The Greek Government Ordered the Reopening of Banks in the Country

The Greek government has instructed the banks in the country to resume operations starting Monday of this week, thus ending the closure of banks that had been implemented to prevent excessive withdrawals, after three weeks. A report by Reuters on Saturday, July 18, states that the order from Alexis Tsipras, the Prime Minister of Greece, to reopen the banks was issued hours after the swearing-in of the new ministers of the Greek government and the official implementation of cabinet changes. Mr. Tsipras has removed Panagiotis Lafazanis, the Minister of Energy, and two deputy ministers from his government in an action interpreted as a rift within the ruling party in Greece. This decision was made after 39 members of the ruling Syriza party in the parliament refrained from supporting the government regarding the financial aid package for Greece. Panos Skourletis, a close associate of Alexis Tsipras who left the Ministry of Labor to take over the Ministry of Energy, interpreted the cabinet changes as the government adapting to 'new realities.' However, the first action of the new Greek cabinet is the signing of the order to reopen the banks from Monday, July 20, although the law limiting cash withdrawals from bank accounts remains in place, allowing Greek citizens to withdraw only 420 euros per week. At the same time, restrictions on transferring money abroad remain in effect. Recently, the European Central Bank agreed to reopen emergency credit lines for Greece to save the country's banks, which led to expectations that the Greek government would quickly issue the order to reopen the banks. Alexis Tsipras now intends to approve the EU member aid package in the coming weeks before the potential elections in the country. Last week, the Greek Interior Minister stated that elections are likely to be held in September or October.