In the days following the Federal Reserve’s brokered takeover of Bear Stearns by JPMorgan, there was palpable shock in the US that such a large and important institution could go the same way as Britain’s troublesome mortgage bank, Northern Rock.

But, the argument went, at least the Fed and the US Treasury ensured Bear’s demise was swift, efficient, and did not jeopardise the reputation of the US authorities. This compared with the five months of British wrangling after Northern Rock’s collapse, which damaged the global standing of the City of London, the Treasury, the Bank of England and the Financial Services Authority.