AFP - Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy Monday and Merrill Lynch announced a rescue sale in a series of dramas in the US financial system which hit European stocks as soon as trading began.

AFP - The rescue of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac may be a master stroke that averts a global financial calamity, or one of the biggest economic boondoggles in history, analysts say.

Reuters - Financial regulators have decided how multi-million dollar severance packages for the departing chief executives of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac could be limited.

Reuters - Under increasing pressure from shareholders, American International Group could announce details of its turnaround plan much sooner than expected, including possible asset sales and how it will shore up capital, according to a source familiar with developments.

Reuters - Stocks closed little changed on Friday in day of whipsaw moves as uncertainty over the fate of troubled investment bank Lehman Brothers kept investors anxious about the health of the U.S. financial system.

Reuters - Shares of American International Group Inc fell almost 30 percent on Friday as investors grew increasingly concerned that its large exposure to mortgages is backing it into a corner.

Reuters - Stocks fell on Friday as fears about the survival of investment bank Lehman Brothers and the possibility of more mortgage-related losses at American International Group weighed on financial shares.

Reuters - The director of the White House Budget Office on Friday said that operations of mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac seized by the government last week should not be treated as part of the federal budget.

Reuters - Washington Mutual Inc , facing investor anxiety about its survival prospects, said it expects to increase its reserve for soured mortgages and other loans by another $4.5 billion this quarter, but that it has more than enough capital to keep operating normally.

Reuters - Fears that American International Group Inc's large mortgage exposure could trigger another round of losses has rankled investors so much that the insurer has lost its iron grip as the world's industry leader by market value.

AP - Washington Mutual Inc. said Thursday it will take another multibillion write-down for bad bets on mortgage securities but insisted it has adequate capital to fund its operations amid concern about the thrift's financial stability.

Reuters - American International Group Inc , the world's largest insurer, holds between $550 million and $600 million in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac preferred shares, according to a source familiar with the investment.

Reuters - Home loans to higher-risk borrowers fell sharply in 2007, as did some riskier practices such as layering "piggyback" mortgages to finance home purchases, U.S. regulators said in a report on Thursday.

Reuters - American International Group Inc , the world's largest insurer, has exposure to between $550 million and $600 million in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac preferred shares, according to a source familiar with the investment.