Securitization completion pending in “Hercules” back as a priority on the government’s agenda after the election to close the cycle of consolidation banks. At the same time, the debate over the withdrawal of the state from banks, which have been “frozen” in recent months due to elections, as well as turmoil caused in international markets by the collapse in Credit Suisse.The banking sector has recovered from the March levels and all analyzes agree that due to the rise in interest rates, banks have entered a virtuous circle of profitability, finally leaving behind unprofitable years. The completion of the three securitizations to be carried out on Hercules is a formal matter, since banks have already recorded a loss from the planned transactions and Eurostat’s decision not to include Hercules guarantees in public debt paves the way for their implementation.

On the divestment front, discussions are expected to start from scratch as previous moves, such as the Arab interest in the National Bank or the Italian group’s interest in Piraeus Bank, have either faded into the background or faded away. An exception to the inactivity of the past few months is the case of the Eurobank, which during the year facilitates the buyback of shares held by HFSF (corresponding to 1.4% of its share capital), thereby closing the capital of the state’s participation in its authorized capital.

The rise in bank stocks in recent months reflects positive sentiment towards the banking sector, with continuous rating upgrades by international companies as a result of improved industry fundamentals. Piraeus Bank saw the most growth with +32.08% last month (closing at €2.8 and capitalization at €3.5 billion), followed by the National Bank with +29.13% growth (closing at the level of 6.122 euros and capitalization at the level of 5.6). billion euros), Alpha Bank with an increase of 18.88% (closing at 1.445 euros and capitalization at 3.4 billion euros) and Eurobank with +13.12% (closing at 1.539 euros and capitalization at 5.7 billion euros).

At the same time, a discussion will be open on the withdrawal of state investments from banks.

HFSF controls 40.4% of the shares of the National Bank, 27% of the shares of Piraeus Bank, 9% of the shares of Alfa-Bank and, based on the strategy for the sale of shares published at the beginning of the year, identifies two main forms of sale of shares:

• Through the capital market, which includes alternative means of disposition (accelerated book accumulation, withdrawal of funds, etc.) or a combination of both.

• Through a private sale, which facilitates the sale of large blocks of shares – more than 5% – or the direct sale of all shares held by the Fund to the bank.

The Fund may also consider the interest or offer of an unsolicited investor, but in line with what the divestment strategy envisages, it will not enter into bilateral negotiations without a competitive process.