ECB has not decided on raising haircut on Greek bank collateral: source

[ATHENS] The European Central Bank has not made any decision to raise the discount applied on the collateral offered by Greek banks, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday, declining to comment on whether the option was being discussed.

A media report citing people with knowledge of the discussions said on Tuesday that ECB staff have prepared a proposal to reduce the value of such collateral. The ECB declined to comment.

"There has been no such decision by the ECB," the source said, declining to be named.

"Discussions on various possible scenarios take place at times but it does not mean that they culminate into a decision (by the ECB Governing Council)," the source said.

The Bank of Greece declined to comment.

Responding to questions on whether the Governing Council had discussed whether to increase the so-called haircuts on Greek sovereign debt offered in exchange for emergency funding, ECB President Mario Draghi told a news conference last week that haircuts were "mentioned but not discussed."

REUTERS