While the prominent U.S. investment bank Lehman Brothers failed to find a buyer, filed for bankruptcy protection and is battling liquidation, the leading financial management and advisory firm, Merrill Lynch agreed to sell itself on Sunday to Bank of America for roughly $50 billion to avert a deepening financial crisis.

Asian markets reacted first on the news Monday, followed by the Middle East, Russia, Europe and then North and South American markets.

With European stock exchanges down between three and four percent and Wall Street slumping almost three percent, the central banks, led by the U.S. Federal Reserve, rushed to inject tens of billions of dollars into the money markets to confront the rush on liquidity as investors pulled money out of stocks looking for safety.

At the same time, the dollar fell heavily against the euro before while oil prices slumped to seven-month lows.

Yesterday's events helped reshape the landscape of American finance in a tumultuous year in which prominent financial institutions tumbled losing hundreds of billions of dollars due to bad mortgage finance and real estate investments. In addition, Lehman Brothers- and Merril Lynch-induced turmoil sparked fears that more bad news is on the horizon for the global finance sector and economy.

Investors globally are looking for a safe harbor in order to protect their investments.
Due to the volatility of today's markets, many investors are expected to turn to the short-duration government bonds.

The alternatives for Israeli investors include cash and liquidity funds, such as Vanguard Money Market or Libor Plus Liquidity hybrid fund offered by the Forum Group, a global offshore fund manager with offices in Ra'anana, Israel.

Investors with a longer-term outlook may turn to the real estate markets, in particular the U.S. market due to attractive prices and the weak U.S. dollar. Forum-Benerofe U.S. Global Opportunities Fund, which holds investments in a various types of real estate assets in the U.S., is one such investment opportunity.

Forum Group offers the largest selection of global financial products in Israel and in Europe and serves institutional investors, professional asset managers and accredited investors worldwide. In addition to Forum's strategic alliances with Wellington Management and Vanguard Investments, Forum partners with over fifteen other global investment management firms, such as Franklin Templeton Investments, Gartmore, Man Investments, Liongate and others. With over a thousand financial products to choose from, Forum Group provides a comprehensive value-added solution by tailoring financial products to its customers' needs.