• Greetings, best wishes and good health for our national Independence Day, especially to all Vangelis and Evangelia celebrating their name days tomorrow. I’m saying it today because we don’t have a column tomorrow. Those who stayed in Athens clearly noticed the four-day break, as the streets felt like summer. Meanwhile, the new government is still trying to find its footing, though honestly, it’s the first time I’ve seen ministers staying just as downbeat as those leaving or changing roles—or those who never became ministers, as another reshuffle doesn’t seem likely. Don’t overthink it; that’s what happens when the needle stays stuck at low numbers, a fact confirmed by daily polls. Patience and calm are required; there’s still plenty of time ahead, though it seems both fuel and natural allies are dwindling—sometimes the Lincoln quote about fooling people applies.

Mitsotakis – Hardalias

• Given that March 25 falls on a Tuesday, wedged into the week, K.M. decided not to travel anywhere (a weekend trip to Chania didn’t fit), so he’ll attend the parade at Syntagma tomorrow after attending church at the Metropolitan Cathedral. He’ll be accompanied by Attica Governor Nikos Hardalias, symbolizing the recent restoration of their previously strained relationship. They met a few weeks ago, and now they’ll publicly display unity.

TikTok, because… we’re losing ground

• Not sure if you noticed, but Mitsotakis returned to TikTok yesterday with a video promoting the eVivlio app, offering everyone free access to audio literary books. Honestly, after the European elections result, Maximos Mansion had mostly abandoned TikTok, as if the platform itself was to blame. However, recent polls alarmed M.M., showing ND virtually absent among voters under 40, while Konstantopoulou’s party soared (what else will we witness in Greece?). The issue identified was ND’s difficulty communicating with younger demographics, so they’re giving TikTok another go, this time perhaps without the self-irony of their earlier approach.

Paris

• This week there’s a significant chance K.M. will travel to Paris on Thursday for another informal summit called by Macron regarding Ukraine with various countries. The invitation should arrive today, but just to be safe, Maximos Mansion moved the cabinet meeting from Thursday morning to Wednesday afternoon at 16:00.

Tsipras and his party

• Leaving the dull stuff aside, my friends kept asking me throughout this break why I haven’t mentioned anything about Tsipras, given the ongoing talk about his supposed efforts to unite center-left groups, “Famellians,” and other poor relations. Even Nikolas seems concerned by these rumors, although he’s currently elsewhere—heading to America to participate in the parades dressed as a little evzone; I suppose he picked the right moment. Anyway, I have credible sources close to our leader Alexis, so here’s the scoop: Tsipras wants to return to politics but hasn’t yet decided on the timing, though it definitely won’t be before the year’s end. It’s true he’s being measured by a reputable polling company, which informs him there’s an audience of around 20% open to his return under certain conditions, and his popularity ranks second only to Mitsotakis. Don’t ask me if this is true; I’m merely passing along what my trustworthy source says. What’s not true is that Tsipras aims to unite left-wing parties and factions into a PASOK-Potami-style setup with open primaries he hopes to win. He wants, if possible, to create a new party entirely from scratch with fresh faces. Whether he can find them and manage this is another priest’s gospel (definitely not Nikos’s!).

Watsa’s praise for Hellenic Bank and Karavias…

• Now onto market news with Fairfax head Prem Watsa, who appears enthusiastic in his annual shareholder letter—and rightly so, considering Fairfax’s strong 2024 results, with earnings per share up by 26%. Watsa seems to be preparing for the future, noting he’s gradually handing leadership to the next generation, which in turn will pass it on, expressing confidence Fairfax will thrive for the next century and beyond. He emphasizes the group’s philosophy, quoting Ronald Reagan: “There’s no limit to what one can accomplish or where one can go if he doesn’t care who gets the credit,” a saying CEOs of Fairfax subsidiaries keep on a plaque. Regarding Greece, he particularly praises Eurobank and its “exceptional management team led by Fokion Karavias, who had another fantastic year in 2024,” specifically highlighting the deal to acquire Hellenic Bank as “a tremendous display of patience and value investing!” Once fully acquired, Eurobank will have bought the Cypriot bank at a valuation four times its earnings, according to Watsa. Moreover, 2025 might become the first year profits from international operations exceed those from Greece.

Criticism on Grivalia Hospitality and lessons from Giorgos

• In contrast, Watsa is less enthusiastic about Grivalia Hospitality. In the same letter to shareholders, he refers to recent management changes, with Natalia Strafti assuming the CEO role and G. Chrysikos becoming Executive Chairman, noting that 2024 was challenging due to delays in opening the One & Only Aesthesis at Asteria Glyfadas. Nevertheless, Fairfax’s head mentions that Giorgos (Chrysikos) and his team learned from the initial year, implemented appropriate adjustments, and are confident the resort will succeed in the coming years.

Seeking ways to boost One & Only in Glyfada

• The “lessons” mentioned by Watsa, I might add, is quite a diplomatic way to phrase things, given it’s a public letter addressed to shareholders. Reports suggest that Grivalia Hospitality’s Board is deeply discussing the next moves regarding One & Only Aesthesis in Glyfada—so much so that there was consideration about whether to keep it open during winter. Sources indicate that One & Only Aesthesis suffered operational losses exceeding €15 million last year, from an investment totaling nearly €300 million. Similarly, the €224 million investment in Petalioi islands is a tough bet, despite its recent inclusion among strategic investments, thus gaining rapid licensing and special spatial development incentives. However, the Petalioi lack basic infrastructure—no water, no electricity, no ferry connection, and they’re off-plan, plus recent complications with construction regulations. Let’s hope the issues are resolved, One & Only Aesthesis stabilizes, and Petalioi moves forward, as these two luxury hotel investments totaling half a billion euros could attract high-income tourism.

