Annual growth rate of over 4% in 2021 and in the medium term the country will achieve, with the contribution of tourism already from this year, was foreseen by Piraeus Bank CEO Christos Megalou, in an interview with CNBC on the occasion of the recent successful shareholder increase of 1.4 billion euros made by Piraeus Bank.
Mr. Megalou pointed out that a number of positive factors point to strong growth: first, the recent and unexpected upgrade by the S&P rating agency with a positive outlook for the economy, and second, the industrial production index that reflects the expectations for the in the next period and thirdly, the fact that Greece has prepared an ambitious but very targeted plan for the utilization of the resources of the Recovery Fund and the European Programs, which reach 75 billion euros.
Greece has achieved a high rate of absorption of European funds in the last two years, so that by implementing its design, it will have the opportunity to channel resources in sectors such as digital transformation, green economy, and acquisitions and mergers, said Mr. Megalou.
Specifically for tourism, the CEO of Piraeus Bank estimated that revenues will reach 50% of the revenues of 2019 this year, pointing out that the rate of vaccinations in the country will work positively in the resumption of tourism, since it is expected that, by the end of June, 70% of the population will have been vaccinated.
Answering a question about the large-scale restructuring that the Bank has undertaken in the last 4 years and which changed its image, Mr. Megalou stressed that the progress was significant and was recorded at all levels, while recently the Bank completed a large increase of capital amounting to 1.4 billion euros.
“We are confident that we can support the recovery of the Greek economy, which is expected to run at a rate of over 4% in the coming years and as a bank we will grow alongside the economy, achieving sustainable profitability in the medium term,” said Mr. Megalou. He added “we have already done a lot of work and we will continue to finance the Greek economy to emerge from the crisis caused by the pandemic and the long-term crisis of previous years.”
Asked about the new non-performing exposures (NPEs) of the pandemic, Mr. Megalou stressed that the entire banking system is working to mitigate the effects of the pandemic, with the help of European Union and government support programs.
“This is an ongoing effort and I am optimistic that the final magnitude of the effects of the pandemic on the banking system will be lower than initially estimated,” he said.
Regarding the access of the country and the banks to markets, Mr. Megalou stressed that Greece has successfully raised funds from the markets in the last year and has the ability to continue to do so, while Greek banks, such as Piraeus Bank, proceed with satisfactory terms in the issuance of securities. “Improving profitability and consolidating balance sheets will allow us to bring the results we have promised to investors and the market,” said Mr. Megalou.
