Earlier this week, I asked a senior executive of one of the world's most troubled investment banks when he had first grasped the meaning of the phrase "super-senior". Sheepishly, he admitted that the moment was last August.

It is a telling admission. As the credit turmoil rumbles on, the largest investment banks are continuing to make writedowns on an ever more eye-popping scale. One example is UBS, which has admitted it is now likely to have incurred more than $35bn losses from the credit crunch - in a matter of months.