-Hello, and a blessed Lent to you. We’re on the final stretch toward Easter, with the March 25 public holiday as an intermediate stop—just so we don’t forget the important things in life amid the daily grind. At least yesterday the weather was good, and there was a big getaway everywhere for the long weekend, with occupancy almost across the entire mainland of Greece. As for the rest, since Friday Hydra has been living the high life, with hundreds of members of Brad Pitt’s Hollywood blockbuster all over the island, and of course dozens of journalists as well as lots of people who went to see up close a unique spectacle like the shooting of an American mega-production with a major actor such as Pitt. Let those who want to turn Hydra into something like Methana—with huge supermarkets and souvlaki joints in the island’s uniquely beautiful harbor—take note. Truth be told, when it comes to protecting the environment and natural beauty or cultural heritage, the government does intervene, but unfortunately in a firefighting, last-minute way. A serious environmental policy over the seven years it has been in power it does not have; something is now trying to happen with the Urban Planning Plans, but we’ll see.

Tsipras is aiming for autumn, Samaras probably not…

-Before we get to current affairs, which aren’t all that great anyway, let me share two bits of information from good sources about two of the three parties theoretically “in the works.” The first concerns Alexis—our soft spot. I’m told the leader isn’t in a hurry and has no reason to press the button before autumn, since he understands that K.M. really means it when he says he’ll go to the polls at the end. And why shouldn’t he, when the longer his governance goes on, the more it looks like he’s playing solo? Just imagine, my source from M.M. tells me, now even a well-known pollster—“reliable, though he never has a good word to say about us”—is saying it. Yes, I’m not sure I fully get who he means, but what matters is that he’s considered reliable, and that counts; who can stomach whom in life and in politics is another matter. The second bit of information has to do with Samaras: at this point, in the weighing he’s doing—by his own account—the idea of creating a party doesn’t seem to be winning. And that seems logical and expected; it’s easier to get together with Karamanlis and predict national sell-outs and disasters. Meanwhile, all pollsters see exactly the opposite: namely, that when Mitsotakis takes initiatives on national issues, energy, etc., he immediately ticks up a point or two.

Dendias—slightly… sandwiched

-What can I say—staking opposition bets on national issues at a time like this seems completely foolish to me. Dendias does it a bit too, I see, but he also feels the pressure a bit more… something like being sandwiched: on the one hand Mitsotakis, who remains by far the steady first choice of his party’s voters in the polls; on the other— in the same surveys—the abrupt leap of Pierakakis thanks to the Eurogroup presidency… All of this has little importance anyway, because there’s still a long way to go before the elections. Since we’re talking about people, let me say that last week, when Pavlos Marinakis cut the New Year’s pie at his political office, there was visibly a lot of turnout—proof that voters are looking to try new faces everywhere, and in any case, everything needs a limit.

The social media ban is coming

-Last Friday there was a teleconference between M.M. and the relevant ministries (Digital Governance, Health, Justice) on the final details for banning minors’ access to social media. The issue won’t make it onto Thursday’s Cabinet agenda, but by next week a directive has been given for everything to be ready, so that announcements can follow. The ban will be horizontal, while the government is looking into the legal arrangements regarding restricting the operations of multinational tech companies in our country so that the “block” for children can apply. Once the plan is locked in, announcements will be made, the legislative process will begin, and the ban will come into force in a few months.

Benefits under review again

-The recent story with OPEKA and the benefit for uninsured elderly people—which was even granted via handwritten applications—acts as an accelerator for a series of changes in how benefits are awarded. Because, admittedly, even today the system has to search retroactively to see whether someone is receiving both the elderly benefit and the Minimum Guaranteed Income. With the cooperation of the Finance Ministry and the General Secretariat for Information Systems, a platform is moving ahead shortly and by summer for digitizing the majority of benefits and achieving the goal of interoperability. Obviously, this will also bring cost savings, as the increase in benefits has also led to a larger budget.

Pre-conferences

-After the long weekend, K.M. returns to party mode, and on Wednesday, from midday onward, heads up to Evros for ND’s second pre-conference on security. He will certainly stop by the Kipi border customs post, which is being rebuilt, and he’ll have with him a number of ministers dealing with local issues (Chrysochoidis, Tsiaras, Kontogeorgis). On the panel in Alexandroupoli, he’ll be joined by citizens connected to security—for example, a border guard, someone involved in road safety, and also forest security (because of Dadia). The map of pre-conferences isn’t final yet ahead of the May congress, but it definitely includes Heraklion, Crete, and Thessaloniki.

