Piraeus Bank

Greek stocks took a tumble on Monday on the heels of the German election result and ahead of statements by ECB governor Mario Draghi about bringing forward a stress test for local banks.

The Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index closed at 742.49 points, shedding 4.06 percent from Friday's 773.94 points. The large-cap FTSE-26 index contracted 4.35 percent to end at 1,956.85 points.

After Wednesday's battering, when it lost 21.7 percent, Piraeus Bank shares recovered 9.26 percent on Thursday, helping to send the benchmark of the Greek stock market higher too.

Piraeus Bank has rectified internal control deficiencies that emerged in a recent central bank audit, the chief executive of Greece's largest lender said Thursday. "The Bank of Greece inquiry is an issue that has already been dealt with in our financial results in prior periods," CEO Christos Megalou said in a telephone interview in New York, where he is meeting with investors.

Greece's largest lender by assets, Piraeus Bank, said Wednesday it did not expect any material impact on its capital and financial state as a result of an audit by the country's central bank.

The reaction of investors to the drop in stock prices on the Greek bourse in recent days wasn't strong enough to offer any optimism in the medium term, but it did halt the losing streaks of both the benchmark and the banks indices on Tuesday.

Figures showing a moderate economic recovery in the second quarter of the year didn't make a great impression on investors at the Greek bourse on Friday, as the majority of local stocks headed south on low trading volume.

Piraeus Bank announced on Friday that it has agreed to sell Olympic Commercial and Tourist Enterprises to a consortium comprising Olympia Group and Virtus International Partners. Olympic Commercial holds the Greek car rental franchises Avis and Budget in Greece.

Piraeus, Greece's biggest lender by assets, will receive 80.6 million euros from the sale. [Reuters]

Piraeus Bank turned profitable in April-to-June, while Eurobank saw profits rise. Piraeus posted small net earnings from continued operations as provisions for impaired loans were flat compared to the previous quarter, Greece's largest lender by assets said Wednesday.

Piraeus Bank on Thursday announced the launch of its state-of-the-art e-branch program, designed to provide electronic services for customers who are visually impaired.

The bank said that an e-branch program for customers with hearing problems is also set to debut in the near future.

The benchmark of the Greek bourse regained some much needed ground on the first day of August, following a few sessions when sellers had the upper hand. It was helped by reports on economic sentiment in Greece and from Morgan Stanley. Still, the recovery was contained during the closing auctions.