Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in 2008, becoming the largest bankruptcy in American history at that time.
The investment bank entered bankruptcy protection on 15 September 2008, reporting approximately $639 billion in assets and $619 billion in debt. Its failure followed years of heavy involvement in mortgage-related securities and a collapse in the U.S. housing market. Lehman could not secure a buyer or a government-supported rescue.
The bankruptcy intensified fear throughout global financial markets. Interbank lending tightened, stock prices fell, and investors questioned the solvency of other major institutions. The failure of Lehman is widely treated as a decisive turning point in the 2007–2008 financial crisis, although the crisis had begun earlier.
Bear Stearns had already been rescued in March 2008, while Merrill Lynch was acquired by Bank of America. Those events are often mentioned alongside Lehman, but they were not the same bankruptcy.