In addition, Moody's cut the long-term counterparty risk ratings for some units of Bank of America, BNY, JPMorgan, State Street Corp. and Wells Fargo, lowering them one notch to Aa2. It's the latest example of the ripples that Moody's sovereign downgrade has generated. The firm stripped the U.S. of its top credit rating, lowering it by one step to Aa1, blaming successive administrations and Congress for swelling budget deficits that it said show little sign of abating. That downgrade rebounds to companies, investors and consumers that effectively lend money to banks through providing deposits, entering derivatives trades or buying unsecured bonds from units of the lenders. The U.S. government implicitly offers at least some support for the obligations of these too-big-to-fail entities, according to Moody's. "The downgrade of the U.S. government's rating indicates that it has less ability to support these highly-rated obligations," Moody's analysts wrote.