CIAO DATE: 08/2011
June 2011
Centre for European Policy Studies
This Policy Brief by Christian Kopf examines the merits of a new proposal from France aimed at resolving the Greek debt crisis in which French commercial banks would swap €85.5 billion in Greek government bonds maturing between 2011 and 2014 into a combination of new long-term Greek bonds with principal guarantee and cash payments. In spite of finding several shortcomings, the author concludes that the proposal is a good starting point in the design of a solution for Greece, as it acknowledges the need for private sector involvement in dealing with the country’s sovereign debt overhang.
Resource link: An evaluation of the French proposal for a restructuring of Greek debt [PDF] - 154K