The achievement of the target for the interconnection of POS with cash registers 2.5 months ahead of the deadline was announced by the Minister of National Economy and Finance, Kostis Hatzidakis.

"The businesses that have been connected from the beginning of the year until yesterday are more than 407,000. The milestone set in the Recovery and Resilience Fund framework for the end of the year was 402,000, and we reached it much earlier. Nobody believed it when we started the effort. I remind you of comments like 'the hell with this thing in Greece'. And yet it did. It took pressure and cooperation with the market, and today I am very satisfied that we caught and exceeded the target," the minister said, speaking at the Athens Innovation Forum 2024. He added that the 4% of companies that have not complied will face sanctions, starting with the largest companies, because "it is not conceivable to have the consistent ones who respect the law and the'mischievous ones' who want to be treated as businesses of a different category."

According to a statement from the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the interconnection of POS with cash registers is one of the government's five initiatives to spread electronic transactions. They also include:

• Expanding POS use to 35 additional retail sectors. "As an example, in taxis, without the measure being fully implemented yet, electronic transactions in 2024 doubled compared to 2023. The same is happening in many other sectors," Hatzidakis said.
• The ban on cash in real estate transactions already passed.
• The mandatory electronic invoices from 2025 following the EU's approval, which is another step towards transparency in transactions and tackling tax evasion.
• The promotion of direct payments through the IRIS system. "Already today there are 3.3 million IBANs connected to IRIS, out of a total of 6 million. Therefore, here too we have made significant progress thanks to the government's persistence and the promotion of the benefits for the average user," the minister noted.

Three pillars for the financial sector

Referring to the government's planning for the financial sector, Hatzidakis stressed that the interventions in the future are moving along 3 axes:

• First, the further reduction of red loans in all banks with the aim of bringing them down to the EU average. "The target will be reached relatively soon with the extension of the Hercules programme by €1 billion. This will bring red loans from 7.5% to 3-3.5%, which is the European average," he said. He also noted the reduction of red loans that have been transferred to servicers and the progress in the out-of-court mechanism.
• Secondly, the further expansion of electronic transactions. "We are interested in the issue of procurement. We are pleased that 3 of the 4 systemic banks have revised their policy after some encouragement from the government. I am sure the fourth will follow suit. It is a matter of concern to us. Obviously banks are not charitable institutions, but they need to understand that they operate in the context of a society with specific capabilities and that excesses are detrimental to them," the minister said. He also said that by spring 2025, the use of direct payment systems such as IRIS will be expanded to cover all businesses.
• Thirdly, the strengthening of the liquidity of businesses, especially SMEs. According to the data provided by the Minister, low-interest loans with a total budget of €12.4 billion have already been contracted through the Recovery Fund. To these are added another 4 billion of loans, which will be mobilised through the various programmes of the Hellenic Development Bank.

"You are aware that there has been opposition to all these measures. Woe to anyone who enters politics to do public relations. We have entered politics to take a few steps forward. We have been hearing about tax evasion since we were young; at some point it is time we dealt with it the way it was dealt with in advanced countries. The government is not sticking to fiscal seriousness and a pro-investment approach. It is going to address a number of structural problems in the economy and social injustices associated with tax evasion. We will proceed, not with dogmatism but with determination to modernize the economy and address pathologies, in cooperation with the market and adopting best international practices," Mr. Hadjidakis concluded.