In the long and dynamic history of risks faced - and faced down - by financial institutions, the events of September 11 both delivered a shock and measured organisations' ability to bounce back.

The experience of one firm in particular, bond-trading house Cantor Fitzgerald, underscores the swiftness with which financial institutions can rebound after unprecedented human tragedy and operational upheaval. Despite losing more than 700 employees and the facilities of its main New York trading floor in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, Cantor Fitzgerald was up and running when US bond markets reopened just two days later.