Top 20 Company Bankruptcies

1. Lehman Brothers:Date: Sept. 15, 2008: Assets: $691 billion: The 158-year-old investment bank made history as the biggest company to file for bankruptcy. Lehman failed to find a buyer in September 2008 after it lost $7 billion on failed bets on risky subprime mortgages during the previous two quarters. Stocks plunged around the world in the wake of Lehman's collapse as the U.S. devised plans to bail out its competitors.