Credit analysts at Dutch bank ING have blasted politicians and market commentators for using complex credit derivative instruments as a “scapegoat” for the turmoil in the credit markets in the wake of Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy protection last month.

In a note to clients, ING credit strategist Jeroen van den Broek wrote that while credit default swap instruments may have enhanced the debt structures that carry the toxic waste, the instruments have been used as a “scapegoat for political and economic goals.”