Bernard Madoff, former chairman of the Nasdaq Stock Market, was charged with securities fraud on December 11. Regulators have not yet verified the scale of the fraud, but the criminal complaint filed against Madoff in federal court in Manhattan reports that he estimated the losses at $50bn.

Madoff founded the market-making firm Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC in 1960. He also ran an investment advisory business that US prosecutors said racked up fraudulent losses which could be as high as $50bn.

• breakingviews coverage of Madoff saga