A Fix for Italian Banks May Be Balm to Portuguese Lenders Too

Plans to boost Italy's banking sector could spur other European Union countries into action.
Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/Bloomberg
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Italian banks need a solution so drastic that it could end up soothing the troubles of lenders in Portugal and even Germany.

A cocktail of sluggish growth and mounting bad loans has left Italy's banks vulnerable to shocks. British voters, by opting to leave the European Union, delivered just such a shock last week, sparking a flurry of activity in Rome as authorities stepped up plans to support the banking system