Greece’s dynamic return to the international scene was mentioned by the Minister of National Economy and Finance, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, in his discussion with journalist Liz Hoffman on the topic “From Crisis to Comeback”, at the World Economic Summit organized by the independent international information platform Semafor, in Washington.

Semafor is an independent international news outlet that aims to redefine journalism globally. It clearly separates facts, the editor’s analysis and alternative perspectives, promoting transparency and trust in information.

Within this innovative journalistic environment, Mr. Pierrakakis presented Greece’s reform progress and development perspective, underlining that the country has now returned dynamically to the global economic scene. “We are back on track. And I would say that Greece is not only back, but is also in full operation”, emphasized the Minister. “We want to attract more investment and carry out more reforms in the near future. We firmly believe that we can grow even faster.”

Mr. Pierrakakis stated that “the country has implemented more than 100 reforms in the last six years”, pointing out that “the state is now digital, as more than 2,200 public services have been digitized”.

To the journalist’s question about the lessons that Northern Europe can learn from the Greek example and specifically countries, such as Italy and France, which are facing fiscal challenges, the Minister replied:

“If we can do it, so can they. The completion of reforms was difficult and Greece had to experience very painful moments, but in the end we succeeded and this success reflects the strength of the Greek people”.

Mr. Pierrakakis placed particular emphasis on the need for Europe to move at a faster pace towards further integration, limiting the “invisible barriers” that still function as transnational European tariffs. “Our problem in Europe is that we need to build a truly single market,” he noted, citing as an example the need for European start-ups to gain access to a single banking system that would support their growth in the European market, without having to turn to American funding.

Referring to the perspective of the Union of Savings and Investments, he underlined that Europe must move from theory to practice: “In Europe we talk a lot about this, but we need to act more towards its establishment. European leaders need to work more closely together, whether in banking, the Savings and Investments Union or technology. And at this point we are late.”

In closing, the Minister focused on the need for more investments but also on the positive momentum of the Greek economy:

“We are fully open to investment, we encourage acquisitions and mergers, and we must show leadership in this area.”

He even referred to the proposal for the acquisition of the Greek Stock Exchange by Euronext, saying:

“We want to become the eighth exchange of the group. There are already seven European stock exchanges in the network and we, as a government, are extremely positive about this prospect.”