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List of trading losses

Updated: 5/20/2026, 8:01:21 PM Wikipedia source

The following contains a list of trading losses of the equivalent of US$100 million or higher. Trading losses are the amount of principal losses in an account. Because of the secretive nature of many hedge funds and fund managers, some notable losses may never be reported to the public. The list is ordered by the real amount lost, starting with the greatest. This list includes both fraudulent and non-fraudulent losses, but excludes those associated with Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme (estimated in the $50 billion range) as Madoff's losses were not from trading.

Tables

at time of loss
at time of loss
Nominal amount lost
at time of loss
USD 10 bn
USD 10 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 10 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 10 bn
USD inflation to 2007
-19 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 8 bn
Country
United States
Company
Archegos Capital Management
Source of loss
Total return swaps
Year
2021
Person(s) associated with incident
Bill Hwang
USD 9 bn
USD 9 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 9 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 9 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 8 bn
Country
United States
Company
Morgan Stanley
Source of loss
Credit Default Swaps
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Howie Hubler
USD 9 bn
USD 9 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 9 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 9 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−7 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 8 bn
Country
United Kingdom
Company
JPMorgan Chase
Source of loss
Credit Default Swaps
Year
2012
Person(s) associated with incident
Bruno Iksil
USD 8 bn
USD 8 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 8 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 8 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−12 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 7 bn
Country
China
Company
Tsingshan Holding Group
Source of loss
Short positions on nickel
Year
2022
USD 6 (EUR 4 ) bn
USD 6 (EUR 4 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 6 (EUR 4 ) bn
USD FX rate
0
USD equivalent
USD 7 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 6 bn
Country
France
Company
Société Générale
Source of loss
European Index Futures
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Jérôme Kerviel
USD 6 bn
USD 6 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 6 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 6 bn
USD inflation to 2007
2 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 6 bn
Country
United States
Company
Amaranth Advisors
Source of loss
Gas Futures
Year
2006
Person(s) associated with incident
Brian Hunter
USD 4 bn
USD 4 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 4 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 4 bn
USD inflation to 2007
27 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 5 bn
Country
United States
Company
Long Term Capital Management
Source of loss
Bond Arbitrage
Year
1998
Person(s) associated with incident
John Meriwether
EUR 4 bn
EUR 4 bn
Nominal amount lost
EUR 4 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 4 bn
Country
Netherlands
Company
PFZW
Source of loss
Oil futures
Year
2020
USD 4 bn
USD 4 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 4 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 4 bn
USD inflation to 2007
-19 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 3 bn
Country
United States
Company
Melvin Capital
Source of loss
Short positions on Gamestop and other US equities
Year
2021
Person(s) associated with incident
Gabe Plotkin
USD 4 bn
USD 4 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 4 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 4 bn
USD inflation to 2007
-14 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 3 bn
Country
United States
Company
Pershing Square
Source of loss
Valeant Pharmaceuticals
Year
2015-2017
Person(s) associated with incident
Bill Ackman
JPY 285 bn
JPY 285 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 285 bn
USD FX rate
108
USD equivalent
USD 2 bn
USD inflation to 2007
32 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 3 bn
Country
Japan
Company
Sumitomo Corporation
Source of loss
Copper Futures
Year
1996
Person(s) associated with incident
Yasuo Hamanaka
USD 4 bn
USD 4 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 4 bn
USD equivalent
USD 4 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 4 bn
Country
Singapore
Company
Three Arrows Capital
Source of loss
Cryptocurrency speculation
Year
2022
Person(s) associated with incident
Kyle Davies & Su Zhu
EUR 2 bn
EUR 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
EUR 2 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 2 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−7 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
Netherlands
Company
Vestia
Source of loss
Interest Rate Swaps, Swaptions
Year
2012
Person(s) associated with incident
Marcel Vries
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
252 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
United States
Company
Hunt Brothers
Source of loss
Silver
Year
1980
Person(s) associated with incident
William Hunt, Nelson Hunt
BRL 4 bn
BRL 4 bn
Nominal amount lost
BRL 4 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 2 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
Brazil
Company
Aracruz
Source of loss
FX Options
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Isac Zagury, Rafael Sotero
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 2 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
United States
Company
SemGroup
Source of loss
Oil Futures
Year
2008
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
39 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
United States
Company
Orange County
Source of loss
Leveraged bond investments
Year
1994
Person(s) associated with incident
Robert Citron
DEM 2 bn
DEM 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
DEM 2 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
43 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
Germany
Company
Metallgesellschaft
