Debt rescue writedown hits Greek banks hard

Page last updated at 08:30 GMT, Saturday, April 21, 2012 - 13:30 EST

AFP:

People walk outside a National Bank of Greece in Athens on April 19

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Greek banks Friday reported massive losses for last year as a debt writedown agreed as part of a second major bailout for the stricken country devastated their already under-pressure balance sheets.

National Bank of Greece, the largest lender, said it suffered a 2011 net loss of 12.3 billion euros ($16 billion) after taking a charge of 10.75 billion euros on the writedown, along with other provisions and charges due to "the extremely harsh economic climate in Greece."

The writedown was agreed as part of a second international rescue package for Greece in which private investors took new government bonds for old, resulting in a combined debt reduction worth some 100 billion euros.

A first rescue totalling 110 billion euros in May 2010 mounted by the EU and the International Monetary Fund failed to halt Greece's slide into default, forcing it to seek additional help.

Read the whole story: AFP