S&P lowers ratings on 15 Italian banks

Standard & Poor's on Friday cut the ratings on 15 Italian banks, but left ratings unchanged for market leaders UniCredit, Intesa Sanpaolo and Mediobanca. The agency said the ratings cuts -- which included Unione di Banche Italiane, better known as UBI -- reflected "increased credit risk for the Italian economy and its banks." "With Italy facing a potentially deeper and more prolonged recession than we had originally anticipated, we think Italian banks' vulnerability to credit risk in the economy is rising," S&P said. The downgraded banks also included Banca Popolare dell'Emilia Romagna and Banca Popolare di Vicenza.