6 Apr 2012

Debt deadline extended again

3:12 pm on 6 April 2012

Greece has extended the deadline for its latest debt swap plan for a second time.

The finance ministry said the new deadline for bonds governed by foreign law is now 20 April.

Meanwhile, holders of debt worth 20.3 billion euros have agreed to accept the terms of a bond swap to lower Greece's deficit.

Hedge funds have been resisting the swap, which forces them to take

losses of up to 74% on their bonds.

The extended deadline applies to "vulture" funds that continue to hold out.

The BBC reports their hope is that Greece will think the amount is not worth defaulting on and will pay them the full amount.

Holders of 85.8% of debt subject to Greek law and 69% of its international debt holders agreed in March to a debt swap.

The European Union and International Monetary Fund then agreed to a bailout worth 130 billion euros.