-Hello there, today I’ll start with this very mysterious case of an attempted bribery of a high-ranking judge.
First off, before I describe the case, let me inform you — because this may well be the thread of Ariadne — that the Supreme Court judge whom the infamous “chief wiretapper” Maurikis attempted to bribe is a prominent judicial figure, relatively young and well-regarded. One of those people in the judiciary you look at and say, “This guy has a future ahead of him.”
Now, the case revolves around a legal dispute between a private individual (the name rings a bell, but I haven’t yet confirmed the person’s “identity,” so I won’t write it) and the State over the inclusion of 160 stremmas (roughly 40 acres) into the urban plan in the Papagou area — or in any case, the legalization of what’s clearly a highly valuable plot.
I don’t know the full details of the case, but what I do know is that it was at the first-instance trial level, and Maurikis told the Supreme Court judge (and handed him a letter with details) that the plot was worth about €25 million and that he’d been promised a bribe of around €1 million — implying that a cut of that would go to the judge.
That’s what triggered the judge’s immediate reaction to report him for attempted bribery.

Two versions…
So, both the government and the Supreme Court are now looking into two possible scenarios behind this rather unprecedented incident.
The first is the “innocent” scenario — that the well-known-for-his-shady-past bugman Maurikis went in guns blazing to “grease” a judge, with zero awareness and total lack of sense for what he was doing… just to make a “day’s wage.”
The second scenario is far more suspicious — that some shady actors tried to sabotage and destroy the career of a rising star in the judicial ranks, especially with upcoming judicial elections in the mix.
Naturally, the second “dark scenario” is much more dangerous and painful than the more “classic” first one. We’ll find out more details soon…

Samaras like Papandreou?
What with Mitsotakis being away (he returns today), the heat, and the upcoming basketball Final Four dominating conversations, no one in political circles is really in the mood for serious talk.
That’s how the rumors I wrote to you about on Monday came back — rumors of a Samaras party.
Some… more advanced voices even say the name of Samaras’s party has already been “locked in.” His birthday is this Friday, by the way — he’s turning 74.
Still, someone in M.M.’s wider circle — someone who looks at the polling numbers — made a rather biting remark to me: “A Samaras party is very likely to end up like Papandreou’s party.”
For those who don’t remember, the unforgettable “Movement of Democracy” didn’t even make it into Parliament in January 2015.

Adonis’s briefing
Returning from the U.S., K.M. has a scheduled meeting at Aristotelous Street to get briefed by Adonis and the leadership of the Health Ministry on all open issues.
Hospital renovations and operations, the ER “bracelets,” pharmaceutical spending, and the digital reform will be on the table — though don’t expect any “news” from today’s discussion.

Plenary in Chios
Six deputy ministers, general secretaries, and party officials of ND were in Chios yesterday. Here’s the roster: Thanasis Kontogeorgis, Anna Karamanli, Christos Kellas, Marios Themistocleous, Nikos Tsafos, Nikos Tahiaos — and from ND, general director Yiannis Smyrlis, Mitsotakis’s office director Stelios Kontadakis, and advisor Thanasis Nezis.
Projects underway on the island were discussed, and in the afternoon they spoke at a party event.
Present, of course, was the local MP Notis Mitarakis, who’s barely… pulling together a candidate list on the island.

The Commissioner’s report
Skerstos and Marinakis left the office of European Commissioner for Justice McGrath with good remarks about Greece.
As I told you yesterday, they presented Greece’s initiatives on the rule of law and press freedom and had a cordial discussion with the Irish Commissioner.
I hear that McGrath didn’t make any new recommendations, and while Greece does have to implement some EU directives, they’re fewer than in other countries.
So in that context, the Commission’s report expected this summer is not likely to be “tough” on Greece.

What citizen ratings show about public services
There’s been massive participation by citizens in the new app from the Ministries of Interior and Digital Governance for evaluating the quality of state, municipal, and regional services.
I hear that agencies that have digitized their operations and use gov.gr are getting top marks — 10 out of 10 from citizens.
By contrast, agencies still using counters and in-person services are getting “blackouts.”
The final data will definitely provide useful insights for the government’s next moves.
The real test, though, will come when citizens are asked to rate the services that public schools provide to their children.
Anyone with kids at all school levels knows that if you want your child to stand a real chance in the university entrance exams, you’ll need to shell out a fortune for private tutoring and cram schools.

Hydra–Spetses
Yesterday there was a teleconference about the unauthorized vehicles operating in Hydra, attended by Mendoni, Skertsos, Koutnatzis, Hardalias, and Mayor Koukoudakis.
The mayor strongly complained that he doesn’t have the authority or enforcement mechanism, and all the ministers responded that the legal framework exists and has been fully clarified (especially as of May 8 with a document from the Ministry of Culture).
So: “You’re on the ground, you know what’s happening on your island, and if you need help, we’re here to provide it.”
Additionally, the government is creating a digital platform where all legally operating vehicles on the island (including those with temporary construction permits) will be listed, so anyone can see what’s legal and what’s not.
There’ll also be a hotline for reporting illegal vehicles, connected to the local police and port authority, so any citizen can “rat out” anything unlawful they spot on the island.
Moral of the story: sometimes “bad press” gets results…
The mayor of Spetses also asked for stricter rules so that cars and motorbikes don’t end up everywhere (as would’ve happened in Hydra in a few years…).
What wasn’t discussed — and what the mayor of Spetses didn’t mention either — was the matter of the illegal swimming pools that were revealed back when Kasselakis had his infamous garden tub moment!

