Bank Risk at Record-High as ECB Said to Intervene: Euro Credit

Bank bonds in Europe are the riskiest ever as the European Central Bank was said to be snapping up Italian and Spanish government debt whose soaring yields hurt lenders already nursing Greek writedowns.

“Banks that were perceived to have heavy exposure to Greece were penalized,” said John Stopford, the London-based head of fixed income at Investec Asset Management Ltd., which manages more than $90 billion. “Now, maybe people will be more worried about exposure to other parts of Europe.”