"All the government's interventions in the banking sector until the end of the four-year period will move away from populism and away from any perception that would show indifference to the problems of businesses and especially small and medium-sized enterprises, the ordinary customer and the ordinary Greek citizen," stressed the Minister of Economy and Finance Kostis Hatzidakis during his speech today at the Greece Talks conference.

The Minister praised the efforts of export companies, noting the broader positive results for employment and the country's image internationally, while he underlined the actions taken by the government to support exports.

In particular, in response to questions about the banks, Mr Hatzidakis stressed:

"Our policy on banks is dynamic, but two things do not change: First, the belief that we must have a robust banking system. Especially after what we went through in the last decade, when taxpayers were asked to put their hand in their pockets to deal with the problems, any move that would destabilise the banks is not acceptable. And secondly, that the banking system must operate under conditions of internal competition for the benefit of consumers. The government is in constant dialogue with society, the business community and the banks to address the challenges in the banking system. There is no reason to be concerned about the stability and prospects of the banking system; the government has consistently shown that it has a responsible pro-investment stance."