Skip to main content

Voluntary is the key "v-word" now

President Trichet last week stressed again the ECB’s general opposition to a restructuring of Greek debt. But he left the door slightly open to a “voluntary” agreement in which bondholders would commit to exchange maturing or soon-to-mature Greek bonds for new longer-dated bonds. With Germany insisting that a new aid package includes some form of private sector participation, and the IMF threatening to withhold the next tranche of Greece’s first bail-out until a deal is struck, quite how the term voluntary is defined could now be the pivotal issue in the crisis.

Become a client to read more

This is premium content that requires an active Capital Economics subscription to view.

Already have an account?

You may already have access to this premium content as part of a paid subscription.

Sign in to read the content in full or get details of how you can access it

Register for free

Sign up for a free account to:

  • Unlock additional content
  • Register for Capital Economics events
  • Receive email updates and economist-curated newsletters
  • Request a free trial of our services


Get access