Greece’s
bank rescue fund has demanded the resignation of Anthimos Thomopoulos, chief
executive of Piraeus Bank, the country’s largest commercial lender, in a sign
that international creditors are seeking to accelerate a clean-up of the
troubled sector.
Mr Thomopoulos could not be reached immediately
for comment. Two senior Greek bankers confirmed local reports that he had been
asked to step down.
This is the first time since the fund was
set up with cash from Greece’s first international bailout in 2010 that it has
moved to sack a senior banker. Staffed by senior Greek financial experts
appointed by the government with approval from the creditors, the Fund has
monitored the banks more closely since the leftwing Syriza government came to
power.
“This is the first time the HFSF has shown
its teeth,” said one prominent Athens banker. “But we may see further
interventions aimed at overhauling top management at the big banks.”
Piraeus holds a larger percentage of
non-performing loans - amounting to about 50 per cent of total lending - than
the other three big lenders - Alpha, National Bank of Greece and Eurobank. Mr
Thomopoulos joined in 2013 from National Bank of Greece, the second-biggest
lender, where he served as deputy chief executive.
Piraeus struggled to raise fresh funds from
private foreign investors in the banks’ latest round of capital-raising in
November, taking longer than the other banks to raise its target of €1.34bn
despite confident assertions by Mr Thomopoulos that the issue would be quickly
oversubscribed.
Piraeus drew another €3.3bn from the HFSF in
common shares and convertible contingent bonds - known as “Cocos” - to address
capital needs stemming from last year’s stress tests overseen by the European
Central Bank. The capital raising left the HFSF with a stake of 25 per cent in
Piraeus, compared to holdings of less than 10 per cent in other Greek lenders.
Πηγή:
Financial Times
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