The European Central Bank (ECB) has increased emergency funding for Greek lenders, though ealier imposed capital controls will remain in place for some time to avoid a run on the banks, reported Reuters.
European Union finance ministers have approved €7bn bridge loans to the country, allowing Greece to make a bond payment to the ECB and pay debt to the International Monetary Fund.
But this is conditional to the German parliament’s approval of a Berlin government request to initiate talks on a three-year bailout programme, worth €86bn.
Greek parliament’s latest move will allow ECB to raise Emergency Liquidity Assistance (ELA) for the banks by around €900m for a week to about €90bn.
ECB President Mario Draghi was quoted by the news publication as saying: "We had a series of news with the approval of the bridge financing package, with the votes, various votes in various parliaments, which have now restored the conditions for a raise in ELA."
All 28 EU countries are expected to provide funding to the bridge loan, even though non-euro members such as Britain and the Czech Republic show unwillingness to use euro zone funds.
Image: Europe to re-open funding to Greece as the parliament approved the new bailout program. Photo: courtesy of Stuart Miles/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.
