TSIPRAS: “Days of 2012” reminded Alexis Tsipras’s staff of the interest shown by quite a few ambassadors in meeting with him. They are referring to the many requests the then-young president of SYRIZA had received after the party’s meteoric rise from “give us a chance to get into Parliament” to the position of official opposition—and, in fact, just three percentage points behind New Democracy.
The president of the newly formed Greek Left Alliance (ELAS) therefore met on Friday with… seven ambassadors: those of Norway, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark, and the Netherlands.
From what we’ve learned, their interest wasn’t limited to international affairs but also turned to domestic issues, as they sought to get a glimpse of the program Mr. Tsipras will announce in Thessaloniki in September, as well as the institutional reforms he is planning.
It is obvious that the former prime minister’s associates are not providing further details (for reasons of diplomatic tact). In other words, they limit themselves to noting that Mr. Tsipras “referred to the creation of ELAS and the goals of the new political venture, both in terms of political change and the policy changes he hopes to bring about.”
The fact that he was accompanied by his diplomatic advisor, Dimitris Papageorgiou, and ELAS founding member, Haris Tzimitris, is significant, since Mr. Tsipras “introduces” his staff at important meetings and engagements, as they are new faces on the political scene.
FAMELLOS: As if it weren’t enough that the minority is “attacking” him, the majority has also managed to take shots at him. The issue concerns Socrates Famellos and his stubborn refusal to clarify the (according to Polakis) “bastard” decision of the Central Committee: “SYRIZA will not run in the elections against Tsipras’s ELAS, but it will not disband as a party.”
Why is he doing this? Because, as this column has learned, he continues to hope that in the end, Tsipras will agree to an electoral alliance with SYRIZA. This hope remains unshaken by ELAS’s repeated and… public “no’s,” as well as by its president’s private move to rule out any such possibility in Famelos.
And yet, the SYRIZA MPs who have set their sights on the new party are not resigning from their parliamentary seats because they don’t know… when the elections will take place. Its officials, however—especially the members of the Central Committee—have grown tired of remaining in a party they’ve already waved goodbye to, having essentially moved over to ELAS.
That is why the first high-profile resignations from SYRIZA are to be expected very soon…
SIAKANTARIS: Since we’ve already discussed Tsipras’s associates—both close and more distant—someone needs to enforce… the right to remain silent on Giorgos Siakantaris.
He may have become widely known as the person who drafted the ruling Left’s famous “Manifesto,” but lately every public statement he makes is causing headaches (even) on Amalias Street.
In his penultimate statement, he characterized SYRIZA and PASOK as “toxic” parties, calling for their dissolution, while in his most recent statement (which he made to correct the previous one), he praised the PASOK of Andreas Papandreou and Kostas Simitis, concluding: “Unfortunately and unfairly, however, for 9 out of 10 citizens today, (PASOK) is synonymous with the memorandum and corruption (…) Its popularity has stalled for this reason and not because of Androulakis.”
Will it happen a third time?…
GERULANOS: “The political space I’m looking at—and it’s the one that wins elections—is one that Mr. Tsipras has not penetrated.”
With this stance, Pavlos Geroulanos keeps alive PASOK’s effort to win over the center-left electorate—with an emphasis on the “center,” where his party fits in better than ELAS does.
The conclusion, according to Mr. Geroulanos, is that Mr. Tsipras is not addressing a question that is of vital importance to everyone: who will get those who did not vote in the 2023 election off the “couch”?
“The polls still show that if anyone is getting people off the couch who didn’t get up yesterday, it’s Ms. Karystianou more so than Mr. Tsipras,” he added (on Mega), going on to make the controversial point that, on the one hand, citizens’ patience with Mr. Mitsotakis is “running out” and, on the other hand, that PASOK will not cooperate with New Democracy.
As you can see, the answers will come from the “sofa,” and that’s where everyone’s eyes are turned…
NON-PERFORMING LOANS: Non-performing loans and private debt now appear to be at the center of the political debate.
With PASOK and Tsipras’s ELAS squabbling over who will better protect vulnerable borrowers, in contrast to the government’s track record, as they claim.
This has left bankers and servicers caught in the middle.
The political conflict has recently intensified with attacks on the government, banks, and servicers, due to the Supreme Court’s decision on the Katseli Law and the accrual of interest on restructured debts.
A decision that’s a bit vague, to be honest (it suggests that the Supreme Court wanted to make the loans virtually interest-free for these specific borrowers, but without… state it explicitly), which was subsequently interpreted hastily—and rather clumsily—by certain banking circles, with the government maintaining an ambiguous stance and coming under attack from its opponents.
In fact, we also saw an intervention at that time by Antonis Samaras, as a genuine representative of the “popular right,” in support of those protected by the law—certainly also in view of the expected founding of a new party.
The day before yesterday, however, PASOK raised the stakes even further by shifting the discussion to the broader context of borrower protection, but also—and pay close attention to this—to changing the operating framework of companies that manage non-performing loans.
NON-PERFORMING LOANS II: In her statement, Milena Apostolaki, head of PASOK’s Private Debt Committee, leaves no one out.
She recalls Tsipras’s pledges of “no home in the hands of bankers” and the “abolition of the memoranda with a single law and a single article,” in order to accuse SYRIZA of paving the way for the current framework governing the operations of funds and servicers.
He then turns his attention to New Democracy, arguing, among other things, that the new Bankruptcy Code has removed “every trace of a protective framework for vulnerable debtors.”
