Richard Fuld, chairman and chief executive of Lehman Brothers, stressed the bank could continue to be independent despite this quarter’s “unacceptable performance” as it confirmed its first loss as a public company.

Fuld said in a conference call: "Today, I very much believe we can go it alone and be very strong. However, we are a public company and if another model comes forward that we believe can create more shareholder value than I have an obligation to take it to the board."