The Lehman Collapse

Five years after Lehman’s collapse hastened a worldwide economic panic, the government faces lingering questions about the decision to spare executives likeRichard S. Fuld Jr., who ran Lehman for 14 years until its demise. Not a single senior executive from any Wall Street bank faced criminal charges from the crisis, either. And the government’s deadline for filing most charges will expire this month, the anniversary of Lehman’s collapse, providing a reminder of the case and its unpopular outcome.

Federal prosecutors and the S.E.C. have never officially announced their decision to close the Lehman investigation.

New York Times.  9/9/2013. Page A-1.
Also: from Robert Reich.

Happy Anniversary Lehman Brothers, And What We Haven’t Learned about Wall Street Over the Past Five Years

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2013

While attention is focused on Syria, the gambling addiction of Wall Street’s biggest banks is more dangerous than ever.

Five years ago this September, Lehman Brothers went bankrupt, and the Street hurtled toward the worst financial crisis in eighty years. Yet the biggest Wall Street banks are far larger now than they were then. And the Dodd-Frank rules designed to stop them from betting with the insured deposits of ordinary savers are still on the drawing boards — courtesy of the banks’ lobbying prowess. The so-called Volcker Rule has yet to see the light of day.