Greek banks reopen, restrictions still in place
(21 July 2015 – Greece) Greek banks reopened on 20 July following three weeks of closure as the country struggled in talks with the Eurozone over bailout restrictions.
Restrictions on cash withdrawals remain, with the Greek government making a decree on 18 July that the daily cash withdrawal limit would be €60 (A$88) but also added a weekly limit.
A depositor who does not withdraw cash on a Monday can withdraw €120 on Tuesday and so on up to €420 a week.
Bank customers will still not be able to cash checks, only deposit them into their accounts, and will not be able to get cash abroad with their credit or cash cards, only make purchases.
There are also restrictions on opening new accounts or activating dormant ones.
The decree also pushes back by a month, to 26 August, the deadline for filing income tax returns.
Greece closed its banks from 29 June to prevent a bank run after the European Central Bank (ECB) did not increase emergency funding as Greece's second bailout expired.
After the Greek Parliament passed an agreement on 16 July to seek a third bailout and related austerity measures demanded by creditors, the ECB raised its emergency funding to the cash-strapped Greek banks.
On 17 July, German lawmakers voted 439-119 in favour of opening discussions on Greece's third bailout and the EU decided to release a short-term loan of €7.16 billion to help Greece pay back a loan due 20 July to the ECB.
The Greek Parliament will vote on further austerity measures on 22 July.
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