ECB Rate Hike Pressures Greek Borrowing Costs

The European Central Bank is expected to raise interest rates next week, from 2.25% to 2.50%, which will put pressure on businesses and households to pay more for borrowing money.

This 25-basis-point increase is the second in 2026 and comes at a time when the cost of money has already begun to rise due to higher bank interest rates and bond market yields.

New-mortgage interest rates, which have fallen significantly in Greece, are particularly vulnerable to this change. According to banking sources, Greek interest rates on new floating-rate mortgages stood at 3.53% in July, just slightly lower than the eurozone's 3.69%. However, most new mortgages are made at a fixed interest rate, which is even lower.