The resolution authority took the decision in order “to provide the needed time to consider ways to strengthen the administrative team aiming at strengthening governance and effectiveness of the duties of the special administrator,” the Central Bank said in an emailed statement today.
Phileleftheros reported today without citing its source that foreign banks, including the Rothschild Group, City Group, and UBS Jefferies had expressedan interest in acquiring the stake of legacy Laiki in Bank of Cyprus, which before the August capital increase accounted for 18% by informing administrator Andri Antoniades.
The latter referred them to the resolution authority, which until June 2014 comprised of the governor of the Central Bank of Cyprus, the finance minister and the chairwoman of the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Committee, Chrystalla Georghadji, Harris Georgiades and Demetra Kalogerou respectively.
Phileleftheros reported without saying how it got the information, that Jefferies repeatedly expressed their interest in writing while some of its senior managers had meetings in Cyprus with the resolution authority and other parties involved.
Antoniades resigned on March 2, citing the decision of the resolution authority, comprised of the central bank’s board of directors, to replace Andreas Neocleous & Co LLP law office with Chrysses Demetriades & Co LLP, after lawyers from Neocleous served subpoenas to Andreas Vgenopoulos, former chairman of Cyprus Popular Bank, also known as Laiki, and two of his close associates, Laiki chief executive officer Efthymios Bouloutas and board member Kyriakos Magiras for contempt of court.
Laiki merged with Bank of Cyprus as part of Cyprus’s March 2013 bailout, agreed with international creditors. Adonis Papacontinou, chairman of SYKALA, a group representing depositors of Laiki, who lost all their uninsured deposits in excess of €100,000 after the lender went into administration and are ultimate beneficiaries of the legacy Laiki stake in Bank of Cyprus, said today in an interview to state radio CyBC that he was not aware of the investor interest reported in Phileleftheros.
Papacostantinou said instead that “various investment funds” he did not specify, contact SYKALA to explore their interest in acquiring the stake in Bank of Cyprus, which following the August capital increase, fell to below 10%. The funds submitted proposals, which were vague, the SYKALA chairman said, adding that the offers to buy the stake were linked to also acquiring probable benefits of “trimmed” depositors from outstanding loans extended by Laiki.
Papaconstantinou said that according to “conservative” estimations, the value of assets held by legacy Laiki may have fallen from up to €1bn two years ago to €350m.
Source: Cyprus Mail
