Five smaller banks hope they can woo private capital
The shareholders of the five local banks characterized as non-systemic will have to collect funds totaling 1.6 billion euros in the next three months to cover their capital requirements as defined by the Bank of Greece.
The sanitization of the smaller banks – Proton, Attica, Probank, FBB and Millennium – is among the government’s commitments to its creditors.
Although the local banking system does not seem to be attracting the investment funds that are beginning to appear in the Greek market, some people expect interest to be expressed in the share capital increases of local banks, especially the smaller ones. This is because the country’s central bank will not issue licenses for any new credit companies or even for any new branches. As a result, the acquisition of small lenders without any heavy burdens in their portfolios appears quite possible for those who can discern any future investment opportunities. That, after all, is the reason why Piraeus Bank has opted for keeping Geniki as an independent bank following its acquisition last year.