Source of loss
Oil Futures
Year
1993
Person(s) associated with incident
Heinz Schimmelbusch
JPY 166 bn
JPY 166 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 166 bn
USD FX rate
111
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
43 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
Japan
Company
Showa Shell Sekiyu
Source of loss
FX Forwards
Year
1993
JPY 153 bn
JPY 153 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 153 bn
USD FX rate
102
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
39 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
Japan
Company
Kashima Oil
Source of loss
FX Forwards
Year
1994
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 2 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
United States
Company
Soros Fund Management
Source of loss
Russian Equities
Year
1998
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 2 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 2 bn
Country
United States
Company
Tiger Management
Source of loss
Shorting Japanese yen
Year
1998
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 2 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 2 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−8 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
United Kingdom
Company
UBS
Source of loss
Equities ETF and Delta 1
Year
2011
Person(s) associated with incident
Kweku Adoboli
HKD 14 bn
HKD 14 bn
Nominal amount lost
HKD 14 bn
USD FX rate
7
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
China
Company
CITIC Pacific
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Trading
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Frances Yung
GBP 827 mn
GBP 827 mn
Nominal amount lost
GBP 827 mn
USD FX rate
0
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
36 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Singapore
Company
Barings Bank
Source of loss
Nikkei Futures
Year
1995
Person(s) associated with incident
Nick Leeson
RUB 78 bn
RUB 78 bn
Nominal amount lost
RUB 78 bn
USD FX rate
38
USD equivalent
USD 2 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−12 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Russia
Company
Transneft
Source of loss
Derivatives
Year
2014
Person(s) associated with incident
Maksim Grishanin, VP Finance
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
United States
Company
Deutsche Bank
Source of loss
Derivatives
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Boaz Weinstein
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
United States
Company
Icahn Enterprises
Source of loss
Hertz
Year
2020
Person(s) associated with incident
Carl Icahn
JPY 130 bn
JPY 130 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 130 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Japan
Company
AIJ Investment Advisors
Source of loss
Volatility options
Year
2012
Person(s) associated with incident
Kazuhiko Asakawa
USD 1 (EUR 1 ) bn
USD 1 (EUR 1 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 (EUR 1 ) bn
USD FX rate
0
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
20 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Austria
Company
BAWAG
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Trading
Year
2000
Person(s) associated with incident
Wolfgang Flöttl, Helmut Elsner
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
36 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Japan
Company
Daiwa Bank
Source of loss
Bonds
Year
1995
Person(s) associated with incident
Toshihide Iguchi
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
82 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
United Kingdom
Company
Soros Fund
Source of loss
SP 500 Futures
Year
1987
Person(s) associated with incident
George Soros
CAD 2 bn
CAD 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
CAD 2 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
-20%
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
🇨🇦 Canada
Company
Alberta Investment Management Corporation
Source of loss
Volatility Selling
Year
2020
Person(s) associated with incident
Peter Pontikes & David Triska
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD FX rate
0
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
France
Company
Groupe Caisse d'Epargne
Source of loss
Derivatives
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Boris Picano-Nacci
BRL 2 bn
BRL 2 bn
Nominal amount lost
BRL 2 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn
USD inflation to 2007
−3 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Brazil
Company
Sadia
Source of loss
FX and Credit Options
Year
2008
Person(s) associated with incident
Adriano Ferreira, Álvaro Ballejo
EUR 0 bn
EUR 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
EUR 0 bn
USD equivalent
USD 1 bn≈
2007 USD amount lost
USD 1 bn≈
Country
Italy
Company
Monte dei Paschi di Siena
Source of loss
Synthetic CDOs Credit Default Swaps on Italian government bonds Equity swaps on Intesa Sanpaolo shares
Year
2005-2009
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 1 bn
Country
Saudi Arabia
Company
Saudi National Bank
Source of loss
Credit Suisse
Year
2023
GBP 0 bn
GBP 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
GBP 0 bn
USD FX rate
0
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
29 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United Kingdom
Company
Morgan Grenfell
Source of loss
Shares
Year
1997
Person(s) associated with incident
Peter Young
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
39 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Askin Capital Management
Source of loss
Mortgage-Backed Securities
Year
1994
Person(s) associated with incident
David Askin
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
0
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Germany
Company
WestLB
Source of loss
Common and Preferred Shares
Year
2007
Person(s) associated with incident
Friedhelm Breuers
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
15 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
AIB/Allfirst
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Options
Year
2002
Person(s) associated with incident
John Rusnak
S$1 bn
S$1 bn
Nominal amount lost
S$1 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Singapore
Company
Hin Leong Trading
Source of loss
Oil
Year
2020
DEM 0 bn
DEM 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
DEM 0 bn
