Banks, Europe Debt Crisis | featured news

Spain's government tried to plug a gaping hole in the country's banking system on Friday, but the fourth such attempt to tackle the fallout of a property crash fell short of expectations.

Spain's latest credit rating downgrade has thrown into sharp relief the need to revive a banking sector that could need another 100 billion euros to cover bad debts in order to avoid exposing another weak flank in the euro zone crisis.

The World Bank is moving to prop up the European banking system in response to the crisis in the region, echoing the steps it took during the 2008 world crisis and reflecting heightening fear that the euro’s problems are starting to crimp the global economy.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation plans to examine MF Global Holdings Ltd amid concerns about missing client funds at the futures brokerage, the Wall Street Journal said Tuesday, citing a person familiar with the matter.

The Wall Street firm run by former Goldman Sachs Chairman and New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine filed for bankruptcy Monday morning, making it the first big American casualty of the European debt crisis.

A top bank lobbyist insisted Saturday that banks and the eurozone are far from reaching a deal to cut Greece's debt, despite claims by eurozone finance ministers that they will ask banks to take steeper losses on their Greek bonds.

The leaders of Germany and France, the eurozone's two biggest economies, say they have reached agreement on strengthening Europe's shaky banking sector.

A decision by European central banks to support the region's financial system helped calm Asian markets, setting off a rally across the region in Friday trading....

After a series of positive announcement from Greek FinMin Venizelos, rumors that Moody's would downgrade French banks and Germany was preparing for a Greece to default send equities tanking, particularly French banks.

A top board member of the European Central Bank unexpectedly resigned on Friday in what analysts saw as further evidence of the deep divisions over how to resolve Europe’s growing debt crisis. The move immediately rattled European markets and the euro, which slipped to a six-month low against the dollar. The European Stoxx and German DAX indexes tumbled 3.5 percent.