Trade with Greece
80
million euros, while talks are also underway with
entities such as the French Consignments and
Loans Fund, the United Arab Emirates etc.
The Fund will provide Greek banks with capital for
extending loans to Greek small and medium-
sized enterprises (SMEs) at favourable terms. It
will also provide capital support to SMEs, partici-
pating in their share capital, and will finance infra-
structure projects not covered directly by the pro-
grammes of the European Investment Bank.
As pointed out by the Ministry of Development,
the objective of the Fund is to act primarily as a
platform for attracting foreign capital to the Greek
economy. Moreover, its objective is to actively
help tackle the great problem of liquidity in the
real economy and the SMEs, through the provi-
sion of lower-cost (lower interest rate) loans to
Greek enterprises. The purpose of the Fund is not
to replace existing tools, but, on the contrary, to
supplement them in a way that multiplies their
overall positive effect on the economy’s liquidity.
However, the decisive factor for restoring normal
liquidity conditions in the Greek market is to re-
activate banks in the field of lending to business-
es and households. To this end, the Ministry of
Development and Competitiveness has reached an
agreement with the Hellenic Bank Association
(HBA), in order to increase lending by utilizing the
financing tools that are administered by the Ministry.
These are loans extended by the European
Investment Bank and guaranteed by NSRF or
state funds, the Jeremie and Jessica pro-
grammes, the provision of financing through the
“Saving at Home” programme for the improve-
ment of the Greek homes’ energy efficiency and
the programmes of the Hellenic Fund for
Entrepreneurship and Development (ETEAN). In
most cases, these loans enjoy low interest rates,
since the portion that is contributed by the state is
interest-free. The initial agreement that was
struck in August provided for the disbursement of
loans amounting to a total of 2 billion euros by the
end of 2013 – an impressive figure, considering
that since the launching of these financing tools
and up to June 2013 disbursements did not
exceed 150 million euros. However, the latest
meetings between the leadership of the Ministry
and the HBA, which are repeated each month in
order to monitor the progress of the programme
and make the necessary interventions, showed
that the 2 billion euro target will be achieved later
than expected, i.e. in early 2014.
During the year, a series of reforms that were
passed in 2013 will be put to the practical test.
These include:
●The opening of retail stores on Sundays and
