Benoit Coeure

In his last interview as a member of the executive board of the European Central Bank, French economist Benoit Coeure said that helping keep Greece in the euro was one of the highlights of his eight-year stint at the ECB.

As the International Monetary Fund prepares to choose a new managing director to replace Christine Lagarde, who is to leave the post in the coming months, CNBC has reported that former Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos is among the candidates in the running for the job.

Relations with investors and the markets will be no easier for Athens than those with the country's creditors, European Central Bank Governing Council member Benoit Coeure warns in an interview with Kathimerini ahead of Greece's return to the markets.

Industrialists are calling for particular attention to what the government has agreed with its creditors, stressing that "the markets ask for greater credibility in exercising financial policy."

In its monthly bulletin on financial activity, SEV discerns fatigue in consumer and business confidence data in recent months which leaves no room for misinterpretation.

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Bulgaria should send a request soon to join the banking union, a preliminary step before euro membership, and the assessment of its progress could take more than one year, European Central bank board member Benoit Coeure said on Thursday.

Last Thursday's Eurogroup agreement to help Greece manage its huge debt pile as it exits the bailout program is a "turning point," European Central Bank board member Benoit Coeure told France's Le Figaro on Monday.

"Greece can now free itself from European stewardship. The sacrifices made by Greek society, supported by European solidarity, have paid off," he said.

 The euro single currency area must shore itself up with reforms or face renewed threats of breakup when a new economic crisis strikes, a top European Central Bank official warned Friday.

Without a post-bailout program framework, the special status allowing Greek banks to enjoy European Central Bank financing will be lost, ECB governing council member Benoit Coeure is said to have told Greek bankers on Monday in Frankfurt, while Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann also expressed support for such a framework for Greece.

There will be no extraordinary asset quality review (AQR) of Greek banks, senior credit sector officials have told Kathimerini following the public statements by the European Central Bank and based on various high-level meetings. They also note that local banks may spend more than 10 billion euros of their operating profits in the next three years on reducing bad loans.

European Central Bank Executive Board member Benoit Coeure on Friday gave the Greek government and the country's banks a clear warning on nonperforming loans (NPLs) but suggested that the International Monetary Fund will not succeed in its demand for local lenders to undergo asset quality reviews (AQRs).