USD FX rate
2
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
320 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Germany
Company
Herstatt Bank
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Trading
Year
1974
Person(s) associated with incident
Dany Dattel
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Arkansas Teacher Retirement System
Source of loss
volatility-trading fund
Year
2020
CAD 0 bn
CAD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
CAD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
0%
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Canada
Company
Bank of Montreal
Source of loss
Natural gas derivatives
Year
2007
Person(s) associated with incident
David Lee, Kevin Cassidy
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
9 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
China
Company
China Aviation Oil (Singapore)
Source of loss
Oil Futures and Options
Year
2004
Person(s) associated with incident
Chen Jiulin
CHF 0 bn
CHF 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
CHF 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
27 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Switzerland
Company
Union Bank of Switzerland
Source of loss
Equity Derivatives
Year
1998
Person(s) associated with incident
Ramy Goldstein
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio
Source of loss
Panda Power Funds
Year
2011-2021
EUR 0 bn
EUR 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
EUR 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
France
Company
Électricité de France S .
Source of loss
French electricity contracts
Year
2021
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
82 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Knight Capital Group
Source of loss
Equities
Year
2012
Person(s) associated with incident
Thomas Joyce
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
82 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Merrill Lynch
Source of loss
Mortgages (IOs and POs) Trading
Year
1987
Person(s) associated with incident
Howard A. Rubin
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
82 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
State of West Virginia
Source of loss
Fixed Income and Interest Rate Derivatives
Year
1987
Person(s) associated with incident
A. James Manchin
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
39 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Kidder Peabody
Source of loss
Government Bonds
Year
1994
Person(s) associated with incident
Joseph Jett
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
20 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Manhattan Investment Fund
Source of loss
Short IT stocks during the internet bubble
Year
2000
Person(s) associated with incident
Michael Berger
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
9 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Austria
Company
Hypo Alpe-Adria-Bank International
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Trading
Year
2004
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
0 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Calyon
Source of loss
Credit Derivatives
Year
2007
Person(s) associated with incident
Richard "Chip" Bierbaum
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
0 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Singapore
Company
Petro-Diamond Singapore
Source of loss
Oil derivatives
Year
2019
Person(s) associated with incident
Wang Xingchen, Jack
AUD 0 bn
AUD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
AUD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
9 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Australia
Company
National Australia Bank
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Trading
Year
2004
Person(s) associated with incident
Luke Duffy, Gianni Gray, Vince Ficarra & David Bullen
JPY 28 bn
JPY 28 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 28 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Japan
Company
Tateho Chemical Industries
Source of loss
Bond futures
Year
1987
JPY 32 bn
JPY 32 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 32 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Japan
Company
Tokyo Securities
Source of loss
Bond futures
Year
1994
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Qatar
Company
Qatar Investment Authority
Source of loss
Credit Suisse
Year
2023
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
320 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Switzerland
Company
Lloyds Bank
Source of loss
Foreign Exchange Trading
Year
1974
Person(s) associated with incident
Marc Colombo
CAD 0 bn
CAD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
CAD 0 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Canada
Company
Christopher DeVocht
Source of loss
Stocks
Year
2022
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
USD FX rate
0
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
17 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Belgium
Company
Dexia Bank
Source of loss
Corporate Bonds
Year
2001
USD 0 bn (EUR 0 ) bn
USD 0 bn (EUR 0 ) bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn (EUR 0 ) bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
-1%
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Hong Kong
Company
Natixis
Source of loss
Equities Derivatives
Year
2018
USD 0 bn+
USD 0 bn+
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn+
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn+
Country
United States
Company
Parplus Partners
Source of loss
CBOE Volatility Index futures and options
Year
2020
Person(s) associated with incident
Jim Carney
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
43 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
FXCM
Source of loss
Foreign exchange
Year
2015
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
43 %
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Chile
Company
Codelco
Source of loss
Copper, silver, gold futures
Year
1993
Person(s) associated with incident
Juan Pablo Davila
EUR 0
EUR 0
Nominal amount lost
EUR 0
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
USD inflation to 2007
0%
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0
Country
Germany
Company
BNP Paribas Arbitrage
Source of loss
Structured products
Year
2016
Person(s) associated with incident
Armin S.
