Great Cyprus Expropriation

On 16 March 2013 acting under the direction of and pressure from the European Union, the Government of Cyprus suspended all banking operations in banks in its territory in order to allow it to expropriate 9.9% of depositors' asserts for those depositors who had more than EUR 100,000 on deposit, and to expropriate 6.75% of all other account holders' deposits. According to the Financial Times, "Cypriot finance minister Michael Sarris said his government had already moved to ensure deposit holders could not make large withdrawals electronically before Tuesday’s open; Jörg Asmussen, a member of the European Central Bank executive board, said a portion of deposits equivalent to the levies would likely be frozen immediately."[http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/33fb34b4-8df8-11e2-9d6b-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2NjeXNnI7 Financial Times, London. "Cypriot bank deposits tapped as part of €10bn eurozone bailout" 16 March 2013.] The expropriation and suspension of banking were announced in the early hours of Saturday 16 March, leading to a run on banks and protests by Cypriots at banks.

Main Menu

See Also

Main Menu