IMF withholds bailout money for Cyprus

(The Philippine Star)

December 19, 2014 - 9:01am

Cypriot Energy Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis, center, shakes hands with his counterparts of Egypt Sherif Ismail, left, and Greece' Yiannis Maniatis before a meeting at a conference center hall in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2014. Egypt's petroleum minister says his country is speeding up talks with neighboring Cyprus to import natural gas for its own domestic use and for possible re-export to other countries. The gas from a field off Cyprus' southern coast that's estimated to hold 3.6 trillion to 6 trillion cubic feet of the fossil fuel could be piped directly to Egypt's processing facilities and used to meet the country's huge energy needs. AP Photo/Petros Karadjias

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The International Monetary Fund says it won't release $108 million (88 million euros) in rescue money for bailed-out Cyprus after the country's parliament voted to hold a key foreclosure law from taking effect at the end of December.

An IMF statement said Thursday's month-long suspension of the law contravened the terms of its $12.28 billion (10 billion euro) rescue deal reached in March last year. The law would have made it easier for the country's hobbled banks to start collecting on a huge amount of bad loans.

The statement said the IMF will discuss the next steps with Cypriot authorities. The European Union had released a $430 million (350 million euro) installment prior to the vote.

SPONSORED ARTICLES