Share

Greece lifts capital controls on stock market

Athens - Greece's finance ministry on Tuesday said it had lifted capital controls imposed in June on its stock market, but kept in place a short selling ban on the shares of its top banks.

"Limitations on transactions on Greek capital markets are lifted," said a decree published in the government gazette late on Monday.

Under the ban, the stock exchange operated normally for foreign investors, but local traders were unable to finance the purchase of securities by taking money from their bank accounts in Greece.

However, the Greek capital market commmission said it was maintaining until December 21 a restriction on the short-selling of shares in the country's top five banks.

"The decision was reached, taking into account...the fact that the recapitalisation process of the Greek credit institutions is currently in progress," the commission said.

Short-selling occurs when investors sell shares they do not own in anticipation of a fall in their price, hoping to make a profit in the process.

This can fuel market volatility.

The capital controls were imposed in June when fears of Greece being ejected from the eurozone caused a run on bank deposits.

Greece later agreed to a new, €86bn bailout with international creditors and in early September the short-selling ban was lifted for equity derivatives.

Under the prodding of the European Central Bank (ECB), the nation's top banks launched at the beginning of November a drive to raise fresh capital, to make up for lost deposits and the burden of non-performing loans.

Two of those lenders, Eurobank and Alpha Bank, raised enough private funds to forego bailout money altogether, while Piraeus Bank and National Bank of Greece still required a capital boost.


We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.89
+0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.84
+0.3%
Rand - Euro
20.36
+0.4%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.30
+0.3%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders