* AIG seeking Hong Kong listing approval for AIA on Sept. 21
* Market debut could take place in Oct, instead of Nov
* AIA IPO aimed at raising about $15 billion (Adds details and background)
By Clare Jim and Kennix Chim
HONG KONG, Sep 7 (Reuters) - American International Group Inc plans to seek Hong Kong listing committee approval on Sept. 21, to list its Asian life insurance unit, aiming to raise about $15 billion, two sources with direct knowledge of the deal said on Tuesday.
AIG, which is nearly 80 percent owned by the U.S. government, is disposing of assets to repay taxpayers as part of the $182.3 billion bail out package that rescued the insurer during the 2008 financial crisis.
Last week, AIG filed an application with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange to list AIA. While a listing committee hearing usually takes place about four weeks after the application, the hearing date for AIA's IPO comes earlier than expected, meaning the deal could hit to the market in October instead of the earlier plan for November.
AIA would hold an analyst briefing on Sept. 10, another three sources familiar with the matter said, planning to kick off a road show in early or mid-October.
The sources declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak to media.
AIA's IPO comes after AIG tried unsuccessfully to sell the business earlier this year to Britain's Prudential Plc for $35.5 billion.
AIG had scrapped a plan to sell a strategic stake in AIA ahead of its IPO, a source familiar with the process said earlier.
The focus for the IPO is centred on discussions on the sale of cornerstone stakes. The success of AIA's IPO will hinge largely on demand from cornerstone investors, as was seen in the record-breaking IPO of Agricultural Bank of China Ltd in July.
Citigroup Inc, Deutsche Bank AG, Goldman Sachs group Inc and Morgan Stanley are joint global coordinators for the IPO. Bookrunners include Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Capital, CIMB, Credit Suisse group AG, ICBC International, JP Morgan and UBS AG. (Reporting by Clare Jim and Kennix Chim; Editing by Chris Lewis)