– Hello there,
It was mathematically certain that with the temperatures we had this past weekend—right in the middle of summer—and Beaufort 7 winds lasting at least until Saturday evening, we’d see wildfires break out. Luckily, the wind died down yesterday, and overall it seems the state firefighting mechanism functioned well. Fingers crossed for what’s ahead, since we still have the most dangerous month for fires ahead of us. People may be heading off on vacation, but Parliament isn’t shutting down just yet. This week’s schedule is full, with a debate on the Investigative Committee on Tuesday and the Pre-Investigative Committee on Wednesday. K.M. will be present and speak at the Investigative one, while on Wednesday, Floridis is expected to hold the fort on the government benches. The critical issue for New Democracy (ND) is to avoid any leaks during the vote for Voridis and Avgenakis, scheduled for Wednesday, following proposals by PASOK and SYRIZA–New Left. Essentially, the same scanning strategy will be employed as in the Karamanlis case.

ND’s Internal Elections
This fall will be dense for ND, as—after multiple postponements—the internal elections to appoint leaderships in the Prefectural and Local Organizations (the so-called DEEPs and DIMTOs) are finally being set. Delegates for the party congress, expected sometime between February and April 2026, will also be elected. The “locked-in” date is November 23, and if a second round is needed, it’ll take place the following Sunday, November 30.

The Egyptian is Coming
Fast-paced geopolitical developments mean Greek diplomacy doesn’t get to take a long-play vacation. I hear Egypt’s Foreign Minister, Badr Abdelatty, will be arriving in Athens the first week of August—just days after the Mitsotakis–El-Sisi phone call. Discussions will clearly include Libya, Turkey, and maritime zones, as Greek–Egyptian coordination is critical. But also on the table are talks over a state-to-state agreement concerning the Monastery of Sinai, a matter handled exclusively by the two Foreign Ministers—especially after Athens decided to create a Legal Entity of Private Law in Greece for the monastery.

The… Rafina Tenure
Let me offer a delayed comment on what Mitsotakis said during his interview with Kossioni on Skai TV, regarding Karamanlis’ (Rafina) tenure and the alleged “inactivity” on national issues. That was in response to ongoing criticism about Greek–Turkish relations, especially aimed at K.M., both from the former PM himself and from his close pal Valinakis (his former Foreign Minister). First of all, Mitsotakis was late in responding—Karamanlis has been parroting the same old talking points about “national issues” for months without suggesting a single alternative policy. What would he have done differently? The answer seems simple: exactly what he did as PM—absolutely nothing. And it wasn’t just national matters. He did nothing—literally nothing—across the board. Especially in the economy: his inertia, paired with some 250,000 public sector hires, led directly to the fatal outcome for the country—Memorandum 1, then Memorandum 2, and finally Tsipras and Memorandum 3. Because let’s not kid ourselves: who really believes that the economy fell apart dramatically between September 2009 and spring 2010, when GAPos (another sly cat) took over and we entered the bailout? Karamanlis sat at Maximos Mansion all day, had Loulis reading him polling numbers, dodged anything unpleasant—and when he bailed, he cozied up with SYRIZA to secure immunity. Come on now, there’s a limit to nonsense—even if the mood of the season and the… OPEKEPE gang encourage babble.

Bio-scandal
Speaking of OPEKEPE—yes, another scandal is brewing involving organic product certification companies. One of the firms under investigation for shady dealings is owned by a PASOK figure, etc. etc. Now you might say, “So what if he’s PASOK?” The answer is—nothing, and everything, especially for those who think that farm subsidies and the 100,000 fake tax IDs that’ve gotten unlawful payouts have a political color. I’ve said it before: in the coming months, thousands of bogus tax IDs will be uncovered—no party ID attached—and sloppy audits by a dozen ministers going back to 2015. Not that this clears the current government, of course.

K2 Demoted to K3…
This one’s juicy—it’s summer, after all. Word is, there’s this guy wandering around in political circles who’s cooked up stories in his head that he used to be K2 in the government (K1 being Mitsotakis!).

But ever since Kyriakos Pierrakakis showed up and stole his thunder, the poor guy got downgraded to K3. Yeah, the heat is definitely on.

Planet Not for Sale
A few days ago we reported that a financier was interested in buying the well-known consultancy firm Planet, owned by Evgenios Giannakopoulos. The man himself called to say he’s not selling. So—we’re just passing it along.

