The five American Bulge Bracket firms on Wall Street prior to late 2008 were, from largest to smallest: Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Lehman Brothers, and Bear Stearns.
This list shrunk to none as a result of the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis, with Bear Stearns being purchased by JPMorgan Chase, Lehman Brothers having filed for bankruptcy, Merrill Lynch being purchased by Bank of America, and Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley moving to become bank holding companies.