by Magda Panoutsopoulou
ATHENS
The Hellenic Council of State, Greece's top administrative court, rejected Friday an appeal by two Greek citizens against a referendum on a bailout package from creditors, ruling that the referendum is legally valid.
"The referendum will be held," said the judge Nikolaos Sakellariou.
Voters for both the “yes” and “no” camps for the referendum on the bailout on Sunday are set to hold major rallies in Athens on Friday.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is expected to attend the "No" vote demonstration; the Greek government has announced its support of a vote against the bailout terms, even though the country could be forced out of the euro system should the “no” voters win the poll.
Pressure on Greek banks, which are closed this week, increases, as it is possible some may not be able to open next week, and at least one is reportedly close to failing.
Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's warned on Thursday that, without the support of the eurosystem, Greek banks and the payment system could not operate and would remain shut.
The S&P continued, in a note, to say that Greece's GDP would shrink by 20 percent in a four-year period if Greece were to leave the eurozone.
The credit rating agency said that a new Greek currency would be undervalued against the euro and would lead to an explosion in the value of the public and private debt.
The S&P said that a “Grexit” could hit capital markets and push state bond yields higher, particularly in fiscally more vulnerable countries in regional Europe.
The euro continued to trade in a narrow band on Friday between about 1.10 and 1.11 against the dollar. Asian stock markets saw little change as investors eyed the vote on Sunday.
Banks almost out of funds: Banking association
Meanwhile Greece’s banks have 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) to last the weekend, the head of the Greek banking association said.
On Monday, more funding will have to be obtained from the European Central Bank (ECB), Louka Katseli told journalists.
Greek banks, which were shut Monday after negotiations between Greece and its creditors collapsed, are dependent on the emergency loans from the ECB for funds.
The ECB has not yet decided to provide further liquidity to Greek banks.
The EU, the ECB and the Eurogroup are all waiting for the results of a referendum Sunday in which Greeks must vote for or against bailout proposals before making a decision.
Separately, the Greek pharmaceuticals association reported Friday that supplies of drugs and medicines were running low as they are unable to pay suppliers.
On Friday, the Greek high court is to rule on whether the referendum is legally valid or not.
Brussels: Left wing protesters urge Greeks to vote 'No'
Hundreds of left-wing protesters have come out on the streets of Brussels to show their support for Greeks who are going through one of the biggest financial crises in their recent history.
According to some estimates, the protesters numbered nearly a thousand, most of whom belong to left-wing groups such as the Belgian Workers Party and the Greens Party.
''We are here to support the Greek people in their battle against the troika,'' Sanna Shakhar, a 21-year-old protester, said.
The "troika" refers to the European Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund.
''This is the most important moment for the future of Europe, if Greece falls we will see the rest of Europe get into turbulent times,'' Shakhar said.
*Andrew Rosenbaum contributed this story from Ankara
