the largest private foundations in the United States. He oversees the disbursements of major financial support to institutions worldwide, in the areas of education (including scholarship assistance), medical research and healthcare, human needs, culture and public policy (including international relations and the environment).

He serves on the President's Council on International Activities of Yale University. He is the founding Chairman of the U.S.-Philippine Business Committee. Mr. Greenberg is Honorary Vice Chairman and Director of the Council on Foreign Relations, former Chairman and current member of U.S.-Korea Business Council, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors and member of the Executive Committee of the National Committee on United States-China Relations, serves on the Board of Directors of the U.S. - China Business Council and the Business Roundtable. He is Honorary Co-Chairman of the Board of the United States-Philippines Society, Inc. and is Chairman of the Center for the National Interest. Mr. Greenberg has served on the Board of Directors of the New York Stock Exchange and the President's Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations. He is also the past Chairman, Deputy Chairman and Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Mr. Greenberg is Board Member and Chairman Emeritus of New York-Presbyterian Hospital and the New York-Presbyterian Hospital Foundation, Inc. He serves as a member of the Board of Overseers of the Weill Medical School of Cornell University, is a Trustee Emeritus of The Rockefeller University, a Life Trustee of New York University, and a Trustee of The Manhattan Institute. He is on the Board of Overseers of the International Rescue Committee and is active in a number of other civic and charitable organizations.

In 1990, Mr. Greenberg was appointed by Mr. Zhu Rongji, then Mayor of Shanghai, to be the first Chairman of the International Business Leaders' Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai. In 1994, Mr. Greenberg was appointed Senior Economic Advisor to the Beijing Municipal Government. He was awarded "Honorary Citizen of Shanghai" in 1997. He is a Member of the Advisory Board of the Tsinghua School of Economics and Management, a Member of the International Advisory Council of the China Development Research Foundation and China Development Bank.

Mr. Greenberg received his pre-law certificate from the University of Miami and an LL.B from New York Law School in 1950. He was admitted to the New York Bar in 1953. He has been granted honorary degrees from a number of institutions, including New York Law School, Brown University, Middlebury College, and The Rockefeller University.

Mr. Greenberg served in the U. S. Army in Europe during World War II and in the Korean conflict, rising to the rank of Captain. He is a recipient of the Bronze Star.

Mr. Greenberg is married and has four children.

Jeffrey W. Greenberg Director

Jeffrey W. Greenberg

Director

Jeff is the Chairman and Chief Executive of Aquiline Capital Partners LLC, a New York and London-based private equity firm investing globally in the financial services sector, including banking and credit, insurance, investment management, and financial technology and services.

Prior to founding Aquiline in 2005, he was the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc. (NYSE: MMC). Previously, he was Chief Executive officer of MMC Capital, MMC’s private equity business. Prior to MMC Capital, Jeff served in numerous executive positions at American International Group (NYSE: AIG) for 17 years including Executive Vice President of AIG’s domestic brokerage group. Jeff is the Chairman of Equity Red Star DGB Ltd. and also serves on the boards of C.V. Starr & Co., Starr International Company, Inc., Aspirion Health Resources, LLC, Fullsteam Holdings, LLC, and Relation Holdco, Inc.

He is a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the Council on Foreign Relations, and a fellow of the Foreign Policy Association. He is a trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a vice chairman of the board of trustees of New York-Presbyterian Hospital, a member of the board of overseers of Weill Cornell Medical College, and a member of the board of Starr International Foundation. Jeff earned an A.B. from Brown University and a J.D. from Georgetown University.

 

Edward E. Matthews Director

Edward E. Matthews

Director

Edward E. Matthews retired as Vice Chairman and Director of C.V. Starr & Co. Inc., an insurance and private investment firm in New York, N.Y., and as Managing Director of Starr International Company.

Mr. Matthews received an AB degree from Princeton University in 1953 and an MBA degree from Harvard University in 1957. Upon graduation from Harvard, he joined the investment banking firm of Morgan Stanley & Co. He became a partner of Morgan Stanley in 1967 and a Managing Director upon that firm’s incorporation in 1970. In 1973 he left Morgan Stanley and joined American International Group as Vice President – Finance and Director and retired as Senior Vice Chairman – Investments and Financial Services at the end of 2002. From 1973, Mr. Matthews has also served as an officer and director of C.V. Starr & Co., Inc. and Starr International Company.

