A year ago today news broke of the estimated $50bn (€34bn) Ponzi scheme masterminded by Bernard Madoff, which sent shockwaves through the markets and rattled investors. Financial News has picked out the key events in the saga over the past 12 months.

• December 12, 2008: Bernard Madoff arrested by federal agents a day after allegedly telling two senior employees that his business was "a giant Ponzi scheme." The scheme involved the asset management unit of his investment firm Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities.