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Former Minister of Finance Yiannis Stournaras is the new governor of the Bank of Greece. The decision on his appointment was unanimously taken at today's meeting of the general council of the central financial institution.

It was based on Article 29 of the Statute of the Bank and in view of the ending term of present governor George Provopoulos on 20 June.

Yiannis Stournaras has been informed of his new post while he is on a visit to Berlin, along with Stavros Papastavrou, the financial adviser to the Greek Prime Minister. They are to meet with German Minister of Finance Wolfgang Schaeuble to discuss both current issues about the economy of Greece and the revision of its excessive debt.

In his farewell speech, former Governor George Provopoulos determined the choice of Yiannis Stournaras as "the best" and presented two recent studies on the history of the Bank of Greece and on the chronicle of the financial crisis in the country.

He said that the results show the important role played by the Bank of Greece in preserving the financial stability and in reforming the banking sector.

"Due to the actions of the Bank and the support from the European Union through the critical decisions of its bodies banks continued to function normally, even in periods of general insecurity. We were thus able to avoid a forthcoming banking crisis that would directly affect Greece’s remaining in the eurozone. At the same time, despite the huge losses suffered the banking system effectively coped with its problems and stood on solid foundations, guided by the Bank of Greece as a supervisory authority," said Provopoulos.

According to him, during the past turbulent years in the country, the Bank of Greece has always acted in the public interest. Finally, George Provopoulos indicated once again that Greece should do the following:

- make every effort to remain in the eurozone and avoid bankruptcy, which could lead to unpredictable economic and social consequences,

- strictly implement the fiscal consolidation programme,

- improve competitiveness and increase extraversion of the economy, modernize public institutions, make markets competitive and reduce the burden of the government debt.

Provopoulos said that the fiscal consolidation should be based primarily on streamlining costs, and that Greece’s problems require the greatest possible unity and understanding among the political and social forces in the country.