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LONDON A legal clause as the key to smoothing future debt restructurings could be undermined by a U.S. court ruling that Argentina must pay creditors holding its defaulted debt. The case has implications for emerging markets, source of protracted and painful past defaults, and for Europe, where the rules setting up the euro zone’s bailout fund state that government bonds must carry Collective Action Clauses from 2013. Known as CACs, the clauses make a restructuring binding for all creditors if agreed by a specified majority — usually 75 percent. They are intended to eliminate the risk that some investors will [...]

ATHENS Greece will extend a debt buyback that forms part of its international bailout for an extra day to receive additional offers from bondholders, a government official said on Monday. Athens plans to buy back bonds with a face value of about 30 billion euros at deeply discounted prices to lower its debt load. A deadline for bondholders to submit offers expired on Friday. A Greek government official said on Saturday that Athens had received offers of about that sum. “There will be an official announcement later in the day,” said the official on Monday on condition of anonymity. According [...]

ATHENS Greece may ask for additional offers from bondholders in a debt buyback plan that forms part of its international bailout, Greek officials said on Sunday, but the country’s prime minister said the transaction was running smoothly. The invitation might be renewed on Monday to top up the offers already received, three officials close to the proceedings told Reuters. “It’s possible,” a senior government official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Another government official and a banker confirmed the move was under consideration. Athens plans to buy back bonds with a face value of about 30 billion euros at deeply [...]

ATHENS Greece may ask additional offers from bondholders in a debt buyback plan that forms part of its international bailout, Greek officials said on Sunday. The invitation might be renewed on Monday to top up the offers already received, three officials close to the proceedings told Reuters. “It’s possible,” a senior government official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Another government official and a banker confirmed the move was under consideration. Athens plans to buy back bonds with a face value of about 30 billion euros at deeply discounted prices to lower its debt load. A deadline for bondholders to [...]

BERLIN Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann has criticized a new debt deal for Greece agreed to by the country’s international creditors at the end of last month. In an interview with Germany’s Welt am Sonntag newspaper, Weidmann, who sits of the European Central Bank’s (ECB)policymaking Governing Council, said Greece’s funding gap would be financed by new credits and for the first time by actual transfers from national budgets. “Unfortunately the central banks are also not spared,” he said. Weidmann criticized the fact that Greece would meet part of its funding needs through auctions of short-term T-bills, saying this paper would mainly [...]

ATHENS Greece is set to purchase back about half of its debt owned by private investors, broadly succeeding in a bond buyback that is key to the country’s international bailout, a Greek government official said on Saturday. Greek and foreign bondholders offered the targeted 30 billion euros ($ 38.8 billion) in the deal, which is central to efforts by Greece’s euro zone and International Monetary Fund lenders to cut its debt to manageable levels. “The buyback went well in broad terms. The amount offered by investors was within the range expected, about 30 billion euros,” the official told Reuters on [...]

ATHENS Greece is set to purchase back about half of its debt owned by private investors, broadly succeeding in a bond buyback that is key to the country’s international bailout, a Greek government official said on Saturday. Greek and foreign bondholders offered the targeted 30 billion euros ($ 38.8 billion) in the deal, which is central to efforts by Greece’s euro zone and International Monetary Fund lenders to cut its debt to manageable levels. “The buyback went well in broad terms. The amount offered by investors was within the range expected, about 30 billion euros,” the official told Reuters on [...]

ATHENS Foreign investors have offered between 15 and 16 billion euros ($ 19.4-20.7 billion) of Greek government bonds in a debt buy-back programme, according to an initial estimate given by newspapers on Saturday. The plan is central to efforts by Greece’s euro zone and International Monetary Fund lenders to cut its borrowing to manageable levels and unlock aid. The preliminary estimate cited by financial dailies Naftemporiki and Imerisia would suggest the buyback plan is on track to succeed. Under the plan, Athens aims to spend 10 billion euros of borrowed money to buy back bonds with a nominal value of [...]

ATHENS Greek and foreign bondholders offered about 30 billion euros ($ 38.8 billion) in a buyback plan that is key to the country’s international bailout, a Greek government official said on Saturday. “The buyback went well in broad terms. The amount offered by investors was within the range expected, about 30 billion euros,” the official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. ($ 1 = 0.7735 euros) (Reporting by George Georgiopoulos, writing by Harry Papachristou)

ATHENS Greece’s three biggest banks won board approval to take part in the country’s debt buyback which expires on Friday, putting Athens on track to meet targets set by international lenders. The buyback scheme, in which investors must declare their interest by Friday, is central to efforts by Greece’s euro zone and International Monetary Fund lenders to cut its debt to manageable levels and unlock aid for the stricken country. As expected, the country’s four biggest lenders – National Bank , Alpha , Eurobank and Piraeus bank – each said they had approval to participate, but did not specify how [...]