In a post on social media, the former SYRIZA president claimed that Greek banks recorded excess profits of more than €4.7bn last year, while their shareholders, ‘mostly foreign funds’, received dividends exceeding €2.83bn.
‘This is capitalism, one might say. But it was state-guaranteed profiteering,’ he said.
Tsipras attributed the banks’ increased profitability to high fees and commissions on everyday transactions, claiming that revenues from these charges alone reached €2.44bn last year.
He also referred to what he described as the largest gap in the European Union between deposit and lending interest rates, as well as the deferred tax regime, saying banks use losses from previous years to significantly reduce their tax liabilities.
The former prime minister also argued that the banking system does not provide sufficient support to the real economy, commenting that ‘in order to get a loan, one must prove that they do not need to borrow’.
In the same intervention, Tsipras set out his proposals for addressing the situation, calling for a ‘patriotic levy’ on the excess profits of banks and large business groups, the abolition of abusive charges and commissions, and fairer taxation of dividends.
‘The question is whether there is the political will to confront vested interests and support society,’ he said.
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