The company was created in 1978[2] as a spin-off of American Financial Group,[citation needed] meant to do residential home construction.
[2] By 1981, Keating had two thousand employees on his payroll and was one of the largest land developers in Arizona, benefiting from a home building boom in the state.
[2] In February 1984, American Continental Corporation acquired the underperforming Lincoln Savings and Loan Association for $51 million.
[4] Lincoln Savings expanded into aggressive, risky land development deals and financial arrangements, including loans due to American Continental.
[2] For most of 1987, American Continental was profitable, but by 1988, losses mounted, due to financial troubles and other bad happenings at Lincoln Savings.