Banks receiving federal bailout funds buoyed the subprime lending industry with loans and, in some cases, an ownership stake, according to a report by the Center for Public Integrity. Subprime lenders have taken much of the blame for contributing to the collapse of credit markets last year.

At least 21 of the top 25 subprime lenders were financed by banks that received federal rescue funds, according to the report, which was based on a review of federal data covering 7.2 million mortgages issued between 2005 and 2007, years that saw the rise and fall of the subprime market.

The Center for Public Integrity is a nonprofit investigative reporting group that is funded largely by charitable contributions.

A lobbyist for the financial industry criticized the report, saying that it oversimplified the problem and ignored the complexities of the market, The Washington Post reported.

Wells Fargo & Co., one of the banks cited in the report, also issued a statement dismissing the report as “a simplistic and very misleading study” and saying that 93 percent of its mortgage customers were on time with their payments last year, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

In addition to Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc., Regions Financial Corp., Capital One Financial Corp., GMAC Financial Services and American International Group Inc. owned subprime lenders. Countrywide Financial Corp., the nation’s largest subprime lender, received cash and credit from various banks, including Bank of America Corp., which purchased Countrywide in July.

Meanwhile, news media reports are saying the results of federal stress tests of 19 banks receiving bailout funds will show that nearly all have enough money to weather the recession.

For example, Wells Fargo and Bank of America will not need more money, but each will have to strengthen its capital reserves, The Washington Post reported. Bank of America will require an additional $34 billion in reserves and Wells Fargo an additional $15 billion.

The stress test results are scheduled to be released this afternoon.