Cypriots Cast Blame as Banks Open

Capital is Surprisingly Orderly as Branches Restart; President Calls for Probe Into Economic Crisis

NICOSIA—Cyprus's banks reopened from a nearly two-week hiatus on Thursday with little sign of disorder among depositors, even as the country's politicians pointed fingers over who was to blame for the financial sector's meltdown.

The Cyprus bail-out

This septic isle

Being tough on bank creditors could prove costly for northern European taxpayers

The Economist

Mar 30th 2013 |From the print edition

THE second deal to bail out Cyprus was much better than the first. For one thing, there was actually a deal: with the €10 billion ($13 billion) loan the prospect of the euro zone’s first exit has receded. An agreement among euro-zone finance ministers to wind up Laiki Bank, Cyprus’s second-biggest bank, and restructure Bank of Cyprus, the largest lender on the island, undid the worst elements of the initial botched agreement. Savers with accounts below the €100,000 deposit-guarantee threshold will be spared. Losses will hit creditors of weak banks in line with the normal hierarchy: shareholders and junior bondholders first, followed by senior bondholders and uninsured depositors.

The Euro Zone’s Slinky Economy

March 27, 2013, 11:32 AM EST

ByAlen Mattich

The Wall Street Journal

Remember the Slinky, the toy spring that compresses and extends to walk down stairs, bounce off tables and generally amuse children for minutes at a time?

Well, the Slinky is a fair mechanical approximation of the euro zone economy.

Except it’s not so entertaining.

Cyprus, Seriously

The New York Times

MARCH 26, 2013, 4:42 PM

Paul Krugman

A correspondent whom I respect has (gently) challenged me to say plainly what I think Cyprus should do — leaving aside all questions about political realism. And he’s right: while I think it’s OK to spend most of my time on this blog working within the limits of the politically possible, and relying on a combination of reason and ridicule to push out those limits over time, once in a while I should just flatly state what I would do if given a chance.

So here it is: yes, Cyprus should leave the euro. Now.

Draghi Wins Cyprus Chicken Game in Bailouts Test Run

By Jeff Black - Mar 26, 2013 3:42 PM GMT+0200

Mario Draghi’s brinkmanship has worked -- for now.

The European Central Bank’s ultimatum to Cyprus to commit to a 10 billion-euro ($12.9 billion) rescue showed Draghi playing a harder and more public game than in any bailout before. While that’s easy enough with a country like Cyprus, officials may shirk from such tactics with bigger nations, said economists from Citigroup Inc. to ABN Amro Bank NV.

UPDATE 3-Oil pressured by Cyprus worries

Tue Mar 26, 2013 5:34am EDT

* Euro zone faces tough banking regime after deal -official

* Brent-WTI spread over $13, up from narrowest since July

* Coming Up: API oil inventory data; 2030 GMT (Updates throughout, changes dateline from SINGAPORE)

By Simon Falush

LONDON, March 26 (Reuters) - Brent oil fell slightly on Tuesday, remaining within its range of the past two weeks, as the effect of the Cyprus bailout faded and traders saw little direction for the market.

Brent crude futures slipped 8 cents to $108.08 a barrel by 0932 GMT, in the middle of its recent $107 to $109 range. U.S. crude gained 40 cents to $95.21.

Some facts about Cyprus crisis.

25-3-2013

From the press.

• Total deposits in banks in Cyprus ~ 68 bn Euros

Cyprus Refuses to Learn From Its Mistakes

By HUGO DIXON | REUTERS

Published: March 24, 2013

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/25/business/global/25iht-dixon25.html?_r=0

The New York Times

Cyprus will pay dearly for its sins. The Mediterranean island has committed many follies over the years — and is still making mistakes.

The Cypriots always seem to overestimate their negotiating position. In recent years, their first big mistake was to reject in 2004 the U.N. plan for uniting their island. That irritated their E.U. partners, put Cyprus in a weak strategic position vis-à-vis Turkey and left a jagged scar across the island.

There’s a Reason for Deposit Insurance

By ROGER LOWENSTEIN

Published: March 23, 2013

The New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/24/business/deposit-insurance-and-the-historical-reasons-for-it.html?src=recg#h[Fatpfd,2]

  FOR all the criticism of bailouts since the financial crisis struck, virtually no one has suggested that depositors in banks be made to suffer along with their investors, employees and customers. Until this week, when the euro zone proposed that, in return for a bailout of the failing banking system in Cyprus, depositors pay a “tax” of 6.75 percent of their deposits — 9.9 percent for deposits above 100,000 euros.

Anxious, angry Cypriots face uncertain future

By Karolina Tagaris and Costas Pitas

NICOSIA | Sun Mar 24, 2013 2:12pm EDT

(Reuters) - Dora Giorgali says she has to go back almost 40 years, when Cyprus was at war, to recall such a feeling of anxiety.

Cyprus seeks 11th-hour deal to avert meltdown

By Michele Kambas and Karolina Tagaris

NICOSIA | Sun Mar 24, 2013 5:14am EDT

(Reuters) - Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades was expected in Brussels on Sunday to seek an 11th-hour reprieve from financial meltdown, with a bailout from the European Union and the island's place in Europe's single currency bloc hanging in the balance.

