Lehman Brothers wasn’t the first bank to fail overnight but when, in 2008, it did, the world’s economy teetered on the brink of collapse. One of the unsung heroes of that harrowing period was clearing house LCH.Clearnet, which was thrust into the heart of the volcano through its role as the middleman in most of the bank’s derivatives trades.

Tasked with unwinding the bank's portfolio, LCH's then chief executive Roger Liddell described it at the time as "the most complex and challenging default in our history". That success has helped clearing houses, often known as counterparties, or CCPs, take an even more pivotal role in the financial system, such as the decision of G20 leaders in 2009 to mandate that many standardised derivatives should settle through clearing houses for the first time.