There has been a “convergence of views” on issues relating to the Commission which will be responsible for the restructuring of non-performing business loans, Economy Minister Giorgos Stathakis said on Thursday after a meeting with the institutions’ mission chiefs in Athens.
“The climate was very positive and we’re very close to completing talks on the extrajudicial [settlement] mechanism, while only a few secondary technical issues remain open,” he said, adding the procedure will concern all businesses, irrespective of size.
Earlier, a senior official of the Economy ministry said the government is expected to complete a draft bill on the out-of-court settlement of NPLs by the end of the month. The bill will foresee, on the one hand, the extrajudicial mechanism for the settlement of all business debts to banks, pension funds and the taxman and on the other, changes in the bankruptcy code aimed at accelerating bankruptcy procedures.
The senior official said the bill is difficult to complete but an agreement is close, adding that a new meeting is scheduled between the government and the institutions on Friday. Once the committee completes the draft bill, it will be sent to the institutions to be reviewed and discussed at length when they return to Athens for the second review.
The bill will state that committees will be set up with the participation of Greece’s creditors which, based on the recommendation of special reviewers, will draft a plan for the extrajudicial settlement of debts, which will be ratified by judges.
In the case of large companies with high debts, the proposals to the committees will be made by major audit firms and not by individual evaluators.
Read more here.
RELATED TOPICS: Greece, Greek tourism news, Tourism in Greece, Greek islands, Hotels in Greece, Travel to Greece, Greek destinations , Greek travel market, Greek tourism statistics, Greek tourism report
