ECB Eases Collateral Rules, Accepts Junk-Rated Greek Debt

The European Central Bank said it would accept junk-rated Greek government bonds as collateral as part of wide-ranging measures to ease lenders’ access to liquidity.

The Frankfurt-based institution said it would temporarily increase its risk tolerance in order to support credit to the economy. The package signed off by the Governing Council on Tuesday also includes easier conditions for the use of additional credit claims, and a general reduction of haircuts, according to a statement on the ECB’s website.