Corporate Governance in Greece: Developments and Policy Implications

Abstract

The upgrading of the Greek capital market and the effort to join other mature capital markets has posed corporate governance reform as a first priority. In addition, the 2004 Olympic Games put the Greek market in the international spotlight and will likely invite interest from foreign investors. More than ever, an efficient corporate governance framework is condition sine qua non for the competitive transformation of the capital market and the business world. At the same time the European Union (EU) faces both the pressure and challenge for harmonization of the laws and regulations and convergence of corporate governance systems, especially after the entrance of the new member states. The paper has two objectives: (i) to present the main aspects of corporate governance in Greece, contributing to the relevant growing body of literature, and (ii) to place the current corporate governance developments and trends in Greece within the international debate, especially in the light of the recent debate to improve and convergence corporate governance in EU. Firstly, I review the corporate governance debate and its implication at the EU level. Secondly, I describe the corporate governance framework in Greece in the light of the recent key reforms. Finally, I summarize the overall findings and proceed with some critical points and recommendations for the potential future direction of the corporate governance agenda in Greece.