The European Central Bank has been been holding U.S. dollar-providing operations since the weeks after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Inc., as part of its liquidity operations for European lending. The totals drawn by banks from the operation have been relatively low for the past couple of years. That changed this week when 12 banks sought $6.348 billion in liquidity. The total dollars sought was the most in four years. The number of bidders also jumped. So what's going on? With German banks under pressure this week as Deutsche Bank AG, the nation's biggest lender, faces U.S. legal penalties, they might be viewed as ... (full story)