Lehman Brothers

Mitt Romney's Swiss bank account is back in the news, and Americans are wondering why he has money in the famous tax haven. But if "Swiss bank account" makes you think of criminals, secret agents and tax dodgers, your ideas are more fiction than fact.

While creditors continue to fight over the crumbs of Lehman Brothers, one tiny piece of the investment bank just demonstrated close to a 66,000% return on investment -- as a collectors item: A 50-cent share in the bank was sold at auction Saturday for 24,000 euros -- about $33,000.

Should Ernst & Young be held responsible for the bad actions of Lehman Brothers? New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who Tuesday slapped the Big Four audit firm with civil fraud charges, thinks so. But it's not an easy question to answer.

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo has filed a civil lawsuit against Ernst & Young, alleging that the accounting giant helped now-defunct investment bank Lehman Brothers hide billions of dollars in debt from its investors via loans disguised as sales.

Stocks closed broadly higher Tuesday, helped by more deal activity in the financial sector and upbeat earnings from the tech sector. After more than two years, the market has regained all its losses following the implosion of Lehman Brothers in September 2008.

Accounting giant Ernst & Young is expected to face civil fraud charges by New York prosecutors over its alleged role in the spectacular collapse of Lehman Brothers. The lawsuit would mark the first time a Big Four accountant has been charged in regard to the financial crisis.

Lehman Brothers bankruptcy fees are approaching $1 billion, making it the costliest in U.S. history.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has proposed rules requiring companies to disclose metrics that try to prevent balance sheet "window dressing".

As a final capper to our look at Wall Street two years after the peak of the financial crisis, we offer a different look at the masters of the universe who played the game, ruled the street, and walked away with wheelbarrow loads of cash. We've matched shots of some of the coldest, hardest predators in the world... and a bunch of cuddly reptiles.

The financial crisis was produced by a complex set of circumstances, including a massive housing bubble, poor regulation and irresponsible lending on an epic scale. A handful of bankers became the public faces of the crisis, and now, two years later, we take a look at what became of them.