The Congress tablets

-As if the algorithm weren’t enough, PASOK picked up another suspicious riddle on the road to the Congress. Whether there will be more delegates from Heraklion, Crete, than from Athens isn’t even a question, since the decision was taken by the president Nikos’s “faithful” and won’t change. The others—not exactly friends of the president—decided to let bygones be bygones and quietly backed down, but they’re not allowed a moment’s peace, no matter how hard they try. And Lent has begun too! Some, in any case, have already gone… turbo reading the circular on the election of Delegates on March 15. In this process, as is well known, members vote and the algorithm decides in the end who, how many, and from where, pass the exams. And since technology has advanced, everyone expected the cross-checking process to be electronic everywhere. Think again! Only in the municipalities of the electoral districts of Attica, Thessaloniki A, Patras, Larissa, and Heraklion, Crete, will the electoral process be conducted with electronic interconnection of polling stations via tablets! Meaning? Meaning that if one member—or many—decide to go a couple of steps over, say from Heraklion to the nearest municipality of Lasithi, they’ll vote, yes—but without tablets; the process will be handwritten, like in the good old days. What do comrades need these… devilish tablets for anyway.

Expulsions for double voters

-But what can those who object say, when the leadership election worked more or less the same way, on the islands and in some mountainous, sparsely populated areas. What can they say or do now, other than worry about possible double voting and more. And what’s foreseen if the clever ones are caught red-handed—since there will be no tablets? Quite simply, they’ll be struck off PASOK’s membership rolls. The circular says it plainly, a battle-hardened party man of President Nikos told me, and he’s not wrong: “If it is established that a member voted at more than one polling station where there is no electronic interconnection, that member will be referred to EDEKAP and expelled.” Of course, to expel someone there must be cross-checking of data—but for checks to be quick and effective, electronic interconnection must exist everywhere, at all stations. And imagine what could happen on Sunday, March 15, if there’s sunshine and calm seas and members combine the urge for an outing with party business… If they go, say, to polling stations outside urban centers.

Vertical corridor and National Bank

-An interesting week has begun, with many important events. Internationally, attention is focused on the next meeting of the U.S.–Iran delegations, set for this coming Thursday, as it appears diplomatic time is running out—so either we’ll see some kind of surprise agreement, or military involvement. At home, today’s interest is on energy (we cover it in detail below), where Energy Minister St. Papastavrou and the head of the AKTOR Group, Al. Exarchou, have back-to-back high-level meetings that will determine the new architecture of LNG flows in Southeastern and Central Europe. Today in the U.S. the annual LNG volume of Atlantic Sea LNG will be locked in, and by extension the investments that will support the plan—such as the construction of an FSRU. The other major event of the week is scheduled for Friday, when National Bank announces results, and the entire market is waiting for P. Mylonas’s announcements on the National–Allianz bancassurance alliance.

The energy players’ “Clean Monday” gathering in Washington

– As mentioned, against the backdrop of the Transatlantic Gas Security Summit, jointly organized by the White House and the U.S. National Energy Dominance Council at the Donald J. Trump Institute of Peace, Washington this year resembles a kind of “Clean Monday” celebration for the energy players of the transatlantic alliance. Since yesterday, energy executives have been settling into hotels across the U.S. capital. Only instead of fasting foods, the table is filled with LNG contracts, financing for new infrastructure, capacity commitments, and geopolitical trade-offs. The Greek delegation arrives with broad and symbolically significant representation from the country’s energy industry. DESFA, DEPA Commercial, Gastrade of the Copelouzos Group, as well as Public Power Corporation, underline that Greece has “spread its trahanas” with the United States across the entire energy spectrum—from natural gas terminals to data center infrastructure. The presence of ONEX Shipyards, led by Panos Xenokostas, further extends cooperation into shipyards and ports. PPC participated in a natural gas forum in the U.S. in recent days, and the continued stay of CEO Giorgos Stassis in Washington is anything but coincidental, at a moment when the “energy nerve” of transatlantic cooperation is being activated and parallel discussions on energy-intensive projects—such as data centers—are maturing. On the other side of the Atlantic, major LNG exporters are seeking stable routes into the European market via the Vertical Corridor, aiming both to sell LNG and to finance new production. Twelve European countries will be represented at the summit, giving it a clear geopolitical dimension and highlighting the project’s geographic reach. Senior European Union officials and leading energy companies from both the U.S. and Europe will also be present, turning the forum into a space where political will must be bridged with business interests. The ministerial meeting of the Vertical Corridor countries is expected to serve as the operational center of decision-making, with emphasis on investment coordination, removing European bottlenecks, and financing tools. On Wednesday, February 25, Greek Minister of Environment and Energy Stavros Papastavrou, who returns to Greece at the end of the week, will hold bilateral meetings with Doug Burgum, U.S. Secretary of the Interior and Chair of the National Energy Dominance Council, as well as with Chris Wright, Secretary of Energy and Vice Chair of the Council. Meetings with members of the U.S. Congress and Senate are also on the agenda, further deepening the institutional scope of the contacts. In Washington, signatures are also expected tomorrow on a major agreement between ONEX and Hanwha Power Systems, one of South Korea’s largest industrial groups with a strong footprint in the U.S. market.

