Cyprus Central Bank and Bank of Greece sign cooperation agreement

The Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) and the Bank of Greece (BoG) on Friday signed a Memorandum of Cooperation during a ceremony held in Nicosia.

The signing ceremony took place with the presence of CBC governor Constantinos Herodotou and BoG governor Yiannis Stournaras.

Speaking after the signing of the memorandum, Stournaras stated that “the signing of the cooperation memorandum today enriches and deepens further the scope of collaboration between the two central banks“.

He added the signing “represents the culmination of my close collaboration with my Cypriot counterpart, Constantinos Herodotou, both at the national level and within the framework of the ECB Governing Council in which we participate”.

Moreover, Stournaras mentioned that the relationship between him and Herodotou was particularly bolstered and shaped during the challenging years of the financial crisis.

He also expressed gratitude to the Deputy Governor of the Bank of Greece Christina Papaconstantinou, stating that the memorandum of cooperation is the result of an effort that began many months ago, as he mentioned, with Papaconstantinou’s visit to the CBC.

In addition, Stournaras expressed his joy for being received today by the President of the Republic of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides, with whom he exchanged views on “the economic and banking developments in Cyprus, Greece, and the Eurozone“.

It should be noted that Stouraras will also meet with the Minister of Finance Makis Keravnos later today.

“The Bank of Greece and the Central Bank of Cyprus are sibling institutions, as their enduring close cooperation and relationship within the framework of the Eurosystem, reflects the fraternal relationship of the two nations,” Stournaras said.

On his part, the governor of the CBC expressed satisfaction with the signing of the memorandum, underlining its role in further institutionalising the relationship between the two central banks and enhancing their expertise.

“As we mentioned in our meeting with the President of the Republic, this reflects the very close and fraternal relationship and cooperation we have with Yiannis Stournaras, both at the national and European levels,” Herodotou said.

What is more, Herodotou stated that the new framework of cooperation “covers the most significant issues that concern the modern financial environment, such as technological risks and risks related to climate change”.

He further stated that the memorandum envisions collaboration in other areas, such as supervision of payment institutions and electronic money, acknowledging the significant advancements in this sector in recent years.

“As supervisory authorities, we have significant common technical issues to manage in the modern financial field, and we are convinced that with such constructive cooperation, we will succeed,” Herodotou said.

Finally, the governor of the CBC thanked Stournaras and his team for the amicable cooperation at all levels.