Preparations Heat Up for Kimberly’s Arrival
Right after August 15, the new U.S. ambassador to Athens, Kimberly Guilfoyle, is set to arrive. She’s preparing intensively to present her credentials in early September, and is already scheduling her first public appearances to promote Trump’s Europe policy. Simultaneously, the reconstruction of the U.S. Embassy in Athens is being finalized. The 64-year-old building—designed by Bauhaus pioneer Walter Gropius (1883–1969) in collaboration with Greek architect Pericles Sakellarios—was originally intended to evoke the feel of a “lightweight Greek temple pavilion,” despite its mass. The 2025 renovation respected the original architectural vision while bolstering security infrastructure and digital networks. From this very building, Kimberly will announce the U.S. plan to designate Greece as a key entry and distribution hub for American LNG in Europe. This includes support for strategic infrastructure like the Revythousa and Alexandroupolis terminals and the regional pipeline networks (Vertical Corridor). She’ll also publicly back further investment in electricity interconnections between Greece–Cyprus–Israel–Egypt, aiming to enhance energy security and diversification in the Eastern Med and Europe.

What Metlen Revealed About the Stock Market

Where Coca Cola HBC and TITAN failed in their first attempts, Metlen succeeded—during a tough period for the stock market. The official announcement of the public offer results is set for July 29, with settlement on August 1. But let’s unpack what Metlen’s public offer revealed about the Greek stock market: Over 33,000 retail accounts participated—small and large private investors still active on the Athens Exchange. Notably, 15 accounts each held exactly one share of Metlen. The process also exposed various market quirks: many accounts belong to deceased individuals, with no known heirs—or heirs unaware they’ve inherited shares. Other accounts are frozen due to tax, legal, or insurance issues. Together, this paints a broad and fairly representative picture of our stock market. A picture we’ll probably find useful in the future. As for Metlen PLC’s own future: three weeks ago, MSCI announced that upon successful completion of the offer (which has happened), it will include Metlen PLC in its Global Standard Indexes, categorizing it as Greek and treating it as the successor of Metlen S.A. Meanwhile, FTSE Russell announced (on June 30) that Metlen PLC is expected to gain British nationality and be included in the Developed Europe Mid Cap index.

Paulson’s Waters
The announcement of Greece’s National Water Strategy for the coming decades triggered a stock market rally for listed companies in the sector—and John Paulson came out ahead, thanks to EYDAP. The American megainvestor had acquired a 10% stake in EYDAP in April 2014, purchasing 10.6 million shares from Piraeus Bank for €86.2 million—roughly €8.10 per share. Under SYRIZA, the stock tanked below €4, but later bounced back above purchase levels, though more recently hovered around €5.50. During that time, Paulson passively collected solid dividends from EYDAP. But after the new water policy announcements, the stock shot up 25%, closing at €7.27. As a result, Paulson’s stake is now worth €77 million, with strong prospects for further gains—especially given EYDAP’s planned role in the new water management structure, which aims for a DEI-style restart. According to newmoney, the plan calls for three main companies—EYDAP, EYATH, and a new entity (a public company) to absorb some 730 local water management bodies (DEYA, TOEV, GOEV, etc). The “Project Aquarius” strategy by Deloitte proposes a unified pricing system based on usage (drinking, irrigation, industry), rate hikes, digitization of networks, a centralized database, and a new pricing mechanism.

The real estate utilization scenarios and the mezzanine rally
-Prices of mezzanine bonds surged significantly toward the end of the week on the stock exchange—by just under 10%. According to sources, the cause is likely tied to the recent wave of reports over the past 10 days regarding real estate utilization by loan servicers. Another explanation is that, with the momentum the Greek stock market has picked up for various reasons, no asset is left behind in the end. Case in point: Piraeus Bank’s Phoenix Vega closed at €0.073 (+9.45%), Eurobank’s CairoMez at €0.484 with a 9.64% gain, Piraeus’ SunriseMezz PLC at €0.228 (+9.33%), and Alpha’s Galaxy at €0.537 with +9.28%.

New business loans of €6.9 billion in five months
-Official figures from the Bank of Greece show that “new loans to businesses” from all Greek banks exceeded €6.9 billion in the first five months of the year. The results to be announced this week by the four systemic banks are expected, according to sources, to show that new business loan disbursements to SMEs reached €1.21 billion—an increase of +16%. These loans target small and medium-sized enterprises with an annual turnover of up to €2.5 million, and come solely from the four systemic banks. According to published figures from the European Central Bank, in June, Greece recorded the second-highest annual credit expansion rate in the eurozone for loans to non-financial corporations, at +16.6%. This rate is six times the eurozone average (2.7%). The same data also show that, in June, Greece posted the third-highest overall private sector (non-financial) credit expansion in the eurozone, with annual growth of +11.1%. The eurozone average was 2.9%.

