Says who? None other than former Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt.

The description may sound over the top, but Levitt argues that recent charges of price fixing and kickbacks have implications across the financial system.

Almost every insurance company, including Boston-based Liberty Mutual, has received subpoenas as part of New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's widening probe.

Levitt joined growing calls for Jeffrey Greenberg to stand down as chief of Marsh & McLennan, the brokerage at the center of the furor.

"It's hard for me to see how this scandal will not reach right to the top," he told Bloomberg News.

Greenberg's position looks increasingly precarious. Spitzer is refusing to negotiate with the company's current leadership.

Banks threw Marsh Mac a $2.8 billion lifeline yesterday, keeping open credit lines to prevent collapse.

The company's woes deepened on news four employees had been suspended over the scandal: William Gilman, executive director of marketing at Marsh Global Broking, along with his daughter Samantha; Greg Doherty, a senior vice president; and brokerage exec Edward McNenney.

-- Brett Arends