Hatzidakis urges banks to emulate European counterparts regarding commission charges

National Economy and Finance Minister Kostis Hatzidakis on Tuesday urged Greek banks to adopt fairer systems and the practices of other European banks and businesses with a large network of clients in Greece with respect to their commission charges, so there would be no need for the government to intervene through legislation. Speaking at the annual general assembly of the Hellenic Bank Association, he noted that failure to resolve the commissions’ issue “offers nothing, either to the banks, or to the government, or to society.”

He also announced a small quantitative extension of the “Hercules” programme in order to further reduce non-performing loans and anextension of the deadline for freelancers and the self-employed to join the IRIS instant payments system.

The minister presented five priorities for the banking system, including: support of competition, the settling of all outstanding issues linked to the “Hercules” programme, stronger support for the real economy and especially of small and medium-sized enterprises, further reinforcement of transparency and fairness in commissions and rapid expansion of the IRIS system.

Hatzidakis noted that the next step will be expanding the instant payments to all businesses and the entire range of transactions, both in electronic trade and shops by March 2025.

“The government wants a robust banking system that operates as a lever of growth for the economy. We also want a banking system with competition between banks. A banking system that offers attractive yields to depositors and liquidity for businesses and households,” he said, noting the progress made in this direction by the government.