JPY 11 bn
JPY 11 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 11 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Japan/ United States
Company
Fuji Bank New York Branch
Source of loss
Foreign exchange trading
Year
1984
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
Nominal amount lost
USD 0 bn
USD FX rate
1
USD equivalent
USD 0 bn
Country
United States
Company
Raytheon Technologies Corporation
Source of loss
volatility-trading fund
Year
2020
JPY 9 bn
JPY 9 bn
Nominal amount lost
JPY 9 bn
2007 USD amount lost
USD 0 bn
Country
Japan/ Singapore
Company
Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank Singapore Branch
Source of loss
Foreign exchange trading
Year
1982
Person(s) associated with incident
Haruo Kanda
Nominal amount lost
USD FX rate
USD equivalent
USD inflation to 2007
2007 USD amount lost
Country
Company
Source of loss
Year
Person(s) associated with incident
at time of loss
USD 10 bn
1
USD 10 bn
-19 %
USD 8 bn
United States
Archegos Capital Management
Total return swaps
2021
Bill Hwang
USD 9 bn
1
USD 9 bn
−3 %
USD 8 bn
United States
Morgan Stanley
Credit Default Swaps
2008
Howie Hubler
USD 9 bn
1
USD 9 bn
−7 %
USD 8 bn
United Kingdom
JPMorgan Chase
Credit Default Swaps
2012
Bruno Iksil
USD 8 bn
1
USD 8 bn
−12 %
USD 7 bn
China
Tsingshan Holding Group
Short positions on nickel
2022
USD 6 (EUR 4 ) bn
0
USD 7 bn
−3 %
USD 6 bn
France
Société Générale
European Index Futures
2008
Jérôme Kerviel
USD 6 bn
1
USD 6 bn
2 %
USD 6 bn
United States
Amaranth Advisors
Gas Futures
2006
Brian Hunter
USD 4 bn
1
USD 4 bn
27 %
USD 5 bn
United States
Long Term Capital Management
Bond Arbitrage
1998
John Meriwether
EUR 4 bn
USD 4 bn
Netherlands
PFZW
Oil futures
2020
USD 4 bn
1
USD 4 bn
-19 %
USD 3 bn
United States
Melvin Capital
Short positions on Gamestop and other US equities
2021
Gabe Plotkin
USD 4 bn
1
USD 4 bn
-14 %
USD 3 bn
United States
Pershing Square
Valeant Pharmaceuticals
2015-2017
Bill Ackman
JPY 285 bn
108
USD 2 bn
32 %
USD 3 bn
Japan
Sumitomo Corporation
Copper Futures
1996
Yasuo Hamanaka
USD 4 bn
USD 4 bn
USD 4 bn
Singapore
Three Arrows Capital
Cryptocurrency speculation
2022
Kyle Davies & Su Zhu
EUR 2 bn
1
USD 2 bn
−7 %
USD 2 bn
Netherlands
Vestia
Interest Rate Swaps, Swaptions
2012
Marcel Vries
USD 1 bn
1
USD 1 bn
252 %
USD 2 bn
United States
Hunt Brothers
Silver
1980
William Hunt, Nelson Hunt
BRL 4 bn
1
USD 2 bn
−3 %
USD 2 bn
Brazil
Aracruz
FX Options
2008
Isac Zagury, Rafael Sotero
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
United States
SemGroup
Oil Futures
2008
USD 1 bn
1
USD 1 bn
39 %
USD 2 bn
United States
Orange County
Leveraged bond investments
1994
Robert Citron
DEM 2 bn
1
USD 1 bn
43 %
USD 2 bn
Germany
Metallgesellschaft
Oil Futures
1993
Heinz Schimmelbusch
JPY 166 bn
111
USD 1 bn
43 %
USD 2 bn
Japan
Showa Shell Sekiyu
FX Forwards
1993
JPY 153 bn
102
USD 1 bn
39 %
USD 2 bn
Japan
Kashima Oil
FX Forwards
1994
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
United States
Soros Fund Management
Russian Equities
1998
USD 2 bn
USD 2 bn
United States
Tiger Management
Shorting Japanese yen
1998
USD 2 bn
1
USD 2 bn
−8 %
USD 1 bn
United Kingdom
UBS
Equities ETF and Delta 1
2011