Underlining the gravity of Cyprus' position, the EU's economic affairs chief said there were now "only hard choices left" for the latest casualty of the euro zone crisis.

Cyprus weighs big bank levy; bailout goes down to wire

By Karolina Tagaris and Laura Noonan

NICOSIA | Sat Mar 23, 2013 4:34pm EDT

(Reuters) - Cyprus conceded on Saturday to a one-off levy on deposits over 100,000 euros in a dramatic U-turn as it raced to satisfy European partners and seal an 11th-hour bailout deal to avert financial collapse.

Opinion: Why the EU is right on Cyprus

Peter Gumbel

Reuters

5:52 a.m. CDT, March 22, 2013

The reaction to this weekend's European Union bailout deal for Cyprus has gone from initial shock to rather predictable condemnation. "Europe botches another rescue," ran the headline on an editorial in the Financial Times. "It's as if the Europeans are holding up a neon sign, written in Greek and Italian, saying ‘time to stage a run on your banks,' " Paul Krugman, the economist and New York Times columnist wrote on his blog.

Cyprus lawmakers work on economy-saving plan

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS, Associated Press – 2 minutes ago 

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cypriot authorities were putting the final touches to a plan they hope will convince international lenders to provide the money the country needs to avoid bankruptcy within days.

As well as trying to forge an overall financing package, lawmakers were meeting to decide the fate of the country's second largest lender Laiki which was hardest hit from its exposure to bad Greek debt.

Europe sets Cyprus bailout deadline, banks face cutoff

By Michele Kambas and Lidia Kelly

NICOSIA/MOSCOW | Thu Mar 21, 2013 5:32am EDT

(Reuters) - The European Central Bank gave Cyprus until Monday to raise billions of euros to clinch an international bailout or face losing emergency funds for its crippled banks and inevitable collapse.

The warning came with the island's leaders locked in talks on a "Plan B" to raise 5.8 billion euros demanded by the EU under a 10 billion euro ($13 billion) rescue, after angry lawmakers threw out a tax on deposits as "bank robbery".

Cyprus Is Drowning in an EU Spoon

The Wall Street Journal

U.S. bank bailouts have taken a beating. They were criticized for their excess, uneven distribution and preservation of a status quo that shortchanges the little guy in favor of "stability of the financial system" or, put another way, private gains and socialized losses.

And the bailouts do look pretty awful—until you compare them with what's happening in Europe.

Cyprus seeks Russian rescue, EU threatens cutoff

By Michele Kambas and Lidia Kelly

NICOSIA/MOSCOW | Wed Mar 20, 2013 8:58am EDT

(Reuters) - Cyprus pleaded for a new loan from Russia on Wednesday to avert a financial meltdown, after the island's parliament rejected the terms of a bailout from the EU, raising the risk of default and a bank crash.

Cypriot Finance Minister Michael Sarris said he had not reached a deal at a first meeting with his Russian counterpart Anton Siluanov in Moscow, but talks there would continue.

Κούρεμα καταθέσεων στην Κύπρο

Τι λέει το νέο νομοσχέδιο

Εξαιρούνται από το κούρεμα οι καταθέσεις μέχρι 20 χιλ. ευρώ σύμφωνα με το νέο νομοσχέδιο που κατήρτισε η κυπριακή κυβέρνηση. Όπως αναφέρει το stockwatch, σύμφωνα με το νέο νομοσχέδιο, για καταθέσεις από €0 μέχρι €20 χιλ. η επιβολή τέλους θα είναι μηδενική. Για καταθέσεις από €20 χιλ. μέχρι €100 χιλ. το τέλος θα ανέρχεται στο 6,75%, ενώ για καταθέσεις άνω των €100 χιλ. το τέλος θ’ ανέρχεται στο 9,9%.

EU Member States, Lawmakers Reach Deal on Bank Supervisor

Read more: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/eu-member-states-lawmakers-reach-deal-on-bank-supervisor-20130319-00768#ixzz2O44oyPbu

By Dow Jones Business News,  March 19, 2013, 11:15:00 AM EDT

BRUSSELS--The creation of a single supervisor for European banks moved a step closer Tuesday when European lawmakers struck a deal with member states on the structure of the new agency.

The deal leaves in place most of the main points agreed by European Union finance ministers in December for how the supervisor should function.

Cypriot Lawmakers Reject Deposits Seizure Bill

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS and ELENA BECATOROS Associated Press

NICOSIA, Cyprus March 19, 2013 (AP)

Cypriot lawmakers on Tuesday rejected a critical draft bill that would have seized part of people's bank deposits in order to qualify for a vital international bailout, with not a single vote in favor.

The rejection leaves Cyprus's bailout in question. Without external funds, the country's banks face collapse and the government could go bankrupt. Nicosia will now have to come up with an alternative plan to raise the money: the government could try to offer a compromise bill that would be more palatable to lawmakers.