Spain's largest bank - Santander (STD) - will set aside €2.3B in loss provisions to meet...

Spain's largest bank - Santander (STD) - will set aside €2.3B in loss provisions to meet new government standards forcing lenders to more realistically value the real estate assets on their books. BBVA - the 2nd largest lender - will set aside €2.8B, but unlike Santander, expects the provisions to result in a large (€1.36B) hit to 2012 earnings.