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Athens has managed to avoid defaulting this time too by ordering the payment of 750 million euro due to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The debt is due today and many observers feared that the Greek treasury could not find that sum of money. Actually, this is approximately the amount of Greece’s annual IMF membership contribution, which is allocated in the budget and is available as a sum. The government has had to add just 90 million euro to obtain the amount due on the loan. The Washington institution has agreed on Greece transferring the money today to avoid defaulting. There is no specific date for the payment of the membership fee.
    The solution came personally from Governor of the Bank of Greece Yiannis Stournaras who suggested this trick to the government and the Ministry of Finance. His proposal was appreciated since it does not require taking the money for the public sector salaries and pensions.
    In the period 5-19 June Greece has to pay four more tranches of its obligations to the IMF, totalling 1 billion euro. The first payment is worth about 300 million euro.