Greece's Banking Restrictions 'Not to Affect Bulgaria'

The decision by Athens to shut down banks in the country this week has no legal force outside Greece and cannot be applied to Bulgaria, the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB) has said.

In a statement, Bulgaria's central bank has commented on the Sunday announcement of Greek PM Alexis Tsipras, who said a bank holiday would begin Monday and will continue until at least July 5, the day of the bailout referendum called by the Prime Minister.

According to the BNB's press release, the Bulgarian banking system has made no investment whatsoever into Greek securities. Negative developments in other countries' banking systems cannot affect stability of the system in Bulgaria.

Greece-based UBB, Postbank, Piraeus Bank and Alpha operate in Bulgaria, holding 23% of assets in the banking system as of end-2014. The latter is a branch of Alpha Bank in Greece, while the other three are controlled by subsidiaries.

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