Interventions on a number of critical issues for Greece and the European Union have been carried out by the Minister of National Economy and Finance Kyriakos Pierrakakisas part of his participation in Eurogroup meetings and ECOFINheld in Luxembourg.
Kyriakos Pierrakakis’ interventions at Ecofin focused on the new proposal for excise duty on tobacco products, the recommendation for the Storage and Investment Union (SIU), as well as the developments around Stablecoins.
Kyriakos Pierrakakis for tobacco products: “When we increase taxes too much, smuggling increases”
At the Ecofin meeting, ministers exchanged views on the new proposal of the Council’s Directive on Special Tax on Tobacco and to Smokes.
Mr. Pierrakakis insisted that ‘Public health is fundamental, existential priority’. However, he expressed reservations about the prospect of an excessive and abrupt increase in taxes on tobacco products:
“According to our experience in Greece and, taking into account our geographical location, it has been observed in the past that the asymmetric increase of these tax rates leads to a record of smuggling increased.”, said the minister and continued: “At the same time, if prices, both in traditional and innovative products, increase sharply and more than the market can withstand, the impact on the equation of competitiveness should be taken into account. An equation that touches investment and exports. So we have to get all this in mind. Perhaps we could consider broader transitional periods in implementation of measures in order to achieve the goal without disturbing the market. “.
On the savings and investment union: “We need European champions”
The discussion on the Siu Smalling and Investment Association (SIU) was also at the center. “We need a single European market. And the only way to do this is to move as quickly as possible with the implementation of the recommendations you are promoting. “, Mr. Pierrakakis underlined.
The Minister emphasized the need for greater unification of European capital markets and for joint action at European level, noting: “The cost of the opportunity for this delay is huge, so we must move on. The Draghi exhibition clearly captures it and the IMF for its part, calculates all the cross -border barriers we have been discussing for months. “.
Mr Pierrakakis, wanting to send a message to his European colleagues, stressed: “As a government, we are absolutely open to discuss cross -border mergers and acquisitions. If we want to succeed, we don’t just need national “champions” of Member States. We need European champions. “
Referring to Greece’s experience, Mr Pierrakakis mentioned three typical examples of cross -border mergers and acquisitions in just seven months. As he said: “The first is Euronext’s proposal for the acquisition of the Athens Stock Exchange. The second is Unicredit’s proposal to acquire more than 30% to Alpha Bank, one of our systemic banks. And the third is the case of the Hellenic Bank Credia, who attempted to redeem HSBC Bank in Malta ».
So the Minister concluded, “This is the only way to achieve the critical scale needed to increase our productivity and achieve the levels of growth our societies need.”
For constant cryptocurrencies: ‘We need to find the right balance of balance’
The Eurogroup on Thursday (09.10.25) discussed recent developments around Stablecoins. The minister stressed: “The issue of Stablecoins requires to find the right balance between risks and opportunities. It is an institutional duty of some bodies to focus on dangers and others to see opportunities. “.
“Stablecoins are not experimental technologies. They are now an established monetary medium, but it must in the European framework comply with the European, European regulation for the purchase of cryptocurrencies. In this context, we should not exclude Europe with excessive restrictions from the rest of the world. Europe must integrate the new monetary tools into a controlled framework of cooperation, with adaptation to European rules », Kyriakos Pierrakakis said.
Participate in informal work lunch of Competitiveness Lab
On the sidelines of the meetings, Mr. Pierrakakis participated in an informal working meal of the Competitiveness Lab. This is the initiative of Member States of the European Union, with the aim of taking actions to deepen the Capital Markets Union.
The debate focused on promoting Finance Europe Label, a European label for investment products, as well as the proposal to create a European securitization platform.
The minister also held bilateral meetings with Luxembourg Finance Minister Gille Roth, and with Romanian Finance Minister Alexandrou Nazareth, with the aim of coordinating and exchanging views on issues on the agenda of the Eurogroup Councils.