New airplane
-The new ATR 72-600 aircraft, scheduled for delivery within August, will be added to Olympic Air’s fleet. The AEGEAN subsidiary—aligned with the group’s broader strategy of increasing capacity, particularly outside peak summer periods—signed a letter of intent for the purchase last May. Notably, this year’s overall outlook for air transport in Greece remains positive, despite concerns stemming from geopolitical and economic issues (which have already shown signs in hotel occupancy and bookings during this critical midsummer period). Moreover, AEGEAN’s subsidiary moved forward, by decision of last week’s general shareholders’ meeting, with a €30 million share capital increase through a nominal share value increase and premium, bringing its total capital to €83.85 million.

TITAN’s tough second quarter
-On the last day of the month—Thursday, July 31—Titan Cement International is set to announce its Q2 and H1 results. No pleasant surprises are expected, especially for the stormy April–May–June quarter, with the company’s bottom line heavily affected by the euro–dollar exchange rate and the group’s exit deal from Turkey. TITAN sold 75% of its subsidiary Adocim Cimento Beton Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S. in Eastern Turkey, receiving $87.5 million in cash that strengthens capital structure but also reduces productive operations in Western Turkey. Ongoing currency volatility (particularly the weakening dollar against the euro) negatively impacts the group’s international revenue, as a large portion is in USD. A mere 5% unfavorable exchange rate shift could “cost” TITAN up to €10 million in annual revenue.

Steggos and the… garbage
-Tech Olympic now boasts a total of 30 registered business activities. The Steggos family firm, beyond its core focus on construction—where activity has waned in recent years—has expanded into multiple other market areas, from real estate to distressed debt management. At its July 1 General Assembly, two more activities were added: “biological waste processing through composting methods (waste composting)” and “provision of remediation, decontamination, and other waste management services.” Given that its charter already included “waste collection, processing, disposal, and material recovery,” it’s clear that seasoned contractor Konstantinos Steggos has set his sights on a new business opportunity. After all, it’s well known that in garbage, there’s… gold.

UK developments will impact the Stock Market
-On one hand, Metlen’s successful bid to enter the LSE. On the other, von der Leyen’s tariff negotiations with Trump in Scotland. The Athens Stock Exchange broke its four-week winning streak and currently sits at a capitalization of €133.6 billion, which corresponds to about 55.5% of Greece’s GDP (estimated at €240 billion for 2025). The market cap-to-GDP ratio is returning to pre-crisis levels and remains attractive compared to developed markets, where the ratio usually ranges from 70% to 100%. Our stock market will take its cues from major European exchanges and tariff developments and will find support in the strong results expected from banks. Notably, 55% of last Friday’s trading volume was in Eurobank (€3.20), National Bank (€12.22), Piraeus (€6.73), and Alpha Bank (€3.20)—a trend that defined the entire past week. The Athens Stock Exchange has returned +34% year-to-date; 62% of trading value comes from foreign portfolios, while local equity mutual funds are seeing inflows of €12–13 million weekly. No one seems worried about the market’s trajectory, but neither is anyone rushing to break the psychological 2,000-point barrier, preferring to wait for the market to “absorb” new price levels.

Political balance games at the IMF
-Last week, IMF Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath—effectively the organization’s No. 2 and a protégé of former chief Christine Lagarde—resigned. Sources in Washington suggest that the frontrunner to replace her is David Malpass, an American economist and former U.S. Treasury Undersecretary, best known as President of the World Bank (2019–2023), from which he resigned after not backing its “green policies.” Many interpret Malpass’ potential appointment as IMF head Kristalina Georgieva extending an olive branch to the Trump camp. Analysts foresee a more U.S.-centric and possibly tougher IMF stance—both regarding bailout terms for countries in crisis and in its handling of sovereign debt and emerging markets. Others view Malpass as Georgieva’s eventual successor. However, her current term doesn’t expire until—still a long way off—2029, and traditionally, IMF leadership is European while the World Bank is led by an American—a gentleman’s agreement that has held for decades.

Cryptocurrencies changed the global investment landscape
-In under a year, BlackRock’s Ethereum-based Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) surpassed $10 billion in assets under management. Traditional investment products usually take years to reach such a milestone. In truth, Bitcoin ETFs reached $10 billion in assets in just a matter of weeks. The point is, cryptocurrencies have now become “institutional investors” in their own right, with the three fastest-growing ETFs in Wall Street history all being crypto-related. In just the past two weeks, the Ethereum ETF attracted $4.6 billion in new investments, doubled its capital in 10 days, and saw its value surge +26% in one week (+16% the previous). These crypto investment products are generating “paper wealth,” but who will actually benefit from this new frenzy remains to be seen—much further down the road.