The most interesting part, however, lies in the “conclusion,” as the closing paragraph of Apostolakis’s statement notes that PASOK:
"... will reinstate an updated framework for the protection of primary residences and will amend the operating framework for asset management companies, provided there is a change in government and the New Democracy party is defeated in the upcoming elections."
Could one perhaps interpret this elaborate phrasing as a possible condition (one of many that would surely arise) for a post-election… coalition government?
CEPAL-INTRUM: This column has learned that the two debt collection firms have begun talks aimed at a merger. In fact, this column has been informed that doValue is not participating in this round of talks.
Sources in the servicer industry told this column that the new entity, provided everything goes smoothly, is expected to be leaner in terms of headcount. They’ve done the math and estimate that there are approximately 500 surplus employees.
ELECTRICITY NETWORKS: For three years now, the need for a holistic approach to electricity grids and for a more “European” Grids Package has been discussed within EU institutions and in the corridors of the European Commission, though the 27 member states have yet to reach a conclusion. The good news, according to sources at the Ministry of Environment and Energy, is that at the upcoming Energy Ministers’ Council this Friday, June 26, in Luxembourg, an agreement on the much-discussed “Grids Package” will likely finally be reached. The Greek side has every reason to feel vindicated, as the European Commission has adopted proposals that Athens has been advocating since 2023.
Among these is the centralized planning of networks (electricity, natural gas, and hydrogen) that will take into account the needs of the bloc as a whole rather than those of each country individually, as has been the case until now. However, the final text is said to differ significantly from the one presented in December 2025.
DEH: The dividend of 0.60 euros will be paid on July 24. The formalities of the matter are finalized today with the approval by the Annual General Meeting of the ex-dividend dates (Monday, July 20), the record date (Tuesday, July 21), and the payment date (Friday, July 24).
In addition, the PPC General Meeting will approve the 2025 financial statements, the appointment of Ernst & Young as the Independent Auditor for 2026, the Remuneration Report for the previous year, the Audit Committee’s report on its activities, and the report of the independent non-executive members of the PPC Board of Directors.
These are obviously procedural matters, and the sole focus of interest lies in the message CEO George Stassis may convey following the highly successful rights offering, during which the company raised 4.2 billion euros but received bids totaling 18 billion euros.
SKROUTZ: The company is taking another step toward the vertical integration of its logistics services, having secured environmental approval to build a new storage and distribution center in Koropi.
The facility will be developed in the industrial zone and will be operated by the subsidiary “SKROUTZ Distribution Services,” which specializes in express delivery and distribution services.
The new logistics hub is expected to increase storage and product handling capacity, further strengthening the business ecosystem that Skroutz has developed around e-commerce and fulfillment services.
THEON SENSORS: The company is moving forward with the expansion of its manufacturing operations in Koropi after receiving an amendment to its environmental permit for the facility where it manufactures photographic optical instruments and sensors in the area’s industrial zone.
The decision concerns an amendment to Theon Sensors’ existing facility, where night vision systems, thermal imaging systems, and electro-optical sensors are manufactured.
EYATH: The publicly traded company is planning significant investments totaling 221.6 million euros for the five-year period 2025–2029, following the RAE’s approval of the company’s financial costs and tariffs for the first regulatory period.
The investment program is financed to the tune of 150.9 million euros from equity and 70.8 million euros from European funds, including more than 100 projects to modernize water supply and sewer infrastructure, the installation of 200,000 “smart” water meters, and digital transformation initiatives.
RAAEY approved a return on capital employed with a WACC of 6.99%, while also cutting specific operating expenses it deemed not to provide value to consumers.
IT: With Recovery and Resilience Fund allocations coming to an end, is it logical for the IT sector to see significant M&A activity? There are many “brides,” but not many “grooms.” There are 2+1 deals in the works on the market. Quest, through Axia, has reportedly found an initial interested party for Uni Systems following a market survey.
The deal, however, faces challenges. A foreign fund appears to have approached Panos Germanos (Verdalite) regarding Entersoftone with an (initial) offer that cannot be ignored (EV/EBITDA 20x). Sources within the Germanos Group, however, deny reports of a sale.
It should be noted that the public offer to Entersoft shareholders by Panos Germanos was made at an EV/EBITDA multiple of nearly 19x. If EntersoftOne has an EBITDA in the range of 50 million euros, as rumored, its enterprise value would be around 1 billion euros.
Finally, Panos Germanos’s group recently acquired 100% of EntersoftOne through Verdalite, eliminating minority interests.
IT II: Epsilon Net is a special case, as Ioannis Michos, the founder and mastermind behind Epsilon Net, recently partnered with General Atlantic and National Bank of Greece through Ginger Digital BidCo to take the company private.
“Rumors” suggest grumbling and friction between Michos and minority shareholders, and this is the basis for speculation about imminent changes to its shareholder base—speculation that all parties, however, deny. It should be noted that in Ginger Digital BidCo, the company that controls 100% of the Epsilon Net group, Ioannis Michos holds a 55.42% stake, General Atlantic holds 29.58%, and the National Bank of Greece (NBG) holds 15%.
If Epsilon Net achieves this year’s EBITDA target (€54.2 million), based on the business plan used by Magrowth to value the company, it will join the ranks of IT companies valued at around €1 billion.
The business plan projects revenue of 175.5 million euros this year, with EBITDA of 54.2 million euros. In 2028, estimated sales are projected at 207.2 million euros and EBITDA at 63.68 million euros.