The Three-Member Court of Appeals in Athens has acquitted former powerful Greek publisher Stavros Psycharis and ten executives of Alpha Bank of charges over the bank loans to DOL media group without the necessary guarantees and collateral.
The loans of €44.7 million were so that Psycharis would to purchase shares in DOL.
Psycharis, 74, had been charged with securing loans without submitting the necessary collateral and guarantees. The 10 Alpha Bank executives had been charged with failing to comply with bank regulations.
The court ruled that the loans were issued in accordance with applicable regulations and procedures as set by the Bank of Greece. notes kathimerini.
In its reasoning, the court noted that a significant portion of the debt owed to the bank has been recovered and that enforcement proceedings of Psycharis’ real estate are already underway. In this sense, the bank’s damage becomes uncertain, according to the court, writes state news agency amna.
The court upheld the prosecution’s request for the defendants’ acquittal.
DOL media group came under the control of shipowner Evangelos Marinakis in 2017.
