Quotes From Bear Stearns Hearing

"Even though the firm was adequately capitalized and had a substantial liquidity cushion, unfounded rumors and attendant speculation began circulating in the market that Bear Stearns was in the midst of a liquidity crisis. ... Due to the stressed condition of the credit market as a whole and the unprecedented speed at which rumors and speculation travel and echo through the modern financial media environment, the rumors and speculation became a self-fulfilling prophecy. ... There was, simply put, a run on the bank." Alan Schwartz, president and chief executive officer of Bear Stearns Cos.

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"One of the concerns we had was how much exposure can we take on top of all their exposures. So we already had plenty of mortgage exposures and risky security exposures. And we could do nothing that would leave JP Morgan in a precarious position. ... You have to look at how many straws can you put on the camel's back. And we are fairly conservative. And we went as absolutely far as we can go, both in terms of taking risky assets, taking more mortgage assets and having to borrow another $30 billion." James Dimon chairman and chief executive officer of JP Morgan Chase & Co.