German banks agrees to help save Greece

German private investors reached an agreement with German government on Thursday to roll over their Greek debt as their French peers. "I am glad to know German financial sector are ready to join in the second Greeck rescue package," said Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble after meeting representatives of private investors from Wednesday to Thursday. German banks and insurance companies will extend their Greek debt worth about 3.2 billion euros (4.6 billion U.S. dollars) which is due by 2014, said Schaeuble. He said German banks have purchased a total of about 10 billion euros (14.45 billion U.S. dollars) of Greek bonds, in which 55 percent will mature after 2020. "We share the opinion that Greece must be saved and we are ready to do that," said Josef Ackermann, chief executive of Deutsche Bank. He said German private investors will take the French model as a basis but make some modifications, as France's banks have agreed to voluntarily roll over the bulk of their holdings in Greek public debt for a period of 30 years earlier this week. But Ackermann also said Greman banks and insurers will make contributions only if other key investors have also taken part in this rescue package. Schaeuble said he was confident that the upcoming meeting of euro zone finance ministers on July 3 will bring a solution on the second Greek bailout package. On Wednesday, Greek parliament approved the very unpopular 28-billion-euro (40.5-billion-U.S. dollar) austerity plan of its government, wiping out the biggest obstacles for the bailout plan.