Fintech Group Qualco and Its Owners Target Raising €98 Million in Athens IPO
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Qualco Group SA and its owners are looking to raise as much as €98 million ($111 million) through an Athens initial public offering, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The Greek fintech company plans to offer shares at a price range of €5.04 to €5.46 apiece as early as next week, the person said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. The company aims to sell as much as €57 million of new stock in the offering, while existing backers will likely offer another €41 million of shares, the person said.
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San Francisco Chronicle
a day ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
S.F. Giants pregame bar closes after 18 years, plus more Bay Area restaurant closings
The following is a list of notable Bay Area restaurants that closed in July. Click here for a list of June closings. District, a popular ballpark-adjacent pregame spot for Giants fans, poured its final drinks July 1. Its owners thanked San Francisco for its support over 18 years. Set inside a brick warehouse building, District was best known for its wide selection of whiskeys and wines. Other locations in San Jose and Oakland remain open. SFGATE first reported the closing. (The Chronicle and SFGATE are both owned by Hearst but operate separately.) Downtown Oakland hi-fi bar and dinner party venue Couchdate has called it quits. SFGATE reported that owner Emmanuel Singh blamed the city of Oakland, its landlord at the space at Frank Ogawa Plaza. Oakland officials disputed Singh's account of the closure. An eight-year-old pub at Oakland's Jack London Square is no more. Seawolf Public House shut down due to outstanding debt and as its lease is set to expire at the end of summer, the business announced in a press release. The gathering space was a hub for locals to enjoy food and drinks in a laid back environment. A tough business outlook and regulars leaving San Francisco spelled the end of Chava's on 24th Street in the Mission District, owner Elba Hernandez told Mission Local. The decades-old restaurant, which first opened on 18th Street, was known for its homestyle Mexican cooking. Hernandez, Chava's owner since 2002, hopes to reopen somewhere else in the future. Walnut Creek's BH Wood-Fired Grill had a short-lived reopening. The restaurant, a spinoff of Napa's Bounty Hunter Wine Bar, closed in July after making a comeback in December of last year. East Bay Times reported the closing, writing the restaurant never found momentum, even after changing its menu. San Jose residents lined up for one last gigantic burrito at the original Iguanas location last weekend. The Orozco family, its owners, closed on July 27, with longtime residents making one last trip for chorizo breakfast burritos or the 18-inch-long burritozilla. Iguanas operated in the South Bay for 32 years, with other locations in the area. The Mercury News reported the closing. Noe Valley neighborhood restaurant Mr. Digby's closed after four years serving cocktails and buttoned-up bar food. In a parting message, owners Mike McCaffrey and Kristen Gianaras McCaffrey thanked regulars and neighbors for their support. The couple will continue to operate Novi, their nearby Greek restaurant. Sushi Zone has closed onSan Francisco's Market Street, where it began serving California rolls and nigiri in 1997. KRON 4 reports the restaurant's landlord did not renew its lease. The restaurant is looking for a new location, possibly outside of the city. Popular Latin American restaurant El Patio closed on July 4. The West Berkeley restaurant was known for its Mexican and Venezuelan dishes and deep mezcal list. Management said its goodbyes in a social media post, but did not identify any motives behind the move. El Patio will continue to offer food and beverage catering for private events. Seafood restaurant Fisch & Fiore in the Castro District closed after just a year in business. Hoodline reported the restaurant's final day was July 13. A message from the owners taped to the door states the space will reconfigure into a coffee shop. The space at 2298 Market St. is currently for sale. WesBurger 'N' More, once an entry on the Chronicle's top burgers list, closed halfway through July. Owner Wes Rowe told the Chronicle he made the decision due to the changing dining scene and customer habits, fueled by the rise of delivery apps. San Francisco wine bar and restaurant Kis Cafe has closed permanently following a public clash between its chef Luke Sung and a social media user. The restaurant first separated itself from Sung after he verbally criticized a food influencer who was at the restaurant to film a video. The restaurant first opened in May inside the former Petit Crenn space.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Greek government cautious on new EU-US trade deal reached with Trump
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"The agreement also strengthens the energy security of the European economy for the foreseeable future. From this perspective, the development is positive." "As you know, as a matter of principle, Greece supports free trade based on stable rules. The agreement provides for the application of tariffs of 15% on European exports to the US, with some asterisks," Pierrakakis continued. "Based on the principled position I have described to you, the Greek government would like a lower tariff rate, ideally zero for all transatlantic trade flows. On the other hand, the announced tariff rate is lower than what was scheduled to be applied on 1 August." "The government is closely following the relevant consultations and, to the extent that the framework of the agreement will allow, possibilities will be explored that could help to better address issues related to products of particular interest to our country." Related US-EU trade deal wards off tariff escalation but threatens growth Von der Leyen and Trump strike EU-US trade deal with 15% tariff for the bloc 'Ending intra-European tariffs' The Greek finance minister also raised another issue, which concerns Europe itself. He said there are still intra-EU barriers that act as tariffs and should be eliminated. "If we really want a strong, competitive and single European economy, we have to tear down the last invisible walls that still prevent the free movement of goods and services within the Union," Pierrakakis said. "It is not possible that, decades after the Single Market was established, there are still regulatory or administrative barriers that in practice act as intra-European 'tariffs'." "In manufacturing there are equivalent internal tariffs of 45% and in services the equivalent is 110%. This is what the International Monetary Fund has documented, and Mario Draghi has mentioned it in his column," he explained. 