ECB to fund Greek banks as long as they stay solvent

[ATHENS] The European Central Bank will continue to provide liquidity to Greece's banks as long as they remain solvent and have sufficient collateral, ECB Executive Board Member Benoit Coeure told Greek newspaper Kathimerini on Wednesday in an interview.

He said imposing capital controls was "not a working assumption" for the ECB, while speculation about Greece leaving the euro was "out of the question."

Asked about whether the ECB would return to Athens profits made on Greek bonds it bought at the height of the debt crisis, Mr Coeure said that this hinged on Greece successfully concluding its bailout review.

He told the paper that uncertainty over the standoff between Athens and its creditors was dragging down economic activity and risked impacting the health of its financial system.

"In recent days, there has been tangible progress in the quality of the discussions with the three institutions - the ECB, the European Commission and the IMF - which can be built upon," Mr Coeure said. "Still, significant differences on substance remain and substantial further work is needed. We wish these discussions to succeed."

REUTERS