The week that starts tomorrow is crucial for the smooth implementation of the National Recovery Plan, but also for the formation of a minimum cross-party consensus on the issues of the economy in a particularly difficult period.
At the last meeting of the National Council, which discussed both the economy and the reforms that must be implemented in order for the country to raise the 1.2 billion euros requested by the European Recovery Mechanism, it was agreed to organize a meeting of politicians. leaders with Finance Minister Konstantinos Petridis, which is scheduled for next Wednesday. The meeting will also be attended by party officials involved in the economy.
The content of the meeting will depend on how the discussion in the Finance Committee of the two bills will develop tomorrow [The Credit Facility Purchase and Sale (Amending) Law of 2021] and [The Real Estate (Ownership, Registration and Valuation) (Amendment) (No. 3) Law of 2021)] for the access of credit management companies to the data of guarantor loans in the Land Registry and to the banking data system “Artemis”.
Two weeks ago it was clear that the thriller of the fulfillment of the last 14 prerequisite for the disbursement of the first tranche of the European Recovery Mechanism would come to an end, with the government and the majority of the members of the Finance Committee coming to a solution that would not lead to the mass access of loan management companies to the data of guarantors, related parties and collateral providers in non-performing loans kept in the “Artemis” database and in the Land Registry.
According to the solution found, loan management companies will be able to submit a reasoned request to the credit companies (which have purchased the loans from the banks) for access to the guarantor data. In addition, the guarantor will have the opportunity to appeal to the court for non-provision of data. The filing of the objection will result in the non-provision of the data while the legal procedure is in progress, ie from the first instance.
The second regulation does not lead to paralysis of the procedure as the “On the Protection of Category of Guarantors “for cases before the courts (for the issuance of a decree suspending the execution of a court decision against the guarantor) requires the disclosure of financial data.
However, the above settlement did not solve the problem, with MPs requesting an additional regulation so that the appeal of the guarantor to the Financial Commissioner and the Central Bank for abuse of the ability to search data leads to a specific penalty if the abuse is actually proven.
At tomorrow's meeting of the Finance Committee, the initial partisan amendments have not been removed from the agenda, which practically leads the credit management companies not to have access to guarantor data, which means that the pressure on the government for additional amendments remains.
The amendment of the deputies Mr. Stavros Papadouris on behalf of the Movement of Ecologists-Citizens' Cooperation, Sotiri Ioannou on behalf of the National Popular Front and Aleko Tryfonidis on behalf of the Democratic Party does not allow access to credit facility management companies in the database “Artemi” and in the database of the Department of Lands and Surveys for the purpose of obtaining data of guarantors, collateral providers and persons associated with borrowers in order to prevent the abuse of legislation against them.
Its amendments remain on the agenda MP of the Democratic Party Panikos Leonidou for the process of selling loans.
In particular, the bank selling the loan must notify the affected borrower by letter that within a period of sixty (60) days from the date of sending this letter, it must submit a proposal, if it so wishes, for the purchase or restructuring of the credit facility for sale.
This proposal is submitted only once by the borrower and in case no such proposal is submitted within the period of sixty (60) days, then it is presumed that the borrower does not wish to submit a proposal. The legal entity must inform the borrower within sixty (60) days in writing and sufficiently substantiated for the acceptance or rejection of the submitted proposal by submitting its own counter-proposal by the legal entity. It is understood that upon the expiration of the prescribed period and if the borrower does not receive a written and sufficiently reasoned response from the legal entity, he can apply to the court for a temporary decree to suspend the sale process. Finally, Mr. Leonidou's amendment explicitly states that borrowers who have applied for inclusion in a first home protection plan are excluded from the process of selling credit facilities.
with the goal of the 14th prerequisite for improving the management environment of non-performing loans.
In an earlier meeting of the technocratic committee of the parties with the general director of the General Directorate of European Programs, Coordination and Development Theodosi Tsiola and the general director of YPOIK George Pantelis, the European Commission's negative response to the content of the party amendments was conveyed. The whole issue is serious, as the closure of the last pending case will allow the disbursement of around € 97 million from the European Recovery Mechanism, and mainly removes the risk of not receiving the total funding of € 1.2 billion secured by the Cyprus from the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism.
If no solution is found, then the first installment cannot be disbursed, nor can the process of disbursing the remaining money proceed.
< It is recalled that the European Commission, the IMF and rating agencies base their forecasts on growth levels in the coming years on the assumption that 1.2 billion euros in investments and reforms to be implemented by 2027.
Government and parties are called upon to seek and find common ground for the course of the economy as the stakes in the implementation of the National Recovery Plan exceed the horizon of the current government.