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Related Oil prices rise on EU-US trade deal and Trump comments on Ukraine Bratakos continued: "The exemption of strategic sectors, such as aeronautics, generic medicines, chemicals and certain agricultural goods, is a positive development." "However, the imposition of uniform tariffs on high-value-added products - including pharmaceutical, industrial and agri-food exports - may hurt the competitiveness of companies that support critical shares of the Greek economy." "Particular attention is needed to protect iconic Greek products, such as olive oil, feta and wines, which risk being burdened by the new regime. In this environment, the need for constant monitoring of developments and effective participation in the shaping of European decisions becomes crucial," Bratakos explained. "At the same time, the strengthening of energy cooperation with the US, through increased imports of LNG and investment in infrastructure, opens up new opportunities for Greece, especially in the fields of logistics, shipbuilding and regional energy interconnection." "The Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry calls on the Greek government to ensure, within the framework of the European institutions, that the final implementation of the agreement will not disrupt the competitiveness of Greek exports and will not increase the dependence of specific sectors on third markets." "It is time for our country to invest concretely and more actively in interconnection with the US and at the same time to broaden its export prospects to alternative markets. The Hellenic Business Association (EBEA) will continue to support this national effort with informed interventions, services to its members and the continuous promotion of Greek entrepreneurship abroad". Related Educated but still unemployed: How does unemployment vary among university graduates across Europe? Spain's economy grows 0.7% as it continues to outshine eurozone peers Hopes of 'manageable' situation The port of Piraeus is a very large trade hub, the main seaport of Athens and plays a key role in the commercial and industrial traffic of Greece and Europe. "We want to believe that the agreement to impose tariffs at the 15% level is a manageable situation and we hope that it will not create losses in US-EU bilateral trade," President of the Piraeus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Vassilis Korkidis said. "In international trade, any agreement is always better than no agreement and the unilateral imposition of measures and countermeasures. The fact that it was agreed to impose a 15% general tariff on all products including cars is an element that restores balance to US-European trade relations and seems to satisfy both parties," Korkidis explained. "However, the tariffs on steel and aluminium remain at 50%, and it is not clear whether pharmaceuticals and semiconductors will eventually be subject to separate tariffs." "The agreement also provides that the EU will buy US military equipment and energy worth a total of $750 billion, while making significant investments of $600 billion." "The European side calls it an 'all-inclusive' trade agreement between the two major trading partners that brings stability. Regardless of the details and exceptions, it is significant that after months of negotiations, the agreement was reached less than a week before the August 1 deadline and the imposition of higher tariffs that would have had serious repercussions," he said. "We want to believe that the agreement to impose tariffs at the 15% level is a manageable situation and we hope that it will not create losses in US-EU bilateral trade," Korkidis concluded. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Greek unions speak out after government pushes for 13-hour workday
The General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE) responded with an angry statement to the Labour Ministry's intention to extend working hours to up to 13 per day for the same employer. Worker representatives argue that the Greek government is attempting to solidify a practice that will physically and mentally exhaust employees, without actually improving the productivity of the Greek economy. "The further deregulation of the labour framework and the shift of responsibility for managing working and leisure time to individual negotiation — where the employer-employee relationship is imbalanced — essentially undermines any effort to restore a framework of free collective bargaining," said the GSEE's statement. It continued: "The duration of working time, rest periods, and vacation for workers cannot be regulated by government intervention, but only through social dialogue, through collective bargaining." The group spoke of 'an attempt to dismantle collective labour law' and concluded: "We will not allow, among all the 'firsts' Greece already holds in terms of living and working conditions for wage earners, for it to also gain the most deregulated labour law framework in the EU." The 13-hour week, overtime and flexibility The proposed law, which will be subject to public consultation in the coming weeks, provides that employees working for the same employer will be able to work up to 13 hours per day. Until now, this measure only applied to those working for two different employers. As Labour Minister Niki Kerameos explained in a TV interview, workers will receive a significant 40% bonus for overtime. "If you do up to 13 hours at two employers, that comes out to €104. If you work the same hours for one employer, it comes to €119," she said. At the same time, there will be safeguards in place ensuring that employees cannot work more than 48 hours per week over a 4-month period, and that annual overtime does not exceed 150 hours. Related Why and where are weekly working hours dropping in Europe? Tourists in Greece targeted by protesters demanding better wages and fair working hours However, GSEE believes that this opens the door to abuse at the expense of workers. "You wake up in the morning. You go to work at 8am and work continuously until 9pm. Is that sustainable? Is it sustainable for your productivity? Is it sustainable for your health? Is it sustainable for reconciling your family life, your personal life and your other commitments? We believe it is not sustainable. The countries that have the highest productivity, such as Denmark, Finland, and Germany, are the countries that have the shortest working hours," Christos Goulas, director general of the GSEE Labour Institute, told Euronews. The Labour Ministry argues that the goal is to support sectors critical to the Greek economy, such as hospitality and tourism, which are struggling to fill job vacancies. In a labour market facing a shortage of workers, we are trying to adapt to better meet the modern demands of the job market. It is ideal to have collective agreements, and if they include more favourable terms, those should take precedence to benefit the workers. According to the study "Careers and Candidates 2024", conducted by the Athens University of Economics and Business in collaboration with achieving work-life balance is one of the top priorities for workers in Greece — especially among younger people. It ranks third in the list of main factors when choosing an employer, after salary and job security. "The finding of this survey in terms of what keeps and attracts employees to a company is that the most important factor is remuneration. That's no surprise, considering we're just emerging from an economic crisis and also facing rising living costs," Ioannis Nikolaou, professor of human resources management at the UBA, told Euronews. Employers in Greece are asking for more flexible forms of labor. They claim they cannot find workers, and that vacant positions threaten the viability of their businesses. Unemployment in Greece has fallen to 8.3%, the lowest level in 17 years. However, the average wage in Greece remains almost half the European average wage, according to recent data from the GSEE Labour Institute. Solve the daily Crossword
