The Hellenic Banks Association held its Open Annual General Meeting on June 25, 2024 at the King George Hotel Hall.
The Minister of National Economy and Finance, Mr. Kostis Hatzidakis which addressed the current priorities of the Greek government regarding the financial sector and its contribution to the national economy.
The main speaker on the topic “Sustainable development, economy, central banks and financial sector” was the Governor of the Bank of Greece, Mr. Janis Stournaras which focused on the multiple impacts of climate change on the economy.
Chairman of the Board of Directors of ETT, Professor GKikas Hardening in his main speech, he generally presented the progress recorded in the Greek banking system in recent years, highlighted the important contribution of banks to the Greek economy and society, referred to the challenges of the future and finally. , highly appreciated the work and role of the Union of Greek Banks
The president of EET emphasized that the banks have finally turned the page, significantly improving their positions and financial indicators, guided by the recovery of the Greek economy. He noted that they are now showing steady and sustainable profitability, while he noted the strong investor interest in banking stocks as a positive sign for the banks going forward.
Mr. Hardouvelis considered the expansion of the banks’ credit portfolio to small and medium-sized enterprises as a big challenge and insisted that the state, banks and supervisory bodies should pay close attention to this issue.
The President of EET referred to the continuous support of banks to society and borrowers, their initiatives aimed at green transition and digital transformation.
Banks, he emphasized, have huge investments, infrastructure and human resources to support the implementation of many central functions of the state. Above all, however, they implement a huge social program, with their sponsorships and donations covering such important areas of activity as Health, Culture, Education, Demography, Sports.
The General Assembly also introduced the (new) EET LinkedIn account and showed a video on the CSR activities of EET member banks over the past 5 years. Their total amount exceeds 390 million euros.
All the members of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee, the Acting Director General and the heads of ETT and representatives of the invited members as well as other institutions and bodies participated in the conference.