Bear Stearns debt protection costs jump to record

NEW YORK, March 14 (Reuters) - The cost to insure the debt of Bear Stearns Cos BSC.N jumped to an all-time high on Friday after the bank said a cash crunch forced it to turn to the Federal Reserve and JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N: Quote, Profile, Research) for emergency funds.

The cost to insure Bear's debt with credit default swaps rose to 765 basis points, or $765,000 per year for five years to insure $10 million in debt, up from 685 basis points before the announcement, according to broker Phoenix Partners Group.

(Reporting by Karen Brettell; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)