Sawt Falasteen - Turnaround for Greece as Pierrakakis tapped to lead Eurogroup

Pierrakakis's peers appointed him to lead the powerful panel of finance ministers from Europe's 20-country single currency area during a meeting in Brussels. The runner-up was Vincent Van Peteghem of Belgium.

"Greece has come such a long way in the past 10 years. Your election today as President of the Eurogroup, dear Kyriakos @Pierrakakis, is a meaningful recognition of that progress," European Union chief Antonio Costa wrote on X.

"I look forward to working together to strengthen Europe's growth and competitiveness for the benefit of our citizens and our common currency."

Pierrakakis replaces Ireland's Paschal Donohoe -- who resigned in a surprise move last month.

The 42-year-old has been in charge of Greece's finances since March, after earlier stints as minister of digital governance and education.

His success reflects his nation's spectacular about-turn from eurozone black sheep to bright star.

"Today is a proud day for our country," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in a statement, hailing the election as a "shining recognition of our country's positive trajectory."

- 'Happy ending' -

Greece's colossal debt and financial woes were the Eurogroup's main preoccupation during the euro-area crisis -- which for a while threatened Athens's permanence in the currency.

After years of austerity and painful reforms the Mediterranean nation now runs a budget surplus, and enjoys an economic growth that outpaces most EU nations.

Pierrakakis will take office from Friday and will serve a two-and-a-half-year term. He is expected to chair his first meeting on January 19, 2026.

"It's a happy ending; a little over 10 years ago, it was the Eurogroup that devised and implemented measures to rescue Greece," said France's finance minister Roland Lescure.

"Greece made efforts, recovered and is now reducing its public debt, so this is an extremely powerful national and European story."

Van Peteghem and Pierrakakis -- who both hail from the centre-right -- were vying to replace Donohoe after the 51-year-old announced on November 20 that he was stepping down, having only been re-elected in July.

He has since taken up a senior role at the World Bank.

The Eurogroup chief carries weight in policymaking, and Donohoe counted among the most influential voices in Brussels, alongside EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa.

Created in 1997, the body coordinates the economic and budgetary policies of the 20 countries of the eurozone, which will soon number 21, as Bulgaria prepares to adopt the single currency on January 1.

Thursday also saw the Eurogroup officially launch the nomination process for the post of European Central Bank (ECB) vice-president.

Spaniard Luis de Guindos, the incumbent, is due to end his term at the Frankfurt-based institution in May next year.

A.AlHaj--SF-PST