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Greece asks for public funds amid default fears

Monday, 20 April 2015 5:53 PM [ Last Update: Monday, 20 April 2015 5:54 PM ]

AFP photo shows Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras standing outside his office on April 17, 2015.

The Greek government has ordered the public sector body to transfer cash reserves to the central bank amid growing fears that it could default on its debts.

"With this act, the government hopes to cover urgent needs of the state amounting to three billion euros for the next 15 days,” the government decree read.

The decree by the cash-strapped government must be passed by the parliament.

According to the order, the idle funds from anything from hospitals to local government will be moved to an account at the Bank of Greece to be made available for short-term loans to the state.

The cash call is seen as yet another sign that the eurozone country is running low on funds.

Greece must pay almost €2bn in salary and pension payments in coming weeks and then nearly €1bn to the IMF in May.

There are rising fears that Greece could default on its debts and exit the eurozone.

Greece's lenders from the 19-country eurozone and International Monetary Fund say Athens should adopt economic reforms including sweeping changes to pensions and labor rules to get more bailout loans.

Greece received two bailouts in 2010 and 2012 worth a total of €240 billion (USD 272 billion) from the so-called troika of international lenders following the 2009 economic crisis.

The European Union has called on Greece to present a list of revised reforms needed to restart bailout loan payments before eurozone finance ministers meet on April 24.

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