Lehman Bros. Holdings traded at $67.73 on Nov. 14, 2007. It opened this morning at $.26.
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. today filed a Voluntary Petition for bankruptcy in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York under Case No. 08-13555-jmp. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James M. Peck drew the assignment. Harvey R. Miller of Weil, Gotshal & Manges signed the Voluntary Petition.
The document lists $639 billion in assets and $619 billion in liabilities. It also shows "Bond Debt" of around $138 billion in Lehman Bros. Holdings Inc. Senior Notes and about $12 billion in Lehman Brothers Inc. Subordinated Debt.
Secretary of Treasury Henry M. Paulson, Jr., issued a statement yesterday. It included this:
Healthy capital markets are the backbone of a vibrant U.S. economy and critical to the well-being of our economy and American families. I am confident in the resilience of our capital markets, and in the commitment of U.S. regulators and market participants to work together through this difficult period.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke also issued a press release yesterday:
In close collaboration with the Treasury and the Securities and Exchange Commission, we have been in ongoing discussions with market participants, including through the weekend, to identify potential market vulnerabilities in the wake of an unwinding of a major financial institution and to consider appropriate official sector and private sector responses. The steps we are announcing today, along with significant commitments from the private sector, are intended to mitigate the potential risks and disruptions to markets.
The Securities and Exchange Commission meanwhile noted that the broker-dealer part of Lehman — Lehman Brothers Inc. — did not participate in the bankruptcy filing. SEC Chair Christopher Cox said:
We are committed to using our regulatory and supervisory authorities to reduce the potential for dislocations from Lehman’s unwinding, and to maintain the smooth functioning of the financial markets
