Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy during the 2008 financial crisis, intensifying the stock-market crash.
The investment bank filed for Chapter 11 protection on 15 September 2008, listing more than $600 billion in debt. It was the largest bankruptcy filing in U.S. history at that time and became a defining moment of the global financial crisis.
Lehman had substantial exposure to mortgage-related assets and had used significant leverage. As the U.S. housing market weakened and subprime mortgage losses spread, confidence in financial institutions deteriorated. Lehman's failure raised fears that other banks might also be unable to meet their obligations.
The crisis had already been developing: Bear Stearns collapsed in March 2008, and mortgage companies faced escalating stress. After Lehman's bankruptcy, governments arranged rescues and emergency lending, while the U.S. Congress approved the Troubled Asset Relief Program in October 2008.