NEW YORK (AP) -- Lehman Brothers is telling its creditors how much money they will recover as the company emerges from bankruptcy protection.

The New York investment bank, which kicked off the 2008 financial crisis with its collapse, said Wednesday that it will distribute $22.5 billion starting on April 17. With over 12,000 individual payments, Lehman believes it is the largest initial distribution made by a company emerging from bankruptcy.

Distributions to creditors will vary widely depending on what kind of claim they hold, and on which division of Lehman, when the company failed. Holders of unsecured claims against Lehman Brothers Financial Products Inc., a derivatives subsidiary, will receive the full amount they are owed, for example. Those holding senior unsecured claims against the parent company will only receive about 6 percent.

The payments do not include $4.4 billion in cash reserved for disputed claims, or $6 billion of unrestricted cash reserved for operating and other expenses.

A federal bankruptcy judge approved Lehman's restructuring plan in December. Under the plan, Lehman will make a second distribution to creditors on or around Sept. 30.

Lehman's was the biggest corporate bankruptcy in U.S. history. Its failure caused a panic among financial companies who feared that Lehman-related losses would topple other firms.

The government soon stepped in with billions of bailout money and subsidies to prevent other big Wall Street banks from failing.