Schaeuble says Cyprus a ‘very special case’
The European bailout deal struck on Monday offers Cyprus the best chance of getting back on its feet, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble repeated Thursday, while describing the Mediterranean island as a “very special case.”
Speaking to Germany’s SWR radio station on Thursday, Schaeuble said it would be “absurd” to compare Cyprus to Luxembourg which has a very different business model.
“Cyprus is a very special case, everyone knew that. And we found the right solution,” he said.
Cypriots banks reopen on Thursday with tight controls imposed on transactions to prevent a run on deposits after Nicosia was forced to accept a stringent European Union rescue package to prevent the country from defaulting.
Luxembourg, which has a banking sector more than 20 times the size of its economy, has rebuffed calls from some of its partners to reduce the size of its banking sector in response to the crisis in Cyprus.