Tsafo’s debut public appearance as Deputy Minister and Evangelos’s distinguished visitors

• Now, having started with challenging topics, let’s move onto the energy-rich agenda of this week, briefly interrupted by tomorrow’s national anniversary. On Wednesday, March 26, PPC will announce its 2024 annual results. On the same day, Chairman and CEO George Stassis will welcome distinguished guests from the German Marshall Fund at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, at an event co-hosted with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Don’t be misled by the name; the German Marshall Fund is an American think tank established to foster North America-Europe cooperation, headquartered in Washington with offices in Berlin, Brussels, Ankara, Belgrade, Budapest, Paris, and Warsaw. This strategically timed event will delve into critical political and economic topics such as geopolitics’ impact on transatlantic energy cooperation and climate policies, the shifting international order, and innovation in the energy sector. This will also mark the first public appearance of the new Deputy Minister of Energy, Nikos Tsafos, speaking alongside Tomas-Anker Christensen, senior advisor to EU Commissioner Dan Jørgensen, and Gabriel Mitchell from the Mitvim Institute. On March 27, Stéphane Séjourné, Executive Vice President of the European Commission (and former French Foreign Minister) for Prosperity and European Strategy, visits METLEN’s facilities in Agios Nikolaos, Viotia. METLEN President and CEO Evangelos Mytilineos will guide the European official around Aluminum of Greece, Europe’s only vertically integrated plant producing bauxite, alumina, primary aluminum, and gallium—a critical raw material sought globally.

E-EFKA’s tenders for parking at Kriezotou and FOKAS

• e-EFKA is canceling to…relaunch the tender for the parking lot at Kriezotou Street near Syntagma. Following a recommendation from its Property Management Directorate, e-EFKA’s administration canceled the public tender announced last January for a 490.35 sq.m. plot on Kriezotou 8-10, aiming to reassess utilization terms and relaunch the tender. A certified Ministry of Finance appraiser provided an updated assessment early March. LAMPSA holds preferential rights as lessee of the adjacent Zalokosta 7-9 property and stated it would exercise this right, matching the winning bid. Speaking of e-EFKA, on Wednesday, March 26, bids are due for valuation services and utilization studies covering 13 properties owned by the fund, via direct assignment worth €15,270 (plus VAT €18,935). Notable assets include buildings on Sokratous street, the former FOKAS on Stadiou Street, Omiridou Skylitsi in Piraeus, and others.

OPAP’s acceleration (at a 16-year high)

• OPAP significantly benefited from Friday’s rebalancing. Fueled by exceptional 2024 results, shares surged from €17.14 to €18.24 in just two sessions, marking a 16-year high since June 2009. Friday’s session alone saw a 3.64% jump, the largest daily rise in nine months. Additionally, inflows from FTSE Russell rebalancing drove turnover to around €25 million, exceeding 1.3 million shares traded.

Coca-Cola hits another record (and “El. Venizelos” approaches)

• Coca-Cola HBC returned to record territory after a brief decline, heading towards an all-time high of €42. Closing at €41.72 (intraday high of €41.86), its market cap now exceeds €15.5 billion. Meanwhile, Athens International Airport reached its fourth-highest close since its trading debut last February, nearly hitting €9.1, marking a 13-month peak. Eurobank Equities recently raised its target price to €9.7 (from €9 previously). A historical record for “El. Venizelos” would require surpassing €9.2.

Active investor accounts increasing in Athens Stock Exchange

• The Athens Stock Exchange market capitalization now surpasses €118 billion, levels last seen in September 2008 when the General Index approached 3,100 points. This remarkable rally, driven primarily by banks and significant international portfolio activity, has seen foreign institutional investors conducting 60% of transactions. Official data reveals 23,566 active investor accounts in January and 25,733 in February. Notably, in 2008 there were 100,000 active investor accounts per month. Today, day trading involves fewer than 1,000 accounts, highlighting substantial growth potential among Greek investors, especially amid the ongoing banking-driven market recovery.

Capital Market Bill headed to Parliament

• The new Minister of Finance, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, takes advantage of holiday downtime to finalize his briefing on ministry matters. His first directive is submitting the new Capital Market modernization bill to Parliament by Thursday, unchanged from its public consultation version. Significant amendments will address debtor conditions for the Out-of-Court Debt Settlement Mechanism, doubling income and property thresholds for eligibility, and mandating acceptance by funds, servicers, and banks. For instance, families earning up to €28,000 annually, previously capped at €14,000, could now participate. This new framework explicitly mandates creditor consent, removing bank veto rights, significantly benefiting middle-class debt management.

“THORAX” plan signing today

• Today at 12:30 pm, Minister of Defense Nikos Dendias meets Development Minister Takis Theodorikakos to sign the €50 million “THORAX” contract with Nova and Cosmos Business Systems. The Development Ministry finances the integration of information systems from military and emergency services into a centralized real-time decision-making framework for rapid crisis response, especially at borders prioritized by the ministry for accelerated investment.

All that glitters may not be gold

• Amid global uncertainty, the traditionally safe investment haven of gold slipped 0.7% Friday after peaking at a record $3,040/ounce Thursday. Despite volatility, central banks continue heavy gold buying. China’s central bank reserves reached 73.6 million ounces in February, marking consecutive monthly increases. Over 30 months, China’s reserves expanded by 11 million ounces, representing 5.9% of its total reserves or 2,290 tons. Central banks continue stockpiling gold as if anticipating crisis, with markets simply observing without deeper analysis, following trends.