Kweku Adoboli
HKD 14 bn
7
USD 1 bn
−3 %
USD 1 bn
China
CITIC Pacific
Foreign Exchange Trading
2008
Frances Yung
GBP 827 mn
0
USD 1 bn
36 %
USD 1 bn
Singapore
Barings Bank
Nikkei Futures
1995
Nick Leeson
RUB 78 bn
38
USD 2 bn
−12 %
USD 1 bn
Russia
Transneft
Derivatives
2014
Maksim Grishanin, VP Finance
USD 1 bn
1
USD 1 bn
−3 %
USD 1 bn
United States
Deutsche Bank
Derivatives
2008
Boaz Weinstein
USD 1 bn
USD 1 bn
United States
Icahn Enterprises
Hertz
2020
Carl Icahn
JPY 130 bn
USD 1 bn
Japan
AIJ Investment Advisors
Volatility options
2012
Kazuhiko Asakawa
USD 1 (EUR 1 ) bn
0
USD 1 bn
20 %
USD 1 bn
Austria
BAWAG
Foreign Exchange Trading
2000
Wolfgang Flöttl, Helmut Elsner
USD 1 bn
1
USD 1 bn
36 %
USD 1 bn
Japan
Daiwa Bank
Bonds
1995
Toshihide Iguchi
USD 0 bn
1
USD 0 bn
82 %
USD 1 bn
United Kingdom
Soros Fund
SP 500 Futures
1987
George Soros
CAD 2 bn
1
USD 1 bn
-20%
USD 1 bn
🇨🇦 Canada
Alberta Investment Management Corporation
Volatility Selling
2020
Peter Pontikes & David Triska
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
0
USD 1 bn
−3 %
USD 1 bn
France
Groupe Caisse d'Epargne
Derivatives
2008
Boris Picano-Nacci
BRL 2 bn
1
USD 1 bn
−3 %
USD 1 bn
Brazil
Sadia
FX and Credit Options
2008
Adriano Ferreira, Álvaro Ballejo
EUR 0 bn
USD 1 bn≈
USD 1 bn≈
Italy
Monte dei Paschi di Siena
Synthetic CDOs Credit Default Swaps on Italian government bonds Equity swaps on Intesa Sanpaolo shares
2005-2009
USD 1 bn
Saudi Arabia
Saudi National Bank
Credit Suisse
2023
GBP 0 bn
0
USD 0 bn
29 %
USD 0 bn
United Kingdom
Morgan Grenfell
Shares
1997
Peter Young
USD 0 bn
1
USD 0 bn
39 %
USD 0 bn
United States
Askin Capital Management
Mortgage-Backed Securities
1994
David Askin
USD 0 (EUR 0 ) bn
1
USD 0 bn
0
USD 0 bn
Germany
WestLB
Common and Preferred Shares
2007
Friedhelm Breuers
USD 0 bn
1
USD 0 bn
15 %
USD 0 bn
United States
AIB/Allfirst
Foreign Exchange Options
2002
John Rusnak
S$1 bn
USD 0 bn
Singapore
Hin Leong Trading
Oil
2020
DEM 0 bn
2
USD 0 bn
320 %
USD 0 bn
Germany
Herstatt Bank
Foreign Exchange Trading
1974
Dany Dattel
USD 0 bn
USD 0 bn
United States
Arkansas Teacher Retirement System
volatility-trading fund
2020
USD 0 bn
0%
USD 0 bn
China
Unipec
Oil
2018
USD 0 bn
United States
Quantum Fund
Japanese Yen Shorting
1994
Stanley Druckenmiller
CAD 0 bn
1
USD 0 bn
0%
USD 0 bn
Canada
Bank of Montreal
Natural gas derivatives
2007
David Lee, Kevin Cassidy
USD 0 bn
United States
Quantum Fund
Short IT stocks during the internet bubble
1999
Stanley Druckenmiller

References

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  16. Vestia claims, Time
    https://www.ft.com/content/66713ccc-408d-4622-94ca-12fc2e8381d6
  17. "Brazil Stocks Tumble After Aracruz, Sadia Post Currency Losses"
    https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=ayGY1X.jd0Ys&refer=latin_america
  18. "Aracruz Fails to Settle $2 Billion Derivative Loss (Update6)"
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  20. The Effect of the Orange County Bankruptcy on Residential Real Estate Prices, Thomas A. Evans, Chicago Graduate School o
    http://faculty.chicagogsb.edu/thomas.evans/documents/bankruptcy.pdf
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