Fears grow for pension fund cash

More bond purchases probed

The possibility that several pension funds have been overcharged when purchasing bonds so stockbrokers and banks could make hefty commissions is being investigated by the government after it was discovered that at least one fund has been asked to pay some –5 million too much.

Sources told Sunday’s Kathimerini that the government is now looking into the purchase of a –280 million state bond by four pension funds – the Civil Servants’ Auxiliary Pension Fund (TEADY), the Social Insurance Workers’ Auxiliary Pension Fund (TEAPOKA), Pharmaceutical Workers’ Auxiliary Pension Fund (TEAYFE) and the Newspaper Sellers’ Pension Fund (TSEYP).

The bond was sold to raise money for the Greek armed forces but the government wants to find out how it was later bought by the four pension funds from the Akropolis stock brokerage firm and whether they paid over the odds.

PASOK claims that middlemen charged a commission of –36 million to negotiate the sale of the bond but government investigators have not been able to confirm this.

Sources said that the alleged roles of Akropolis and the Greek branch of the German bank HypoVereinsbank (HVB) in the sale of the bond are being investigated.

Akropolis has been linked to the sale of another bond to TEADY, which it allegedly sold for –75 million – –5 million more than it should have charged. Akropolis denies any wrongdoing.

Labor Minister Savvas Tsitouridis has demanded the resignation of the TEADY board after a ministry probe suggested the executives were at fault for the purchase.

The president of TEADY, Agapios Simeoforidis, is the son of New Democracy’s former general manager and the government fears that the uncovering of further damaging financial investments by pension funds could be politically damaging as many of the board members are appointed by the government.

Tsitouridis is set to announce tomorrow a set of measures aimed at safeguarding the investments of pension funds.