-Hello there, well I just can’t hold back even though it’s the end of July—news is still news. Hear ye, hear ye: our dear leader Alexis has made up his mind once and for all (I’ll tell you the reasoning too), and barring any unexpected developments, he will announce his new party sometime between this October and January 2026 at the latest. The only thing that could derail the plan is a sudden political event, like snap elections in the fall. If that doesn’t happen—which it probably won’t, unless another scandal explodes in our faces—then we’re getting a new party.

We’re a package deal…
-I asked my source: “Why on earth doesn’t he wait for the center-left to completely fall apart in the elections with those Nikos-and-Famelos types, and then jump in? Does he want to lose to Mitsotakis again?” The answer I got was: “Tsipras is tied to Mitsotakis in the public’s mind. If someone wants to get back at Mitsotakis, they’re not going to vote for Nikolatsis, they’ll vote for Tsipras, who’s got a mouth on him and can actually stand up to the guy. The other one just growls, doesn’t speak,” the source concluded—but I find that comment racist, so I’m not endorsing it. The second reason Tsipras supposedly wants to jump in now is that he doesn’t want to be blamed for the Left’s collapse, like people saying ‘you didn’t even run, all you know how to do is wreck us.’

Poll numbers?
-So what about polling? I asked. The answer: “All the polls give us around 10%, and we haven’t even founded a party yet. Sure, once we do, the numbers might drop below 10%, not saying they won’t. But they could also climb well above. Our goal is to overtake PASOK and become the main opposition party right away.”

Money?
-And where will you get the money to start a party? I asked. The reply: “Well, definitely not from eager businessmen lurking around hoping to buy themselves another lever of influence. Besides,” the source added, “times have changed—if the leader’s got traction and things go well, you don’t need much money, mainly just for social media.” I’m just passing this along as I heard it—don’t shoot the messenger.

Extra needs, extra cash
-Yesterday’s announcement by K.M. that Greece is officially applying for €1.2 billion in loans from the European defense fund, known as SAFE, basically means this: our defense needs exceed the original projected €28.8 billion out to 2036, so we’re using SAFE’s favorable terms (low interest, long repayment period) to cover the gap. That bumps the total defense spending “pot” to €30 billion. A source even told me the €1.2 billion is just the “floor”—we may end up asking for more of that €30 billion through SAFE, but we won’t go above €30 billion in total due to fiscal constraints.

Dendias’s jab
-In Parliament, Dendias’s little dig caused quite a stir—he said he didn’t negotiate the SAFE program’s amounts or allocations and made it clear he would’ve liked more but there were limits. While on the face of it this was just a factual statement—that the Defense Ministry wasn’t involved in negotiations—some took it as a veiled jab at M.M. From my digging, it seems more likely that the jab was aimed at the Foreign Ministry, since the allocations are discussed in the EU General Affairs Council.

ND, the Preliminary Committee, and the walkout
-Yesterday afternoon, there was a meeting in Parliament with M.M. (Mylonakis) and members of ND’s parliamentary group to coordinate strategy for the two-day firestorm ahead: today’s debate on the Inquiry Committee and tomorrow’s on the Preliminary Committee. Tomorrow, Voridis and Avgenakis will speak, and ND is seriously considering walking out of the vote on the Preliminary Committee. The main arguments for walking out: ND will have already supported the Inquiry, so voting on the Preliminary is redundant (as Marinakis said yesterday, “superfluous”), and remember—the opposition walked out en masse last week during the Karamanlis vote, leaving ND to vote alone with… little Zoitsa.

The stock drama and the mourning to come
-With the Hellenic Exchanges (ATHEX) stock and the Euronext offer, we’re witnessing a market gamble that’s probably going to end in tears. Just yesterday, the stock went from €7.45 to €7.52 and then crashed to €7.31—that says it all. Sure, ATHEX posted solid results thanks to the stock market’s rally, but let’s not lose perspective. ATHEX remains a company stuck in a strategic dead end. It lacks the capital to make the tech investments needed to catch up to other markets, it doesn’t have enough listed companies with valuations that attract global investors, and the risk of marginalization is real. The stock was languishing around €6 until Euronext showed up, and its recent rise has nothing to do with fundamentals—it’s purely because there’s an active offer on the table. Euronext’s execs are technocrats—they don’t lose sleep over a backwater market like ours. Same kind of story happened before with the Madrid Stock Exchange—Euronext pulled out of that one too in the end.

AKTOR pays off €114M in intra-group loans to ELLAKTOR
-According to sources, the repayment of old intra-group loans from AKTOR ATE to ELLAKTOR is now complete—part of the 2023 acquisition deal signed by AKTOR Group head Alexandros Exarchou with ELLAKTOR Group. Within 19 months, AKTOR Group paid off €114 million in intra-group loans on top of the €110 million lump sum paid at signing—meaning Exarchou dropped a total of €224 million for the acquisition of AKTOR ATE. The deal has propelled AKTOR’s 2024 financials, tripling its revenue and increasing EBITDA sixfold. Also pending is the green light for AKTOR’s acquisition of AKTOR Concessions, the next step in its strategic roadmap.

