The guidelines warned banks not to bury important information in fine print.

In 1952, he warned banks to pursue aggressive equity portfolios, noting that "timing wasn't everything" when trading stocks.

Banking came under stress beginning in October 2008 as Turkish banking authorities warned state-run banks against the pullback of loans from the larger financial sectors.

The Fed warned banks that it might insist that they scrutinize hedge funds more carefully and lend to them less freely.

In China, where the stock market had been soaring, the government had warned banks about improper loans to finance stock speculation.

Regulators say they had warned banks about easy lending to hedge funds.

It turns out the French authorities hadn't even bothered to warn other central banks such as the US Federal Reserve.

European regulators, who have warned banks against lending these companies too much money, have echoed that fear.

In light of these estimates, the Fed warned banks on Tuesday against lowering their lending standards on business loans.

Recognizing the debt problem, Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve, warned banks last week to be cautious in lending for buyouts.