Greek outflows rise as analyst calls voters complacent on euro
IF GREEKS realised the terrible state of their country’s banks and understood the risks of a Eurozone exit, the flow of deposits from banks would become much worse, a top analyst claimed yesterday.
Deposits are already down 30 per cent from their peak, falling by between €6bn (£4.9bn) and €7bn in May, with the outflow accelerating to between €500m and €700m per day this week as the country’s crucial general election approaches.
But Nomura analyst Lefteris Farmakis warned that Greek depositors have yet to understand the risks they are running by keeping their money in the banks.
“A large proportion of the population are ignorant or complacent or both about the potential for a euro exit and the consequent predicament for the banking sector,” he said.
“However, there are not many safe places other than banks to keep your money if you don’t have the luxury of a bank account abroad, while the fact that around 60 per cent of the total are time deposits may have also helped on the margin. Finally, many people still do not think a euro exit is possible.”