Alexis-rebranding, the preliminary inquiry, salt gargles, Xenokostas’s fireworks with the Czechs, and the emfietzoker

Hello, so tomorrow marks “D-Day” for poor Stefanos, as the “priesthood,” as Pen Dalaoura (troll) calls it, along with his lyricist supporter, will decide whether to allow him to be a candidate or not. Now, let me tell you there was a bit of a fuss, as they say, among the anti-Kasselakis crowd. This happened because, according to Kartéros, who wrote in Avgi on Sunday (they read each other, right?), he suggested, “…and why shouldn’t Kasselakis also be a candidate?” Everyone thought Tsipras put him up to it, playing the neutral guy, like “guys, I’m busy with foundations and Houliarakis, not with what’s going on in SYRIZA.” The historical leader himself fervently denies that he got Kartéros to undermine them and play dumb. I don’t know if it’s true or not, but I heard that the “Gerovassilians” freaked out at Kartéros’s opinion. I also learned that they’re not backing down, no matter what Kartéros writes or what Alexis implies, though Alexis did throw a dig at Kasselakis during his grand appearance last night at the symposium on inflation, the economy, etc.

All of SYRIZA

But let’s not forget to mention that last night, at the leader’s rebranding event, pretty much the whole of SYRIZA showed up: a little bit of the New Left, Admiral Apostolakis (who is always on missions anyway…), Petros Kokkalis, and a few scattered PASOK supporters. A big crowd, honestly. In terms of substance, don’t expect much. Many people spoke, but that guy Houliarakis was funny. Despite being more Stournaras than Stournaras in economic matters, he tried to say something about growth being meager and other similar… “bon pour l’Orient” as the French say, but who cares now. The leader managed to gather almost the entire party, and from what I hear, he plans to hold such a gathering every month in a different city. Now, what the SYRIZA leader—whoever that may be—will do next, I have no idea…

Preliminary inquiry or a salt gargle?

Meanwhile, as these things are happening in SYRIZA, it’s interesting that the well-known case of the purchase of the junk P-3B Orion planes by the SYRIZA-ANEL government is coming (if it hasn’t already) to Parliament. The question is: will the parties vote in favor of a preliminary inquiry, involving Tsipras, Kammenos, and Vitsas (Prime Minister, Minister of Defense, and Deputy Defense Minister) due to their roles, or will they gargle with saltwater since these planes belong to the Navy? This could be a perfect issue for the reborn PASOK leader to use to trip up SYRIZA. Will he? He might even do it alone, because if I’m not mistaken, 30 MPs are enough to form a preliminary inquiry, and PASOK has those. Let’s see, let’s see…

Dora – pastries

Well, political news buffs and avid TikTokers might remember or have seen the famous video from a few years ago of Dora serving schhocolate (with an exaggerated “schh” sound) to journalists in the home of her late father, Konstantinos, because “at our house, we don’t have sweets, we’re all dieting,” as she said at the time. Many remembered this yesterday when Dora served pastries during the briefing of ND MPs by Gerapetritis, this time for the birthday of her twin grandchildren.

Orestis heads to the stock exchange

Orestis Tsakalotos, Chairman and CEO of Qualco, has a reputation as a careful and systematic manager. Last April, he brought venture capitalist Spyros Margaris—internationally recognized in the Fintech sector—onto Qualco’s Technology Council. In July, he announced the acquisition of 70% of Middle Office, which provides specialized support and management services for wholesale loans and credits. Prior to that, in May, he appointed his personal friend Efthymis Bouloutas (CEO of Ellaktor) to Qualco’s board. The experienced stock market insider Bouloutas is part of the team preparing Qualco for its stock market debut. Yesterday, it became known that Qualco is creating a new real estate company with the National Bank, starting with a share capital of 3 million euros. The new company, Uniko, will have Christina Theofilidi from National Bank as president and Christos Fouskoudis from Qualco as CEO.