A. Orcel: “Very satisfied with the Government, the Bank of Greece, and Alpha Bank”
-Andrea Orcel spoke with enthusiasm about his ties with Alpha Bank, the Greek government, and the Bank of Greece while answering a UBS analyst during UniCredit’s H1 earnings call. The Italian bank’s top dog described his relationship with Alpha Bank as one of mutual trust between people and teams. He asked for approval to raise UniCredit’s stake in Alpha to 30% for flexibility, but stressed they won’t do anything Alpha doesn’t want. “We didn’t expect much from our cooperation in Greece—and we were wrong,” Orcel said. “The partnership is excellent: in one-markets, trade finance, payments, corporate lending—we’re combining forces to offer full solutions to clients. We’re very satisfied. We’ve been welcomed by a government, a central bank, and institutions in Greece that are open, market-friendly, and focused on attracting the right investments. When you have something like that, the last thing you want is to risk it. Whatever we do with Alpha will be something Alpha wants too. We respect them deeply—even the second increase in our stake happened because they asked us, and we were glad to do it. But we won’t go further unless Alpha thinks it’s in their best interest. Yes, there are financial factors—but this goes beyond finance. We respect the spirit of the partnership and what Alpha has achieved, and we’re committed to it. If you look at Greece’s underlying economic growth, its credit rating upgrades, the stance toward domestic and foreign investment, and how the country operates, there’s every reason to be optimistic about Greece and its banking sector. We’re happy to have a stake. And the valuation of Greek banks shows the market’s catching on. I think Alpha’s now trading above book value—and rightly so. That’s where we stand.”

StiQ is Growing

– StiQ is a Greek startup in the field of driven fast casual dining and is the first company in Greece to integrate cutting-edge technologies and Artificial Intelligence (AI) into food production processes. It is expanding rapidly, having surpassed 2 million orders within just two years of operation. StiQ’s growth plan includes reaching 50 locations across Greece by 2027. This year, the company will close with 300 employees, aiming for 500 by the end of 2026. StiQ’s prospects and early results attracted €35 million in investment—€20 million from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and €15 million from international family offices.

New Chairman of the Gaming Commission in Parliament

-This week, likely on Thursday, Antonis Vartholomaios, former CEO of Pancretan Bank, will be reviewed by the Parliamentary Committee on Institutions and Transparency for approval as the new Chairman of the Hellenic Gaming Commission. He will replace the current Chairman, Dimitris Tzanatos, whose term has ended.

Guerrilla Warfare at Avramar

-Bankers are throwing up their hands over Amerra’s demands, which continuously hinder efforts to save Avramar. As someone familiar with the case said: it wasn’t enough that the management they appointed drove the former fish farming champion into the rocks, or that they threw a party with hefty consulting fees—now they’re also setting conditions on who should lead and to whom Avramar will sell fish the day after. Despite a series of meetings aiming to resolve the issue, no breakthrough has occurred. Amerra even suggested that Cooke’s Spanish subsidiary enter the picture as a potential buyer. However, the creditor banks have already signed an SPA with the Arabs of Aqua Bridge and intend to support that choice, as their offer includes better recovery for the banks and remains higher than Cooke’s non-binding proposal. While there’s no immediate pressure—since the company has resolved its liquidity issues—the banks want no more delays and have recently triggered the €400 million acceleration clause in the loan agreements to put pressure on Amerra.

New Extension for Lavrio Port Tender

-Investor interest is real and intense, but preparing binding financial proposals takes time, especially as global conditions keep changing. According to sources, the management of the Hellenic Holdings and Property Company (HCAP) will announce today a second 20-day extension for the tender to acquire a 51% majority stake in Lavrio Port Authority S.A. The purpose is to give prospective investors enough time to finalize their proposals and adjust to the tender’s requirements, which has attracted significant interest from both domestic and international investor groups. The five bidding consortia are:

1. GEK TERNA – Celestyal Cruises: combining GEK TERNA’s technical and construction expertise with Celestyal’s tourism know-how.
2. INTERKAT S.A. – Beaufort Sea Shipping Corporation – Newsphone Hellas S.A.: bringing together strong maritime and engineering backgrounds.
3. OLYMPIC MARINE S.A. – Cruise Terminal Investment Limited SARL (MSC Cruises): led by shipowner George Prokopiou, with CTIL part of the global cruise giant MSC.
4. Israel Shipyards Industries Ltd: with considerable experience in port management, including Haifa Bay.
5. Jet Plan Shipping Co Ltd (Seajets Group, owned by shipowner Marios Iliopoulos): active in coastal shipping and logistics.

