The President of the Eurogroup Jeroen Dijsselbloem expressed his confidence that the Geek government will fulfill a series of prior actions by Monday, so that a greenlight may give for the payment of the 2-billion-euro tranche and an additional 10 billion euros for the recapitalization of the banks.
Mr. Dijsselbloem, who appeared on Tuesday before the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee, also noted that he was hopeful that a balance can be found between protecting vulnerable households and strengthening the legal framework, so that it is not abused.
As such, the talks will continue, with the European Commission and Eurogroup both agreeing that households that are unable to meet their loan payments must be supported. Mr. Dijsselbloem added that the institutions are expecting the Greek government to soon submit proposals, so that an agreement is reached by Monday.
Regarding the recapitalization process of Greek banks, the Eurogroup head argued that it was ‘good news’ that fewer funds will be necessary than initially estimated. He also estimated that the Greek banks will be able to cover a large part of their capital needs from private investors.
Should an agreement be reached early next week and the ESM pays out the 10 billion euros for the recapitalization, then the process will conclude in a few weeks. In order for this to happen though, he added, Greece must fulfill the prior actions related to the financial sector.
