QE remains a long shot for Greece

Greece is nowhere near a swift inclusion in the European Central Bank's quantitative easing (QE) program, according to senior officials at domestic banks.

They argue that the issue of the national debt, and securing its sustainability in a way that would satisfy the International Monetary Fund too, constitutes a particularly complex problem that may well be too hard to resolve by next month's Eurogroup.

They therefore consider Greece's entry into the ECB's bond-buying program this summer unlikely - instead expecting it to happen after the German election in the fall, either by the end of 2017 or in early 2018. Some go as far as expressing concern as to whether Greece will make it in at all before the program ends.

While there are more and more voices within the ECB speaking in favor of concluding the program earlier, Greece would like enjoy its benefits for more...