Mr. Matthews is Chairman Emeritus of Princeton HealthCare System and is an Emeritus Trustee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and Princeton Day School. He is also a Trustee Emeritus of Princeton University, where he served from 1998 to 2002 as Chairman of Princeton Investment Company, manager of Princeton University’s $26 billion endowment. He is also Trustee Emeritus of McCarter Theatre Company, a leading regional performing arts center where he served as President of the Board of Trustees from 1981 to 1988.

Howard I. Smith Director and Treasurer

Howard I. Smith

Director and Treasurer

Howard I. Smith is a Director and the Vice Chairman - Finance of C.V. Starr & Co., Inc. as well as a Director of Starr International Company, Inc., Starr Insurance Holdings, Inc., Starr Indemnity & Liability Company, Starr Surplus Lines Insurance Company, and Starr Specialty Insurance Company.

Mr. Smith has 40 years of experience in insurance. Mr. Smith was the Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer of American International Group, Inc. (“AIG”) from October 1984 to March 2005. Mr. Smith was responsible for AIG’s Treasury, Investor Relations, Credit & Marking Risk Management functions as well as the Comptroller’s Department. Prior to AIG, Mr. Smith spent 19 years with Coopers & Lybrand as the Partner in charge of the firm’s New York office insurance practice.

Mr. Smith earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from the City College of New York in 1965. Mr. Smith, a CPA, previously served as a North American representative on the Insurance Working Group of the International Accounting Standards Board. Mr. Smith is the Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Weissman Center for International Business at Baruch College and a Trustee of Baruch College.

Founder

Cornelius Vander Starr (1892-1968)

Cornelius Vander Starr

(1892-1968)

Below is an excerpt from the biography of Cornelius Vander Starr, published in 1970:

When he was just 26 years old, Cornelius Vander Starr took a clerkship with the Pacific Mail Steamship Company in Yokohama, Japan. Among his major assets at the time were the job and a strong sense of his own worth. The latter proved too much for the former.

His boss, who did not share Starr's notions of human dignity, would buzz for the young clerk when he wanted to see him. Considering how small an office it was, Starr felt that buzzing was a cold, imperious and impersonal act. So he asked his boss to please not buzz him, or he would have to leave his employ. The boss, unimpressed, buzzed; Starr, unintimidated, quit...

You can read the entire biography of C.V. Starr as an eBook or PDF. Learn more»

In Memoriam

Corinne P. Greenberg Director

Corinne P. Greenberg

Director

Our esteemed director, Corinne P. Greenberg died in Miami, FL on March 17, 2024, from natural causes.

Corinne P. Greenberg was Chairman of the National Board of Young Audiences/Arts for Learning. She served on the Board from 1984 until her passing. Mrs. Greenberg was an active supporter of many medical, social and cultural institutions, particularly in New York City, where she resided. She was a member of several volunteer committees at New York-Weill Cornell Medical Center, including charter member of the Executive Committee of the Lying-In-Hospital in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and member of the New York-Weill Cornell Council. Mrs. Greenberg was a founding member of the Women & Science Committee at the Rockefeller University. She served on the Executive Committee of the Iris Cantor Women's Health Center. She was President and Director of the Maurice R. and Corinne P. Greenberg Foundation. She served on the boards of the 92nd Street Y and Orchestra of St. Luke's until 2005.

Having studied systems design and computer programming at IBM, Mrs. Greenberg worked as a computer programmer and systems designer at Fiduciary Trust Company and The New York Hospital. She was M.I.S. director at Intere Intermediaries Company.

Mrs. Greenberg was a graduate of the High School of Music and Art with a major in voice. She studied piano at the Manhattan School of Music, and attended Queens College, Rider College and Columbia University. Mrs. Greenberg graduated with a B.B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of Miami.

Mrs. Greenberg was an avid skier and tennis player. She was married to Maurice R. Greenberg, Chairman & CEO, C.V. Starr & Co., Inc.

Ta Chun Hsu Director

Ta Chun Hsu

Director

Ta Chun (T.C.) Hsu, our esteemed president emeritus and director, died peacefully in his sleep on Sunday, December 27, 2015 at the age of 97. T.C. lived a full life. He was a gentleman in every sense of the word, dedicated, deeply loyal, a good friend, and counselor to generations of colleagues at the Starr Companies and The Starr Foundation.

T.C. was born in Beijing in 1918, son of Yu Hsuen Yang (mother) and Tsing Lo (Singloh) Hsu (father), brother of the late Ta Ching (Irene) Hsu and the late Vivian Hsu Jee, and beloved "Uncle T.C." to many.

