Bear Stearns, JPMorgan Close to Deal

"Rest assured, Bear Stearns has seen challenging markets before and has the experience and expertise to serve you and us well," the firm says.

Sept. 20: Bear reports 68 percent drop in quarterly income. The company's accounts slipped by $42 billion between the end of May and the end of August.

Nov. 14: CFO Molinaro says Bear will write down $1.62 billion and book a fourth-quarter loss.

Nov. 28: Bear lays off another 4 percent of its staff, two weeks after cutting 2 percent of its work force.

Dec. 20: Bear takes $1.9 billion write-down. CEO Cayne says he'll skip his 2007 bonus.

2008

Jan. 7: CEO Cayne retires under pressure. Schwartz takes over.

Mid-January: Financial stocks swoon as economists predict the U.S. economy will slip into recession. President Bush unveils a $150 billion stimulus plan.

Mid-February: Subprime woes spread to a broad range of assets, including certain kinds of municipal debt.

March 10: Market rumors say Bear may not have enough cash to do business.