J.P. Morgan Acquires Bear Stearns

On Sunday, Bear Stearns agreed to be purchased by J.P. Morgan Chase for $2 a share, or about $236 million. Bear's shares were going for $170 a year ago.J.P. Morgan said it would guarantee trading obligations of Bear Stearns and its subsidiaries.“J.P. Morgan Chase stands behind Bear Stearns,”said Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon. “Bear Stearns’s clients and counterparties should feel secure that J.P. Morgan is guaranteeing Bear Stearns’s counterparty risk.”Using J.P. Morgan as an intermediary, the Federal Reserve invoked a Depression-era provision on Friday that would give troubled securities firm Bear Stearns access to emergency funding.Bear's shares fell 47% to $30 on the news Friday, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling nearly 195 points. Bankers and officials scrambled to arrange a deal over the weekend before the markets opened Monday.Bear CEO Alan Schwartz said the deal "represents the best outcome for all of our constituencies based upon the current circumstances.”