Greece's private-sector debt restructuring deal (officially dubbed "Private Sector Involvement,"
or PSI) is in full swing, and EU officials are hotly awaiting the
outcome. It's the last big hurdle between Greece and Bailout 2.0, and
Greece has till Thursday evening to secure participants.
The PSI isn't the easiest sell. Banks are asked to help Greece axe
around €100 billion from its outstanding debt by swapping existing Greek
sovereign holdings for new 30-year Greek bonds and 2-year EFSF
notes—each with a far lower face value. Respectively, the new debt will
represent 31.5% and 15% of the old bonds' face value—a 53.5% principal
reduction in total. The interest paid will be 2.0% through 2015, 3.0%
through 2021 and 4.3% thereafter. Participants will also receive
detachable GDP-linked securities with a notional amount equal to the new
bonds' face value. Beginning 2015, these will provide annual payments
up to 1% of the notional value if GDP exceeds a defined threshold and
real Greek GDP growth exceeds targets (which aren't yet determined).
The large haircut may seem unappetizing, but banks are pragmatic—they
understand an orderly restructuring is preferable to a messy default, in
which case they could be hit with even greater losses. Plus, the new
bonds will be issued under English law,
meaning the Greek government can't retroactively change the
terms—abating one of the risks banks would face by holding existing
Greek sovereigns. In short, there's plenty of incentive to participate,
and 12 large European banks have already reportedly signed up—banks with face-value Greek sovereign holdings of at least €40 billion as of year-end 2011.
That's a good start, but Greece still needs more participants. If the
participation rate is between 67% and 75% by March 8, Greece will
automatically activate a retroactive Collective Action Clause (CAC),
imposing the PSI on all private-sector Greek debt holders. If
participation exceeds 75% but falls short of 90%, Greece and its
European brethren may elect to activate the CACs. A 90% participation
rate was factored into the second bailout's €130 billion size, and lower
participation may mean larger bailout contributions from the IMF and EU
nations—something most nations would rather avoid.