Imagine a trillion-dollar market that runs on faxes and phonecalls while routinely tying up investors' money for months beforethey get any return.

That's not fiction: It's the unregulated market for leveragedcorporate loans. In a financial system that is increasinglyautomated, the origination and trading of loans is in the relativedark ages while money pours in from mainstream investors such asKansas and New York pension plans and mutual funds catering toindividuals seeking high yields in an era of near-zero interestrates.

The antiquated structure of a market that's ballooned from amere $35 billion in 1997 poses a growing threat, raising the oddsof gridlock in a downturn when investors expect to get their moneyback with a click of a button. As of yet, no regulators have takenresponsibility for fixing the deficiency.