Hans Hufschmid, [a former partner at LTCM] who now runs hedge fund administrator GlobeOp Financial Services, said that no single hedge fund today presents a systemic risk to the global financial system.

Hufschmid credited prime brokers for putting the brakes on some of the worst excesses exemplified by LTCM, including huge amounts of leverage,

"Prime brokers would manage that," he said. "They would say, ‘We’re not lending you that much money.’"

"The market regulates it to some extent," he added. "You couldn’t have a situation where one hedge fund takes excessive risks with one prime broker."