Eurobank buys back E950m of its shares from government

Reuters — Eurobank, Greece’s third-largest lender, said on Thursday it had bought back preference shares worth about 950 million euros from the government.

The shares were issued to the government under a 28-billion-euro liquidity support scheme extended to Greek banks in 2008 at the peak of the global credit crisis.

The buyback was done partially with cash and with the issuance of Tier II capital instruments, the bank said in a statement.

Eurobank had announced its buyback plans in October.