Even as attention has turned once again to Italy as the next possible source of European financial contagion, Spain's sixth largest bank has found itself in freefall over the past few days as concerns grow that the bank may be liquidated unless a last-minute buyer, or source of capital, emerges. In addition to the shares of Banco Popular crashing as much as 27%, the biggest intraday drop since 1989, its perpetual bonds have likewise been in freefall mode as investors liquidate securities which "they do not want to hold going into the weekend", according to Ignacio Cantos, of ATL Capital in Madrid, quoted by Bloomberg.

The latest twist in the ongoing saga of the bad debt-saddled Spanish bank was revealed yesterday, when El Confidencial reported that Banco Popular asked Deutsche Bank to come up with a plan for the troubled Spanish lender to raise capital after its previous adviser Morgan Stanley resigned.