Bloomberg reports that 84 of the 91 banks subjected to stress tests devised by the European Union (along with some help from us Americans) passed with flying colors and surprisingly little capital needs to be raised, prompting concern that the tests weren’t all that stressful.

Seven of 91 European Union banks subject to stress tests failed with a combined capital shortfall of 3.5 billion euros ($4.5 billion), stirring concern the evaluations weren’t strict enough.

Hypo Real Estate Holding AG, Agricultural Bank of Greece SA and five Spanish savings banks have insufficient reserves to maintain a Tier 1 capital ratio of at least 6 percent in the event of a recession and sovereign-debt crisis, lenders and regulators said today.

The banks are in “close contact” with national authorities over the results and the need for more capital, said the Committee of European Banking Supervisors, which coordinated the tests. Governments are seeking to reassure investors about the health of financial institutions after the debt crisis pummeled the bonds of Greece, Spain and Portugal.

“It would have aided credibility if there had been a higher number of fails and a higher amount of capital raised,” said Jon Peace, a London-based analyst at Nomura International Plc. “People will be surprised that it is as small as that.

The important thing is that confidence in the banking system has been restored … or has it?