The powders caught fire or ONEX vs. SMS: 2-0

The brawl between P. Xenokostas (ONEX) and the Czech-owned MSM Export, centered on Hellenic Defense Systems (EAS), not only rages on but is intensifying. In simple terms, Xenokostas was involved with EAS under contract (essentially renting the workers) from October 2022, until EAS passed to the Czechs through a competition (some call it internal processes and decisions). Since then, the two sides have been at each other’s throats. Xenokostas claims he submitted a proposal in the competition that was ignored, while the Czechs have other plans for EAS. Both sides have been exchanging blows, some in the open, some not so much. The Czechs play dumb while Xenokostas takes it public. The latest development is that last Friday, Xenokostas filed a case with the Council of State, receiving a court date. Meanwhile, on Monday, a general assembly of EAS approved the joint venture with the Czechs, and on Tuesday, it was officially signed. So, see you in court.

Lamda Malls, advertising, and the Stock Exchange

Lamda Development is currently running an impressive TV campaign for its malls (Golden Hall, The Mall Athens, Mediterranean Cosmos, Designer Outlet), which has led some in the market to believe that Lamda is pushing for the independent listing of the malls on the stock exchange as soon as possible. The idea is that with the opening of Ellinikon Mall and Riviera Galleria in Elliniko in 2026, investors will expect big gains. However, this impression is mistaken. Lamda’s strategy hasn’t changed; conditions are still unfavorable for listing without major discounts. The malls are doing well, and Lamda sees no reason to rush or offer large discounts. So the decision remains to wait for better market conditions. As for why they decided to advertise the malls now, the answer is simple: They conducted research and found that only one in three people knows that the malls belong to Lamda. Let’s not forget, Lamda’s portfolio includes six malls—four existing and two being built in Elliniko—with a total value of 2 billion euros.

Emfietzoker pays off: Suspension for Emfietzoglou in Anavryta

I wrote yesterday about the “golden deal” worth 20 million euros the Emfietzoglou family secured regarding the sale of their properties in Agrari, Mykonos. I have learned that while the auction of the large estate and building complex in Anavryta was set to take place on November 20—once again—it has been suspended. The foreclosure had been imposed for 500,000 euros, a portion of the total debt of 5.63 million euros, with the starting bid set at 10.7 million euros. It seems that following the sale, some debts were settled as well, because, as we said yesterday, they hit the emfietzoker in Mykonos.

Bloomberg comes to Athens for the Banks

Bloomberg TV and network are taking an interesting initiative to showcase the changing international weight of the Greek banking system. On November 18, Francine Lacqua, Bloomberg’s award-winning journalist (Editor-At-Large & Anchor), is coming to Athens for a show dedicated to Greece and its banking system. From 1 PM for two and a half hours, Lacqua will present an interview with Prime Minister Mitsotakis, central banker Stournaras, and—at the main event—a discussion with the heads of Greece’s four systemic banks. The entire event, broadcast from the Hotel Grande Bretagne, will air live on Bloomberg TV in Europe and the U.S.

New commercial structure at OPAP

OPAP’s CEO, Jan Karas, announced on his LinkedIn profile the creation of a new commercial structure at the company. A new “Customer Team” has been formed, led by Lukas Antos, focusing on customer data to better meet client needs with new communication strategies and loyalty programs. A new Retail Team has also been formed, led by Elias Katsaros, with core responsibilities across all retail touchpoints, incorporating marketing, sales, operations, and products. This team will focus on two main actions: one around OPAP stores, led by Fotis Zisimopoulos, and another around Play Stores, HL, and Operations, led by Matthaios Matthaiou.

Papoutsanis Mini Guidance

Papoutsanis expects increased turnover and profitability compared to last year’s performance for 2024. In the mini guidance issued alongside the announcement of its financial results for the 9-month period (+32% pre-tax profit, +4.5% sales), the management emphasized that the positive impact from new collaborations, which started in 2024 and will be in full swing during the last quarter of the year, is already reflected in the 9-month period. Last year, the company achieved sales of €62.3 million and pre-tax profits of €5 million. The company is in negotiations with major multinationals and other companies for new projects, while deals with existing clients, expected to boost next year’s turnover, have already been agreed upon. On the stock market, apart from a small surge last April, Papoutsanis’ capitalization has remained around €60 – 70 million for a while now.

When You Know How to Sell Expensively

It took a while, but as it turns out, the deal to sell ACS to GLS, a subsidiary of IDS (International Distribution Services), was well worth the wait (and then some). Th. Fessas, following his usual approach (Q Telecom, Cardlink, etc.), sealed a very lucrative deal. The 100% of ACS was valued at €370 million according to the agreement, and Eurobank Equities notes that the deal was made at an estimated EV/EBITDA multiple of around 13 times for 2024. It should be noted that AXIA Ventures Group acted as the exclusive advisor to Quest Group for the transaction. Yesterday, Quest’s stock closed up 3.78% (intra-day it reached +8%), with the group’s market capitalization at €617 million.