Piraeus Bank–Printec deal days away
Now on to business matters, starting with some good news.
The agreement between Piraeus Bank and Printec is just days away from being signed — transferring about 850 to 900 of the bank’s ATMs to Printec.
Piraeus has about 1,500 ATMs in total.
Those not installed in bank branches, especially ones in areas where the bank has no network and the ATMs are necessary (remote, border, or otherwise critical locations), will be sold to Printec.
The deal won’t bring immediate financial gain to the bank but will offer indirect benefits by significantly cutting maintenance, cash transport, and liquidity costs tied to the ATMs — while ensuring a steady income stream for Piraeus.

Capital Market Commission steps in over Stock Exchange site
And from the good news, back to the rough stuff.
Yesterday started off badly for (you’re all on my list) Yiannos Kontopoulos.
On Monday, the official Athens Stock Exchange website went haywire and was displaying unrelated posts.
On Tuesday, the Chair of the Capital Market Commission, V. Lazarakou, requested an official letter be sent to the ASE to explain what’s going on — and to contact the Exchange directly to find out if it’s just a technical glitch, why it happened, etc.

Clouds Gathering Over the President of the ASE
But in general, it wasn’t just yesterday that things went sideways for (I don’t give a damn about any of you) Giannos Kontopoulos, since Mercury is retrograde these days for the President of the Athens Stock Exchange and CEO of Hellenic Exchanges (ATHEX). And I say this because, from what I gather, the countdown to his departure has already begun. Tensions are running high within the ATHEX board of directors. Some board members criticize him for not properly promoting the prospects of the ATHEX stock. The CEO is irked by the criticism and is attempting to replace some board members — even though their terms expire in May 2026. I don’t know what broader impressions this feud has left on the ATHEX board, but since there are two categories of employees (and salaries — i.e., those he hired himself and those already working at ATHEX), the atmosphere is far from great.
At the same time, there’s another major factor: when he took over, there was a proposal on the table from the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange to buy ATHEX and the Cyprus Stock Exchange (CSE), allowing Israeli companies to acquire a European passport and creating a market focused on food and technology. He didn’t exactly jump at the idea, war broke out shortly after, and the plans went straight… down the drain.
Then came another proposal from Euronext which, after some discussion, also ended up in the bin — right next to the Swiss Stock Exchange’s offer.
All of this has weighed down his image, and renewing his term in May 2026 is now looking shaky, though it’s quite possible developments may come even sooner, since the roulette ball hasn’t landed yet. I wouldn’t rule out the chance that he might manage to turn things around in the meantime — he’ll certainly try — and after all, the future is unknowable.
Whatever happens, though, the Dark Room isn’t worried, because (I don’t give a damn about any of you) Giannos Kontopoulos has an open-ended contract, meaning he’ll be able to negotiate a hefty severance package.

Mytilineos–Papastavrou Meeting
-And now to a meeting that Environment and Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou will be having in the coming days — one that many would love to overhear… even through the keyhole. From what I hear, he’s getting ready to welcome Evangelos Mytilineos, and it doesn’t take a fortune teller to know the conversation won’t just be polite small talk.
The strongman of Metlen isn’t the kind to make courtesy calls at ministries. With a heavy portfolio — ranging from energy diplomacy and metallurgy (in the heart of Europe), to electricity retail and the green agenda — he’s arriving with packed luggage.
At the table, it won’t just be current issues under discussion, but also future moves by the group, which is spreading out a very large trachanas (read: it’s got fingers in a lot of pies).
Evangelos Mytilineos, after all, is playing on many chessboards at once: major international energy deals, the largest private electricity provider in retail, an entrance into the London Stock Exchange, a strong foothold in critical metals, and a renewables portfolio making… green noise globally.
Meanwhile, his industrial arm keeps marching on unfazed — defying the deindustrialization wave sweeping across Europe.

At National Securities, They’re Running Around Like Headless Chickens
Customers of National Securities are facing problems. Last Monday, the bank took over custody services for the brokerage’s clients — including those with margin accounts. For this, they opened individual accounts for each client, scrapping the omnibus account system previously used by the brokerage, which allocated funds and securities per client internally.
As an idea, this may have made sense, but apparently, the execution left much to be desired — even though the transition had been in the works for about eight months.
As a result, the systems are showing daily mismatches in balances, which the brokerage staff are racing to reconcile before the end of each day.
The electronic platform also changed — they adopted the bank’s Wealth system, which is a heavy-duty tool designed for banking transactions.
Long story short, everyone at the brokerage is running around like headless chickens and doesn’t even have time to follow the market.
Meanwhile, for clients to view their assets and available funds, they need ebanking access — and if they don’t already have it, they must schedule an appointment at the bank to go through the necessary paperwork.
When will the system be fixed? The experts predict at least another month of headaches.

Cosco: 18–19% Raises Over Three Years
DPort-PCT (read: Cosco), which manages piers 2 and 3 at the Port of Piraeus, has been locked in negotiations with workers over the new collective agreement for the past 10 days. The talks have been intense and included work stoppages by staff.
According to sources, the situation seems to be stabilizing now, as management is leaning toward 18–19% raises over a three-year period.

Stock Exchange: Different Times… Different Scale
It was April 23, 2010, when the General Index at the Athens Stock Exchange climbed to a historic 1,821 points. Back then, the total market capitalization didn’t exceed €71.8 billion.
Today, with the General Index at 1,828 points, the total capitalization of listed companies has soared past €126 billion.
The last time the market cap of the ASE was at this level was on August 8, 2008 — back when the General Index stood at… 3,304 points.
At that time, around 270 companies were listed on the Athens Stock Exchange — that’s 120 more than today (currently around 150, including those with tradable bonds and those listed on the Alternative Market).
In simple terms, the real market level today is much higher than what the updated General Index might suggest…