Divestment Strategy
The current HFSF legal framework sets year‐end 2025 as the Fund’s sunset date and elevates the divestment objective to a par with the Fund’s other objective, namely its contribution to the maintenance of Greek banking system’s financial stability for the sake of public interest.
The Divestment Strategy adheres to the principles set out in its legal framework that comprises the HFSF Law (Law 3864/2010 as in effect) as well as all relevant legal and regulatory provisions. The Fund will expend all reasonable efforts to dispose all of its shares in the Greek systemic banks before 31 December 2025, subject to maintaining financial stability and ensuring that it receives fair value.
The Divestment Strategy promotes competition and transparent actions and takes into account international best practice in terms of both sale to the market (Capital Markets Sale) or to a specific investor / group of investors (Private Sale). The Divestment Strategy defines the key principles, modes of operation and alternative transaction methods that the Fund will follow in relation to the sale of shares in the systemic banks.
As part of its priority of divestment, the Fund will identify pro‐actively opportunities to initiate and execute well‐designed transactions that monetise its portfolio in the most advantageous way, always in compliance with the entirety of its legal framework. It will also consider any unsolicited approaches it receives and any proposals that may be put forward by the Banks.
In deciding whether a sale of shares should be pursued, the Fund will take into account its financial stability obligations as well as the fairness of the value offered for its holdings. When executing transactions, the Fund will follow a transparent and competitive process while maintaining confidentiality as appropriate for the specific transaction. Throughout the divestment process, the Fund will seek to enhance value in the context of each transaction although the design, structure, sequencing, and execution of the transactions will be subject to prevailing market conditions and the performance of the Banks.
The Fund is careful not to commit to a particular timing or sequencing of transactions, within the overall divestment framework, that could be detrimental to the overall value of its portfolio. Moreover, it does not consider individual transactions as setting a benchmark for subsequent ones that will be designed and executed in light of the then prevailing circumstances. In particular, while the price (or other terms) achieved on any individual transaction will be an important reference point, it does not follow that subsequent transactions for the same class of shares will have to be conducted at the same or higher price (or on the same or better terms), provided they remain consistent with the Divestment Strategy.
On transaction structures where the HFSF should decide on the allocation of shares to investors, it will apply an allocation policy tailored to the specific circumstances which takes into account the Fund’s objectives under the Divestment Strategy, its financial stability obligations and the Key Principles and any transaction specific circumstances. The selection of the investors will depend on the sale method but will be based on a transparent, non‐ discriminatory and competitive process. In principle, the Fund would favour strategic investors for significant blocks of its shares, such as internationally recognised financial institutions, long‐term investors (e.g. sovereign wealth funds, leading asset management firms managing portfolios for pension plans, endowments, foundations, insurers, Private Equity funds who have already a track record of investing in financial institutions, family offices) and other financial institutions as well as other investors from outside the banking sector with significant expertise that is deemed to strengthen the Greek banking sector’s capacity to respond to the environmental and technological challenges of the modern era.