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Jp Morgan

COMPANY |

Bear Stearns Companies, Inc came into being on October 29, 1985, after it acquired Bear Stearns & Company and Subsidiaries, a partnership organized in 1957. The business concern, in turn, was founded in 1923 by Joseph Bear, Robert Stearns, and Harold Mayer as an equity-trading house. Bear Stearns that is headquartered in New York, is a full service brokerage and investment banking firm focused on three core areas: capital markets, wealth management, and global clearing services.
BEAR STEARN TIMELINES |

➢ Fall 2006
• The U.S. housing market falls prey to the subprime crisis and this leads to slow down in appreciation of the home loan, rise in the foreclosures and slow down in loaning applications.
• Bear Stearns Asset Management (“BSAM”) – a hedge fund managed by the firm begins to experience significant troubles; instead of taking ameliorative action, BSAM configures a second, similar hedge fund with approximately three times the leverage of the original fund and both funds continue to invest in derivatives linked to the U.S. housing market.

➢ Summer 2007
• The parent firm assures $3B to bail out the two hedge funds managed by BSAM.
• Rumors begin to spread that Bear may have liquidity problems and may have to file for bankruptcy.

➢ Fall 2007
• Multi-billion dollar write downs are reported by other investment banks.
• SEC regulators begin to hold weekly conference calls with Bear executives to ensure Bear has sufficient liquidity resources to fund its trading operations.

➢ November and December 2007

• Bear posts a quarterly loss, the first since its inception in 1923.
• Discussions move ahead...