Nikos Papathanasis, Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance, responsible for the Recovery and Resilience Fund, issued an announcement in response to new allegations by PASOK and its parliamentary representative Pavlos Geroulanos.

In particular, and following the official announcements made yesterday, Mr. Papathanasis said the following:

PASOK, once again, either through ignorance or through deliberate distortion of official data, chooses to oppose, not the government, but reality itself.

Until yesterday, he accused the government of allegedly directing the Recovery Fund’s resources “only to the powerful and the big guys.” That we were leaving out micro, small and medium enterprises from funding.

Today, when the Recovery and Resilience Fund loan programme is 100% complete, with no change in design, and in line with what was approved by the ECOFIN last December, today, when resources of 17.7 billion euro have been allocated to the Recovery and Resilience Fund. EUR 17.7 billion are being directed to the economy, while at the same time significant funds are being directed to the Hellenic Development Bank, with the aim of further strengthening entrepreneurship and SMEs, ensuring even greater access for SMEs to cheap loans and the necessary guarantees, PASOK is regurgitating complaints that have been answered.

Today, when the government, with methodical, hard work, has achieved what the opposition had predicted would not happen, that is, every available euro to be directed to the economy and society, PASOK appears to be making a political cubist, in the manner of other times.

In a (desperate?) attempt to bring PASOK back to the inexorable reality, we repeat:

* The choice to support the Hellenic Development Bank was neither sudden nor the result of bad planning, as it is attempting to be presented. On the contrary, the channelling of resources had already been reflected in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan since December 2025, in the context of the revision of “Greece 2.0”, which was approved by ECOFIN. The relevant resource allocation has even been officially recorded in the module: Loans > Loan support for enterprises, on the programme’s website. In other words, this is a conscious political choice in the direction of strengthening the institutionally guaranteed full transparency.

*From the Fund’s low-interest business loans, investments of 27.5 billion have already been mobilized. €27.5 billion, with 60% of the companies being SMEs, absorbing €5.6 billion.

* With guarantees from TAA resources through InvestEU, 15.170 SMEs gained access to €3 billion in financing from the banking system for working capital and investment, and with the support of guarantees, the programme is continuing to provide financing to an additional 20,000 SMEs.

* Extra, 2 bis. €2 billion is being directed through the Hellenic Development Bank exclusively to SMEs in the coming years.

*Parallel, 220 cm. 220 euros have already been invested through venture capital in dynamic Greek companies that are growing rapidly and investments are ongoing.

And the benefits of the Recovery Fund loans don’t stop at businesses. Under the “My House II” programme, 14,480 loans totalling €1.74 billion have already been approved, mainly for young people and families, with 67% of beneficiaries having an income of less than €24,000 and the majority being families with children. At the same time, 4,116 loans worth €77 million have already been granted through the “Upgrade My House” scheme.

The rest in the Parliament, during the debate of the topical question of PASOK, where full answers will be given at the level of Parliamentary Control, as has happened in all previous similar cases, when PASOK’s allegations were deconstructed in their entirety.

Until then, let the opposition publicly state its position: does it want more financial tools and more resources for cheap lending to SMEs or not? Does it want more SMEs to have access to the banking system through the Hellenic Development Bank?

The government’s answer has been given and continues to be given in practice, producing a measurable result for the economy, creating a dividend of growth for society: with a plan and responsibility, we use every euro, supporting growth, investment, entrepreneurship as a whole and small and medium-sized enterprises in particular.

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