Andreadis’ Plans for New Hotels

The project on Diaporos Island, owned by STANTA, a company linked to Mr. Stavros Andreadis, honorary president of Sani/Ikos and known for his previous role in the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises, is heading towards strategic investments. The company aims to include the over €50 million investment under the Strategic Investment scheme by submitting the necessary application to Enterprise Greece—something likely to happen by year’s end. At the Prodexpo real estate conference yesterday, Anastasios Andreadis, a member of STANTA’s board, described the project as a small “very high-end” unit on Diaporos Island. It’s an ecological retreat with large rooms in a stunning location and will be Greece’s first energy-autonomous hotel, as the island has no infrastructure for power. The island has no permanent residents, only about 30 vacation homes, some rented out but mostly used by their owners during the summer. Andreadis also mentioned the project at the former Allatini Ceramics in Thessaloniki, with its listed buildings. However, it is still too early to determine a timeline for that, he said. It’s worth noting that this is the first project in Thessaloniki to receive permission for a 100-meter skyscraper with approximately 30,000 square meters of space. The company is currently in the pre-study phase and looking for development partners.

Stock Exchange: A Small Tragedy with 3 Causes

Without beating around the bush, yesterday’s stock market session highlighted the three major weaknesses of the Greek capital market. First, without the banks, the General Index can’t hold. The trigger came from Goldman Sachs, with estimates of increased payments from Greek banks to the ECB or even revenue drop forecasts. Second, in a shallow stock market, a single seller of heavyweights can cause turmoil as there are no institutional portfolios to provide a counterbalance, defend, and stop the decline. Third, the sudden rise in bond yields in Europe and the U.S. created an atmosphere of uncertainty that some short players quickly exploited, knowing there were no defenses. Yesterday, the General Index closed at its lowest point of the session at 1,414.65 points (-1.67%). The trading volume reached €133.98 million, but with many block trades (€20.25 million), indicating that some took advantage of the misery to restructure their portfolios. Out of the €134 million in trades, half were in bank stocks. National Bank barely held at €7.376 (-0.91%), Piraeus plunged to €3.73 (-3.74%), Eurobank slipped to €1.95 (-2.99%), and Alpha to €1.466 (-2.4%). Cenergy (-3.15%) fell to €8.62, well below the placement price (€9), PPC (-4.09%) showed that someone was selling shares to buy its bond, and Viohalco dropped to €5.57 (-3.8%). In conclusion, it appeared that a large investor was “emptying” their MSCI basket, and no one was interested in picking up the pieces.

A Greek Company Wins an Award in Istanbul

Turkey is continuously striving to increase its international business outreach. In Istanbul, the “7th Burj CEO Business Summit” has been taking place since yesterday, and today the CEO Clubs Network, a well-known global business network that has been connecting top executives and influential business leaders across various sectors for the past 30 years, is holding its meeting. Tonight, the Greek company Theofylaktos S.A. (known for its calendars), along with the Italian Casteli Milano S.p.A, will be awarded the “Oscars of the business world” as the “Best Global Corporate Gift Company.” It is not common for a Greek company to receive an accolade in Turkey.

How Strong Is the Dollar?

Theoretically, we are in the era of interest rate cuts, both in Europe and the U.S. All analyses talk not about if, but about how many rate cuts we will see for the dollar and the euro. However, at the same time, we are seeing the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond increase by 60 basis points in just one month since the Fed began cutting rates. For the first time since July, the 10-year bond yield exceeded 4.20%. In other words, the bond market is behaving as if inflation has returned and the Fed is raising – instead of cutting – rates. One realistic explanation is the enormous debt. The total U.S. public debt increased by $473 billion in just the last 3 weeks, and today it stands at a record $35.8 trillion. Simply put, every American citizen owes $103,700. In 2024, the U.S. paid a total of $1.16 trillion in interest alone, or $3,360 per citizen. To finance this staggering debt, the U.S. government is obliged to keep interest rates high to remain attractive to savers. With high rates, the value of the dollar also stays artificially high. But for how long?

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