Europe bank shares sink on concerns over US sector, Deutsche down 10%

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Shares of Europe's largest banks fell on Friday after problems at a regional US lender triggered a Wall Street sell-off in the sector.

Deutsche Bank shares fell nearly 10% after the Frankfurt stock exchange began, while Commerzbank, Germany's second-largest lender, fell more than 6%.

Barclays and HSBC in London were down more than 5%, while RBS, Standard Chartered, and Lloyd's were down around 4%.

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Societe Generale shares fell 5.5 percent after the Paris stock market opened, while BNP Paribas fell 4.4 percent and Credit Agricole fell 3.6 percent.

The four biggest US banks lost $52 billion in market value on Thursday as shares in SVB Financial, a major lender to the tech sector, fell by 60%.

The Silicon Valley bank took a hit after announcing a stock offering and selling securities in order to generate much-needed cash as it struggles with falling deposits. It revealed that it had lost $1.8 billion following the sales.

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SVB CEO Greg Becker urged clients to remain calm during a conference call Thursday, according to Bloomberg, citing a source familiar with the situation.

JPMorgan Chase, the largest US bank, saw its shares fall 5.4 percent on Thursday.

Bank of America and Wells Fargo both dropped 6.2 percent, while Citigroup fell 4.1 percent.