A recent management reshuffle at the National Bank of Greece, namely, the resignation of NBG CEO Leonidas Fragiadakis last Friday, is expected to delay a tender for the sale of the bank’s insurance subsidiary, Ethniki Asfalistiki, according to sources closely following the looming sell-off.
Nevertheless, the same sources added that the time constraints for successfully selling off the subsidiary via an international tender are not unlimited.
According to the same reports, although interim CEO Pavlos Mylonas is viewed as a “company insider” with extensive experience in NBG’s top executives positions, he temporary status make it difficult for him to “sign-off” on such a crucial transaction. Ethniki Asfalistiki is NBG’s biggest subsidiary.
Banking insiders in the Greek capital expect the search for a new NBG CEO to begin within days, with Mylonas figuring at present as a front-runner.
NBG’s board of directors last month decided to continue negotiations with China-based Fosun and Gongbao for Ethniki Asfalistiki, instead of declaring another international tender for the company.
A previous agreement to sell a majority stake of the Ethniki Asfalistiki to Netherlands-based Exin collapsed last February when Calamos Family Partners filed a lawsuit against Exin Financial Services, one of the two parties in the Exin investment scheme. Calamos Partners has demanded 41 million euros in a lawsuit filed in a US federal court.
