Greek debt crisis: Greece upbeat on bailout deal but bank shares continue to plummet
Greek finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos said yesterday that he was confident an agreement with the cash-strapped country’s lenders could be reached by 20 August, despite admitting disagreements on privatisations.
Tsakalotos met yesterday with representatives of the International Monetary Fund, Eurozone and European Central Bank (ECB) to further discuss terms attached to any further lending.
He said there were disagreements on legal issues surrounding the country’s required privatisation fund, but remained optimistic overall.
“There have been some divergences on some points,” he said, but added: “I haven’t got the impression that there is a substantive problem.”
He also said there had been no reference to a bridging loan. It is hoped a deal can be reached by 18 August, so that parliament can pass the deal in time for a €3.5bn (£2.4bn) payment to the ECB on 20 August.
It came as Greek bank shares dived on the Athens Stock Exchange’s second day of opening after five weeks of closure. The country’s biggest four lenders saw drops of nearly 30 per cent after similar falls on Monday.