Kyriakos Pierrakakis in Brussels for Eurogroup and ECOFIN

The Minister of National Economy and Finance and President of the Eurogroup Kyriakos Pierrakakis, to chair the meetings of the Eurogroup and to participate in the ECOFIN.

Tomorrow, Mr. Pierrakakis will attend the meeting of the European Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) Committee, where, in his capacity as chairman of the Eurogroup, he will answer questions from MEPs on the key priorities of Eurozone.

Later in the afternoon, he will take part in a debate organised by the IE Competitiveness Hub on how to strengthen the competitiveness of the European economy. The panel will include Paolo Gentiloni, former Prime Minister of Italy and former Commissioner for the Economy, and Carlos Cuerpo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Trade and Business of Spain.

Eurogroup and ECOFIN agenda

The focus of today’s Eurogroup meetings will be on the latest developments on the crisis front in Middle East and their ongoing impact on the European and global economy. The discussion will feature the Deputy Director of the European Department of the International Monetary Fund, Oya Celasun, who will present the Fund’s assessment of the macroeconomic impact of the crisis.

The ministers of the 21 eurozone countries will discuss, among other things, issues related to the stability and resilience of the European banking system, the deepening of the banking union and the strengthening of financing of the European economy, with the participation of the President of the European Banking Federation, Slawomir Krupa.

In parallel, ministers will be briefed by the heads of the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM)and the Single Resolution Board (SRB), as part of their regular six-monthly reporting.

The agenda also includes the presentation of the FIVE Report on financing innovative businesses in Europe, by Christian Noyer and Jörg Kukies, focusing on proposals to develop European capital markets and improve access to private capital for start-ups and growth companies.

Greece will be represented by the Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance, Thanos Petralias.

At tomorrow’s ECOFIN meeting, ministers will discuss the Council’s arrangement on access to VAT information at EU level by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) and the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF), as well as the package of measures on market integration and supervision, a key element of the strategy for the Savings and Investment Union (SIU).