GREECE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Paris Tzoumas, Zepos & Yannopoulos
was not an unregulated activity, but was gov - erned by Greek Law 4354/2015, pursuant to which the Bank of Greece had authorised 23 servicers. The new law repealed Law 4354/2015 altogether and set up a unified framework to apply for credit purchasers and credit servicers alike. The new provisions apply both to the sale and servicing of performing and non-performing loans granted by EU credit or financial institutions. According to Law 5072/2023, only special pur - pose sociétés anonymes licensed and super - vised by the Bank of Greece may act as servicers of bank/financial institutions loans and credits. Servicers licensed and supervised by competent authorities in other EU member states pursuant to the provisions of Directive (EU) 2021/2167 may, subject to a prior notification sent to the Bank of Greece by the competent authorities of such EU member states, service exclusively non-performing loans and credits in Greece, either on a cross-border basis or through the right of establishment (eg, a branch). Similarly, Greek licensed servicers may offer their services to other EU member states either on a cross- border basis or through their right of establish - ment in the EU member states, subject to noti - fying the Bank of Greece in advance and to the limitations and conditions imposed in the mem - ber states by virtue of their laws implementing Directive (EU) 2021/2167. Credit purchasers and supervised entities are not required to be regulated. They can be any individual or legal entity having as its business objective the acquisition of loans and credits, provided that, if their residence or registered seat is not in the EU, they appoint a representa - tive in the EU in writing. These credit purchasers (or their representatives in the EU, if applicable)
are required to enter into servicing agreements with the aforementioned licensed servicers for the management and servicing of the loans and credits that they have acquired. The new law provides for the minimum statutory content of the servicing agreements, which must comprise at least the following: • an analytical description of the servicing measures undertaken by the servicer; • servicing fees, or at least the method used to calculate them; • costs passed through to the credit purchaser; • the extent to which the servicer can represent the credit purchaser vis-à-vis borrowers; • binding statements from both parties that they will at all times abide by applicable laws, including consumer and data-protection laws; • the loans and credits to be managed on an aggregate basis (number of claims, total legal claim as of the signing date) and on an indi - vidual basis (total legal claim as of the signing date), as well as the non-performing status of each claim; • the collateral of the loans and credits to be managed (type and secured amount as of the signing date); • a covenant for the servicer to act diligently and in a fair manner against borrowers; • a covenant for the servicer to notify promptly the credit purchaser before any subcontract - ing of servicing activities to third parties; and • a covenant that, in case the servicer under - takes the role of coordinator in the sale of the credits in the secondary market, an interme - diation policy will be in place. The servicing agreements between servicers and credit purchasers must be registered with the public registry in which the loan sale agree - ments are also registered, as required by the law.
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