Greece: Run on banks as pressure builds for bailout
Greek bank deposits are down $8.2 billion in February on consumer fears of a debacle.
ANKARA
Greek consumers are pulling their money out of their banks in fear that a solution won't be found for a much-needed bailout by the Eurogroup.
Deposits declined by more than €7.5 billion ($8.2 billion) in February, according to the Central Bank of Greece statement on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the banks depend entirely on European Central Bank emergency loans for liquidity, as does the government for public funding.
Private and business deposits dropped to €140.5 billion ($151.5 billion) in February, the statement said.
Deposit levels had stabilized over the past two years, according to central bank statistics. But, since the election of the radical leftist SYRIZA-led coalition, savers have been pulling their money out of Greek banks at a rapidly increasing rate, the central bank statistics showed.
The Greek government has submitted economic reforms to the Eurogroup of 19 Member States, and the reforms are being reviewed.
The list of reforms to be implemented by June would include measures to boost tax revenues, improve investment sentiment and make the judicial system more effective, government spokesman Gabriel Sakellaridis told Greek radio on Thursday.
A decision is expected Monday, and it could lead to the release of the next €7.2 billion ($7.8 billion) tranche in bailout funding.
