[ by Melanie Gretchen ] European banks have no plans to part with their U.S. operations, even though the European debt crisis has ravaged business closer to home and weakened their already fragile capital balances.  They contend that this is not the time to sell of U.S. branches and retail divisions.  And you can never get too much of a good thing - just ask Banco Santander, Royal Bank of Scotland, and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria. Changing Market. While European banks have had to operate under difficult conditions since the start of the global credit crisis, the most recent couple of years have been exceptionally brutal.  Under the weight of the flagging economy in their own countries, and throughout the entire European community, analysts had been expecting these banks to unload their U.S. assets - as early as 2 years ago. Yet, only a handful of small deals have gone through.  Allied Irish Banks sold a 22% stake in M&T Bank in late 2010, and HSBC Holdings dumped its U.S. credit-card portfolio and some branches - much to the chagrin of potential buyers from Canada and Japan looking to fatten its U.S. layers. Recently, France's BNP Paribas reportedly rejected offers from at least 2 North American banks for its U.S. subsidiary, the San Francisco-based Bank of the West.  The bank's reason was that the offers were too low.  Bank of the West has a valuable infrastructure, with roughly 650 branches in 19 Western and Midwestern states, and $62 billion in assets on deposit. Then, there are the positive industry indicators.  The number of souring loans is declining, banks are beginning to issue new loans, and the industry's capital levels, while still under pressure, are firming up.   And why would a foreign financial institution look to unload its most stable and secure assets?  U.S. banking operations undoubtedly offset the higher risks of businesses closer to home. Finally, foreign banks that do look to sell its assets may find that few of major U.S. banks are willing to bid, knowing that U.S. regulators would look unkindly on big domestic banks bulking up through acquisitions. So, while there may be interest, today there is no sale. [NY Post, 2/17/12]