Knowledge@wharton

The ongoing credit crisis in U.S. financial markets has claimed a huge and high-profile victim: Bear Stearns. After being slammed by what amounted to a run on the bank during the week of March 10 the Wall Street firm agreed to be acquired -- for $2 a share -- by JP Morgan Chase over the weekend in a deal overseen by Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson. The Federal Reserve lowered interest rates the same day -- and did so again on March 18 by three-quarters of a percentage point. Are other Wall Street firms likely to follow Bear Stearns into oblivion? Will the Federal Reserve’s efforts help to boost confidence in the financial system? Finance professor Jeremy Siegel author of The Future for Investors discussed these questions and more with Knowledge at Wharton. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.