Greece, lenders agree supervisors for new privatisation fund

[ATHENS] Greece and its lenders have agreed on a five-member supervisory board for a new privatisation fund following wrangling over its composition, government sources said on Monday, meeting a key condition under the country's 86 billion euro bailout.

Athens had to agree on nominations with its EU/IMF lenders by the end of September to conclude a first progress assessment and qualify for a further 2.8 billion euros in bailout loans.

Creditors nominated two of the board members and Athens three.

Greek government officials said Spanish economist David Vegara, a former deputy managing director for banking with the euro zone's bailout fund, a Greek academic and a Greek central bank official would be joining the fund's supervisory board.

A senior French government official, Jacques Le Pape, will head the new board.

Privatisations have been a key part of Greece's bailouts since 2010, but political resistance and Greek bureaucracy have kept them from providing much revenue. The new board will oversee the fund, which aims to speed up asset sales.

The Greek parliament is also expected to approve on Tuesday other elements of its bailout - measures to cut pension spending and regulate its electricity market and also the transfer of state stakes in power utility PPC and the Athens and Thessaloniki water utilities to the new fund.

REUTERS