Finance Minister Pierrakakis Elected as Next Eurogroup Chair, Defeating Belgian Deputy Prime Minister
From Near Bankruptcy a Decade Ago to Becoming the Eurozone’s “Model Student”
Greece will now lead the Eurogroup, the council of eurozone finance ministers that wields significant influence over the European Union’s economic policy.
Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Greece’s Minister of Finance, was elected as Chairman of the Eurogroup on the 11th (local time) in Brussels, defeating his rival, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Vincent Van Peteghem. Pierrakakis will assume office on the 12th and, for the next two and a half years, will oversee major policy decisions for the eurozone as the head of the Eurogroup.
Foreign media outlets commented that Pierrakakis’s election marks a dramatic reversal for Greece. Just over a decade ago, Greece was on the brink of national bankruptcy due to excessive fiscal spending and nearly exited the eurozone (the group of 20 countries using the euro). Now, Greece is set to lead the very Eurogroup that once coordinated its bailout programs.
Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Greek Minister of Finance, elected as Chairman of the Eurogroup. Photo by Yonhap News
In 2010, Greece faced near-bankruptcy due to a fiscal crisis but managed to avoid default by receiving approximately 289 billion euros in bailout funds from international creditors over three separate programs. Greece exited the bailout regime in August 2018, after eight years under financial supervision.
During this period, the Eurogroup was at the forefront of demanding harsh austerity measures and sweeping structural reforms from Greece in exchange for the bailouts. Greek officials even referred to the Eurogroup as a “gathering of psychopaths.” In the early 2010s, Greece was also labeled as one of the “PIIGS” (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, Spain), the epicenter of the eurozone crisis.
Recently, Greece has transformed from the eurozone’s “problem child” to a “model student,” recording a stable economic growth rate exceeding 2%, the highest investment rate in the eurozone, and a fiscal surplus, thanks in part to a revitalized tourism industry.
Valdis Dombrovskis, European Commissioner for Economy, described the election as “an important symbolic moment for Greece and the eurozone.”
Ant?nio Costa, President of the European Council, also welcomed the result, stating, “Greece has made great progress over the past decade,” and added, “Minister Pierrakakis’s election as Chairman of the Eurogroup is a meaningful recognition of significant progress for both Greece and the EU.”
Pierrakakis, the newly elected chairman, is a computer scientist who studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States. He served as Greece’s Minister of Digital Governance from 2019 to 2023, leading the country’s digital transformation, and was appointed Minister of Finance earlier this year.
Initially, Belgian Deputy Prime Minister Van Peteghem was considered the frontrunner for the Eurogroup chairmanship. However, according to Politico Europe, most EU member states withdrew their support due to Belgium’s strong opposition to using frozen Russian assets to aid Ukraine, ultimately costing him the position.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
