European stocks fall as Deutsche Bank leads rout in banks

A steep selloff in banking stocks hit European indices on Friday as worries about the stability of the financial sector intensified, with the news of a US probe on Credit Suisse and UBS further souring the mood.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) fell 1.5%, but a sharp recovery earlier this week put it on track for weekly gains.

Shares of UBS Group AG (UBSG.S) and Credit Suisse AG (CSGN.S) fell 6.3% and 6.7%, respectively, after Bloomberg News reported they are among the banks under scrutiny in a US Department of Justice (DOJ) probe into whether financial professionals helped Russian oligarchs evade sanctions.