Greece continues to make headlines as it struggles to recover from an economy in crisis. Austerity measures are the name of the game, following a bailout plan agreed with the IMF in August 2015. While on the surface, Greece does not look like a place to invest, there are opportunities for investors who look more closely:
In recent weeks, Greece has taken a positive step forward with the sale of state asset Astir Place, a luxury seaside resort located outside Athens. A 400 million Euro investment has been made into the resort by Jermyn Street Real Estate Fund who represent the combined investment from Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Kuwait, other smaller emirates and Turkey. While this is a step in the right direction, it is a far cry from where Greece needs to get to. The source Reuters puts it well “Privatizations have been a key condition of Greece’s international bailouts since 2010 but its state asset sales scheme has produced poor revenues due to bureaucratic delays and lack of political will. So far, Athens has raised only about 3.5 billion euros from state asset sales versus an original target of 50 billion euros.”
Business Start-Up
Business setup in Greece is relatively straightforward and can be completed within three weeks without a resident director but do keep in mind the state of the economy. Getting any type of credit line or loan will be difficult and this is reflected in The World Bank’s ease of doing business index which has dropped two points since last year. Shipping remains the most lucrative business in Greece and the Government have pledged to continue to support the merchant shipping industry which is still the largest in the world. Ship-owners enjoy major tax breaks in Greece and it looks like this is set to continue as the government shy away from alienating the lucrative shipping magnates.
Business Opportunities
Healy Consultants Group can see that there are investment opportunities in Greece at the moment especially in the area of private equity and investment in existing businesses and property. The economy crisis has let to businesses and properties being on the market for far below their book value.
For company incorporation and other business start-up services in Greece, please contact Healy Consultants Group to speak to an in-house expert. Healy Consultants Group have 10+ years in business start-ups in this part of the world and are happy to help you choose and appropriate structure for your business.
Useful Links
- Company Registration: https://www.healyconsultants.com/greece-company-registration/
- https://www.ekathimerini.com/204749/article/ekathimerini/business/greece-arab-turkish-fund-sign-400-mln-euro-deal-on-luxury-resort
Photo credit: By Mstyslav Chernov (Self-photographed, https://mstyslav-chernov.com/) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
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