Three big banks - Bank of America, Deutsche Bank and Citigroup - are among the most active at temporarily shedding debt just before reporting their finances to the public, a Wall Street Journal analysis shows.

The practice, known as end-of-quarter "window dressing" on Wall Street, suggests that the banks are carrying more risk most of the time than their investors or customers can easily see. This activity has accelerated since 2008, when the financial crisis brought actions like these under greater scrutiny, according to the analysis.