Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy marked a pivotal moment in the 2008 financial crisis.
Lehman Brothers filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 15, 2008, after suffering enormous losses connected to U.S. subprime mortgages and related securities. Its filing was the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history at that time, measured by assets.
The collapse intensified fear about the safety of financial institutions and the reliability of complex credit markets. Money-market funds, banks, insurers, and companies faced rapidly worsening confidence. The failure followed the earlier rescue or sale of other major institutions, including Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch.
Governments and central banks then introduced emergency lending, guarantees, capital injections, and stimulus measures. The crisis led to a global recession and major regulatory changes, including the United States’ Dodd–Frank Act. Lehman’s failure did not cause every part of the crisis, but it became its clearest symbol of systemic financial risk.