T.C.'s father was one of the earliest backers of Cornelius Vander Starr's businesses in Shanghai and, when Tsing Lo Hsu was killed in the early days of World War II, Mr. Starr brought T.C. to America to complete his college education. T.C. never forgot Mr. Starr's generosity and friendship and made significant contributions to Starr's organizations over the years.

T.C. attended the University of Shanghai from 1936-1938 and graduated from Haverford College in 1942 with a B.S. in economics. He earned a masters degree at Columbia University in the School of Journalism in 1944 and began his career with the news department of the Chinese Information Service in New York. He returned to Shanghai to work on the Chinese edition of The Shanghai Evening Post and Mercury, newspapers owned by Mr. Starr.

In 1947, T.C. joined the staff of the Shanghai Commercial & Savings Bank until 1949, and then joined Starr's American International companies in Hong Kong and later San Francisco. In 1964, T.C. moved to New York to work directly with Mr. Starr on a variety of projects, including the management of The Starr Foundation, Mr. Starr's private philanthropic foundation.

After Mr. Starr's death in late 1968, T.C. became President of The Starr Foundation and served in that role until 1999. T.C. remained an active director of the Foundation until his death.

T.C. was laid to rest in China. A memorial service in New York City is planned for a future date.

Officers

Martha Livingston Senior Vice President,
Corporate Secretary Senior Vice President and Corporate Secretary

Martha Livingston

Senior Vice President,
Corporate Secretary Senior Vice President and Corporate Secretary

Martha Livingston began her career as a lawyer, working as an associate at the Washington D.C. firm of Swidler & Berlin in 1991. In 1994, she moved to the public sector as a policy analyst at the U.S. Congressional Office of Technology Assessment. From 1996-2001, she served in a number of positions at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; in 1998, she became Senior Policy Analyst and Assistant General Counsel, working on a wide range of issues, including educational technology and international organization restructuring. In 2001, Ms. Livingston moved to New York City, and for four years she was Program Officer at The Picower Foundation, a philanthropy that funded youth and education programs and medical research in New York City and Palm Beach County, Florida.

Ms. Livingston is a graduate of Duke University and the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Abigail Osei Assistant Vice President,
Assistant Corporate Secretary

Abigail Osei

Assistant Vice President,
Assistant Corporate Secretary

Abigail (Opoku-Agyemang) Osei, Assistant Vice President and Assistant Corporate Secretary, has served in multiple roles during her decade at The Starr Foundation. She provides operational leadership in grants management technology, reporting, and external communications, among other things. Originally from Ghana, Abigail’s family moved to New York City when she was in elementary school. Seeing the world from the Bronx fostered her love for philanthropy, international affairs, and volunteering with young people. As a beneficiary of nonprofit social services, many of which are current or former grantees of The Starr Foundation, Abigail is passionate about community service and youth leadership development.

Abigail is the author of The Commander and the Promise, a short story about leadership inspired by meeting minutes, and the children's book, Let's Learn Twi, an introduction to the Asante Twi alphabet. She supports Ghanaian families in the diaspora through her writing in Twi and English as they teach and share language and culture with their children and community. She is currently a Youth Giving Summit Ambassador at the International Social Impact Institute and co-chair of the Membership Committee for the Northeast Chapter of Peak Grantmaking. In addition, she serves on the Executive Committee of the Atlantic Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

A graduate of A. Philip Randolph High School in Harlem, New York, Abigail has earned a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership from Lehman College and a Bachelor of Science in International Politics and Economics from Middlebury College. She also holds a Certificate in Global Philanthropy from New York University's School of Continuing Professional Studies.

Howard I. Smith Director and Treasurer

Howard I. Smith

Director and Treasurer

Howard I. Smith is a Director and the Vice Chairman - Finance of C.V. Starr & Co., Inc. as well as a Director of Starr International Company, Inc., Starr Insurance Holdings, Inc., Starr Indemnity & Liability Company, Starr Surplus Lines Insurance Company, and Starr Specialty Insurance Company.

Mr. Smith has 40 years of experience in insurance. Mr. Smith was the Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer of American International Group, Inc. (“AIG”) from October 1984 to March 2005. Mr. Smith was responsible for AIG’s Treasury, Investor Relations, Credit & Marking Risk Management functions as well as the Comptroller’s Department. Prior to AIG, Mr. Smith spent 19 years with Coopers & Lybrand as the Partner in charge of the firm’s New York office insurance practice.

Mr. Smith earned his Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Accounting from the City College of New York in 1965. Mr. Smith, a CPA, previously served as a North American representative on the Insurance Working Group of the International Accounting Standards Board. Mr. Smith is the Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Weissman Center for International Business at Baruch College and a Trustee of Baruch College.

Staff