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Investors rushed to sell, sparking a 23 per cent drop in the stock price, after it was confirmed Europe's weakest bank plans to cut 2,500 jobs and close 500 branches. MPS is also hoping to sell off around €28billion (£25bn) worth of bad loans, which have weighed down Italy's oldest lender and spooked markets in recent months. The plan was intially met with market cheer that pushed the bank's share price up. But frenzied selling soon took hold, forcing a suspension in trading.

GETTY Monte Paschi unveiled a new rescue plan on Tuesday

GETTY Monte Dei Paschi has billions of pounds worth of bad loans on its books

Italy's banks holds around £270billion of so-called non-performing loans - a third of the eurozone's total. But MPS has frequently been highlighted as the biggest worry. The lender has has a market value of less than £1billion - but has around £40bn of soured loans on its books. MPS was found to be one of the weakest banks in Europe by stress tests in July. It was hoped that a new chief executive Marco Morelli, who took to the helm of the bank last month, would be able to restore confidence in the bank.

What countries are in the EU? Wed, September 14, 2016 In the wake of Brexit, we look at the 28 member states that are in the European Union. Play slideshow Getty 1 of 29 Countries that are in the European Union