It's over exposure to the U.S. real estate market, huge investments in subprime mortgages and innovative but risky investments such as collateralized debt obligations and credit default swaps also contributed to its downfall. Lehman which once employed more than 28,000 employees, 5,000 in U.K alone, traded at a value in the NASDAQ at $ 85 at its peak and with a 158 year history it failed because it traded on Toxic assets and taking too much risk on a booming market. Its share value had plummeted by 95 percent On 15 th September 2008, it was curtains for the bank as it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which allows a company to reorganise and devise a plan to pay back its creditors. The fall of the investment banking giant precipitated the financial crisis worldwide and a loss of confidence among major banks and a major financial crisis throughout the world.