Greek bank deposits rise in May after April outflows
Greek business and household bank deposits rose in May after outflows in the previous month on worries over the Cypriot banking crisis, central bank data showed on Thursday.
Bank of Greece data showed deposits increased to 163.39 billion euros ($212.45 billion) at the end of May from 162.29 billion at the end of April, when they registered their biggest drop since June 2012.
Greek banks lost about a third of their deposits after the country’s debt crisis erupted in late 2009, partly due to capital flight on fears of a euro zone exit.
More than 17 billion euros have returned to the banking system since mid-June last year when the election of a pro-bailout government eased fears Greece would leave the euro zone.
The inflows, still a fraction of the 90 billion that fled during the debt crisis, help to ease Greek banks’ liquidity strains and reduce their dependence on central bank funding. [Reuters]
