Fitch lowered the long-term ratings on Bank of America and Goldman Sachs in the United States, British bank Barclays, French bank BNP Paribas, German bank Deutsche Bank and Swiss bank Credit Suisse.
The downgrades "reflected challenges faced by the sector as a whole, rather than negative developments in idiosyncratic fundamental creditworthiness," Fitch said in a statement.
Fitch said that the global trading and universal banks "are particularly sensitive to the increased challenges the financial markets face.
"These challenges result from both economic developments as well as a myriad of regulatory changes," the French-owned ratings firm said.
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It said the actions took into account "the significant progress it sees the banks have made in building up capital and liquidity buffers to resist market challenges."
