Lehman Brothers was the U.S. financial institution whose bankruptcy intensified the global stock-market crash in 2008.
Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 15, 2008. With about $639 billion in assets, it was the largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history at that time. The failure followed losses connected to mortgage-related securities and the collapse of the U.S. housing market.
The bankruptcy sharply increased fear about the stability of banks and financial institutions worldwide. Credit markets froze or became extremely strained, and stock markets fell as investors reassessed risks. Governments and central banks then introduced emergency lending, guarantees, capital injections, and other measures.
Bear Stearns had already been rescued and sold to JPMorgan Chase in March 2008, so it is a frequent alternative answer. Merrill Lynch was acquired by Bank of America during the same crisis, while Washington Mutual failed later in September.