Scandal at world's oldest bank

By hiding losses of hundreds of millions of euros, the 540-year-old Monte dei Paschi di Siena has threatened to trip up the leading Democratic Party – to Silvio Berlusconi's benefit.

A scandal engulfing the world’s oldest bank has emerged as a potential game changer in Italy’s national election, threatening to drag down the leading party in the polls and give a critical boost to Silvio Berlusconi’s bid to regain office.

Monte dei Paschi di Siena was founded in 1472, 20 years before Columbus discovered America, but its centuries-old reputation has been severely tarnished by a still-unraveling scandal over derivatives deals worth hundreds of millions of euros and hidden by the bank until brought to light in recent days.

The derivative deals could cost the 540-year-old bank losses of up to 720 million euros ($970 million). What makes it so politically damaging is the banks ties to the center-left Democratic Party. Read more >>

S&P downgrades world's oldest bank to junk

Standard & Poor's on Wednesday cut its credit rating for troubled Italian bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena -- the world's oldest surviving lender -- to speculative-grade status of BB+ from BBB-.

The ratings agency said it was also placing the bank on negative outlook.

"Deteriorating trends in Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena's financial position make it unlikely that the bank would restore profitability and improve its capital and funding position in line with our previous expectations.

"The difficult economic and operating environment we anticipate in the Italian market will compound the challenges for MPS to implement successfully its business plan," the agency said in a statement.

The ratings agency said the bank's profitability could continue to be under pressure through 2013 despite its efforts to reduce costs. Read more >>