Big Bucks for OPAP

-The 37th consecutive jackpot in OPAP’s Joker game has sent temperatures soaring at agencies and online. Over 3 million tickets are expected to be filled out in hopes of winning the prize, now exceeding €17 million. Each Joker rollover adds about €2 million in extra revenue for OPAP. As a result, OPAP’s market capitalization is now around €7 billion, and its stock has delivered a 20% return this year. Despite the rise, its price-to-earnings ratio for 2025 remains at 14.3.

From Pharma to Real Estate

-Not one, not two, but three new companies were set up by the Vigkopoulos family to make their move into real estate. Named “Tinos Beta,” “Tinos Delta,” and “Tinos Lamda,” these companies appear nearly identical, each with an initial share capital of €10,000 divided into 1,000 capital shares at €10 each. In all three, Nikolaos Vigkopoulos (son of Achilleas) paid in €9,990 and holds 999 shares, while Achilleas Vigkopoulos—President and CEO of Novimed S.A., with a longstanding family legacy in pharma via Genepharm—contributed €10 and holds just 1 share. That means Nikolaos controls 99.9%, while Achilleas, who will manage the companies, holds a mere 0.1%. Their scope includes buying and selling real estate, construction work for residential and other buildings, leasing and managing properties, furnished apartments, etc. Judging from the company names, something might already be brewing on the picturesque island of Tinos. All three companies are based at 2-4 Mesogeion Avenue, in the Athens Tower, which is also Novimed’s HQ.

JJ Real Estate

-Speaking of real estate companies, another new player entered the scene yesterday under the name “JJ Real Estate Experts.” Its scope covers commercial and investment activity in real estate—buying, reselling, constructing, reconstructing, renovating, restoring, and maintaining properties—as well as leasing and full management. The initial capital is €500,000, divided into 50,000 nominal shares at €10 each. Sole shareholder and manager is Ioannis Bonatsos, who owns, manages, and represents the websites newsbeast.gr and news.gr, under Prime Applications (with Bonatsos as president and CEO), owned by the Kopelouzos family. “JJ Real Estate Experts” is based on Kifisias Avenue in Marousi.

Stock Markets: Started with Passion, Realized the Mistake

-The agreement sealed at Trump’s luxury resort in Turnberry, Scotland, offered relief as it averted the worst—a drawn-out tariff war. Markets opened Monday full of passion and optimism, hoping for smoother global trade. But as more details surfaced, it became clear the deal was not good news for Europe—or the American consumer, who until recently had been propping up the economy. In Athens, the General Index opened strong, reaching 1,988.1 points (+0.99%) but quickly reversed, closing at 1,950.12 points (-0.94%) on low turnover (€157.17 million, with €13.8 million in blocks), reflecting the market’s uncertainty. President Trump, with UK PM Starmer at his side, announced he may implement a universal import tariff of 15–20%, up from the 10% he floated in April 2025. “They need to pay,” said the POTUS—conveniently ignoring that it’s American consumers who’ll foot the bill. In short, there’s little reason for enthusiasm in either Europe or the U.S.—just a need to assess sector-specific or company-specific developments.
Yesterday’s clear standout was Metlen stock (+0.26% to €45.9), which not only succeeded in its public offer but also unveiled its new corporate events calendar. MYTIL will be delisted on September 15, and its financial results will come out a week earlier.
Banks offered no support to the index: NBG (-3.23%) fell to €11.82

Eurobank (-1.56%) dropped to €3.15

Piraeus (-1.49%) to €6.63

Alpha (-0.31%) managed to limit losses at €3.19
On the other hand, EYDAP (+3.58%) celebrated its heavy new responsibilities at €7.53, and EYATH (+7.25%) surged to €4.29.
Punitive metal tariffs remain at 50%, possibly explaining pressure on Viohalco (-4.09% to €6.09) and its subsidiary ElvalHalcor (-5.3% to €2.5), while Cenergy (-0.57%), with U.S. production, saw milder losses, closing at €10.4.
Titan (-2.3%) dropped to €36.1 due to lowered expectations for upcoming results.
PPC (-1.13%) fell to €14 despite new EU funding for EV chargers.
Motor Oil (-1.11%) settled at €24.8 and Coca-Cola (-0.96%) remained flat at €45.26.

The Mystery of London’s Silver

-On the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA), it was recently discovered that silver reserves in vaults have dropped 35%—from 1.2 billion to under 800 million ounces—since 2022. Some are withdrawing physical silver from vaults in London and the U.S. COMEX and storing it privately. Institutional investors, especially ETFs, are worried about silver availability and are claiming physical delivery. It’s worth noting that an increasing portion of silver reserves is now held by ETFs and investment accounts, creating artificial illiquidity in the over-the-counter market. The global silver market is in deficit for the 5th consecutive year. Industrial and investment demand (especially from solar panels) far outpaces supply. In 2025, production is expected to rise by only 2%, while the shortfall will remain significant—around 180 million ounces. High-tech industries, especially green applications, consume large amounts of physical silver before it ever returns to the market. Lease rates for silver have skyrocketed, and U.S. investor demand is further straining physical supply.