A crash-test week for the Athens Stock Exchange

– The current week is expected to be a crash test for the Athens Stock Exchange, as the market enters the heart of the 2025 earnings announcement season. After sharp volatility in recent days, during which the General Index tested its resilience, attention is shifting from the trading screen to fundamentals. Investors are seeking solid anchors to determine whether the recent sell-off was a healthy correction or whether valuations are starting to outpace real profitability. Focus turns to the banking sector, which must confirm the resilience of net interest income in an environment of gradually declining interest rates. Eurobank and Piraeus Bank kick off earnings announcements next Thursday, with the market closely scanning dividend distributions and share buyback programs. On the same day, OTE Group, which has already shown “antibodies” to the recent market decline, will present its results, with analysts focusing on free cash flow dynamics and progress in fiber-optic networks. The week concludes on Friday with National Bank of Greece and Alpha Bank, completing the cycle of systemic bank announcements. At the same time, major names such as HELLENiQ ENERGY and Ideal Holdings will provide signals from the real economy. The market’s bet is twofold: confirming the high expectations built since the start of 2026, and delivering credible guidance for the current year.

SNAPPI: The pains of childbirth

– Digital banking is never easy. It faces intense international competition, requires the alignment of multiple factors, and while the product is banking, the business is fundamentally technology-driven. Digital banks are not an easy undertaking. Piraeus Bank has not escaped this rule, as it moves forward but faces challenges with SNAPPI. The creation of Greece’s first neobank is proving more demanding than initially expected, pushing targets off schedule. In a few days, one year will have passed since March 2025, when SNAPPI launched with a waiting list for access to the app. Agreements have been signed with major Greek retailers, products are expanding, but the desired uptake has not yet been achieved. Against this backdrop, market talk has also mentioned tensions between Piraeus Bank and Natech.

Four Seasons Mykonos opens — hiring underway

– After years of preparation and postponed launch dates, 2026 marks the big moment for investment group AGC Equity Partners, former owners of Astir Vouliagmeni, as it moves forward with opening its new hotel in Mykonos. The much-anticipated Four Seasons Mykonos will be the second hotel under the Four Seasons brand in Greece and is currently hiring across all positions. The exact opening date has not yet been finalized—official guidance points to mid-2026—but early guests will benefit from a 25% opening discount. The resort, located on the coastline of Kalafatis Bay, will feature 94 rooms, villas, and suites overlooking the Aegean Sea. Its launch comes at a time when demand outlooks for Mykonos remain uncertain, based on early booking data, with continued pressure on demand—once again proving the saying that “a bad reputation hurts more than reality.”

The shipping “butter boys” and the 13 pounds

– In shipping, as in politics, major changes often start with small, practical decisions. Former president of the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping, George Pateras, has shared a story passed down through generations of his Oinousses shipping family. The Greek shipping miracle, he noted, was built by the sailors themselves. His grandfather, at just 23 years old in the early 20th century, crossed the Atlantic on a small cargo ship carrying coal. The bridge was open, unprotected. For more than 20 days, crew and officers endured storms at just nine knots. At some point, he made a decision: he bought 13 reinforced double-glazed doors for 13 pounds—the ship’s daily profit—and enclosed the bridge. Proudly, he telegrammed his father. The reply was brief: “My son, you’ve become butter boys.” Behind the smile, the message resonates today: competitiveness is not theory—it is speed of decision, flexibility, and maritime culture.

Semiramis Palios hunts NAV to win Genco

– The battle for control of Genco Shipping & Trading continues, with Greek-controlled Diana Shipping, owned by Semiramis Palios, pushing hard but without success so far. Diana’s $20.60-per-share offer was rejected as undervaluing the company, with Genco shares trading around $23.38 and NAV estimated at $24 per share by Clarksons Securities. Analysts suggest a modest premium above NAV could unlock a deal.

Angeliki Frangou: when geopolitics is no longer background noise

– When Angeliki Frangou speaks about the future of global supply chains, international attention follows. Efficiency is no longer the key metric—strategy and geopolitical risk are. As she notes, trade routes are no longer chosen solely by cost or speed. Political risk management, flexibility, and positioning define winners. Navios Partners has already built defenses through diversification and disciplined risk management. Geopolitics is no longer background noise. Those who understand its link to trade will be the winners of the next decade.