IMF breaks off negotiations with Greece over debt deal. Bundesbank president warns over rising insolvency risk

The International Monetary Fund has dramatically raised the stakes in Greece's stalled debt talks, announcing that its delegation had broken off negotiations in Brussels and flown home because of major differences with Athens.

Greece offers olive branch as search for allies begins

Greece sought to repair relations with its international creditors on Saturday (Jan 31) as the new anti-austerity government began a charm offensive in European capitals, even as Germany insisted it would not support any debt relief...

Greek PM Tsipras pledges radical change, markets tumble

Leftwing Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras threw down an open challenge to international creditors today by halting privatisation plans agreed under the country's bailout deal, prompting a third day of heavy losses on financial markets...

US Congress Votes to Aid Ukraine, Penalize Russia. - The same day that the IMF pledged to provide Ukraine with up to $18 billion in loans

The U.S. Congress has sent a strong message to Russia for its annexation of Crimea by passing measures that give aid to Ukraine and penalize Moscow.

Lawmakers in the House and the Senate overwhelmingly approved separate measures on Thursday.

Both bills include $1 billion in loan guarantees to Ukraine and penalize Russia for its actions in Crimea.

Lawmakers in both chambers will have to resolve differences on other provisions before sending a final bill to President Barack Obama.

Russia temporarily cuts gas price by one third to help Ukraine

Russia will provide gas to Ukraine at a price of $ 268.5 dollars per thousand cubic meters which is lower by one third of the previous price which was $ 400 per thousand cubic meters, said Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday after a meeting of the Russian- Ukrainian Interstate Commission.

The agreement was signed between Russia’s "Gazprom" and "Natftogaz Ukraine" in the presence of President Putin and President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Venizelos: We want substantial, not just rhetorical, acknowledgement of the sacrifices and great achievements of the Greek people.

JOURNALIST: What stance will you maintain with the troika from here on in?
E. VENIZELOS: On the margins of today’s Meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers, and ahead of tomorrow’s meeting between the Greek government and the College of EU Commissioners, I am having a series of meetings in which my message – Greece’s message, the message of the Greek people and our government – is very, very clear: We want substantial, not just rhetorical, acknowledgement of the sacrifices and great achievements of the Greek people.

Mere cash injection may not be enough

By Dimitris Kontogiannis
The Greek government has invested a lot in the long-awaited bailout tranches to cope with the developing credit crunch and bring the economy to the stabilization phase late next year. However, a closer look at the figures indicates the positive impact may be less than hoped for, and therefore the risk of disappointment on the back of fostering high expectations should not be ignored or underestimated.

Leading Greek banks in the doldrums and need over $17bn to recapitalize

The two largest banks in crisis-stricken Greece need a total of €13bn ($17.2bn) to recapitalize, as they took huge losses in the country’s debt restructuring.
Greece’s second largest bank by assets, Eurobank, needs €5.8bn, with the fourth largest lender Piraeus Bank being short of €7.3bn, according to the Wall Street Journal. In the first 9 months of the year the two banks reported combined losses of €1.7bn, with a huge part of that due the banks’ participation in the country’s debt restructuring programme.
The four biggest banks in Greece were left technically insolvent, after they joined the €200bn debt restructuring programme. It left them dependent on extremely expensive loans from euro zone member states and the International Monetary Fund.