Reuters on Tuesday has the Greek government eyeing another early repayment of up to five billion euros worth of bailout loans to eurozone partners later this year, quoting two “government officials” as its sources.
The country has relied solely on international markets for its borrowing needs since a third institutional bailout ended in 2018.
One of the two sources was quoted by Reuters as saying the early repayment would involve between 2.5 billion and 5 billion euros and “probably in the second half of the year”.
The source, per Reuters, qualified the initiative by saying it would allow more bond issues without increasing Greece’s sovereign debt, while “adding liquidity to a shallow Greek bond market.”
The international news outlet reminded that roughly 70% of Greece’s debt is held by institutional and official lenders, i.e. the eurozone and the European Central Bank.
The second source merely confirmed the first’s figures and time frame.
All international ratings firms, sans Moody’s, restored Greece to an investment grade over the past six months, after the country remained in the “junk category” for more than 13 years.
Greece paid off the IMF in 2022 two years ahead of the maturity of the loans extended by the latter, while repaying Eurozone partners five billion euros last year ahead of schedule.
