ATHENS – Under the threat of state intervention over high fees for using ATMs and making transactions, Greek banks are said to be looking at monthly charges instead as they are raking in profits with high interest rates and paying little for deposits.

In June, Finance Minister Kostis Hatzidakis said banks have to adopt fairer systems based on the practices of other European banks or businesses with large client networks in Greece or he will step in to make sure they do.

A March report from the Bank of Greece showed that interest rates on deposits was 0.53 percent while customers were charged 6.24 percent although some deposit interest rates are as low as 0.01 percent even for large amounts.

The monthly fees will likely be accompanied by additional benefits, said Kathimerini, reporting they won’t cost more than 10 euros ($10.92) per month, a bonanza for the big banks who have shed bad loans that accumulated during a 2010-18 economic and austerity crisis.

Bill payments and money transfers account for the vast majority of electronic transactions are currently subject to a fee that has been a godsend to banks because of the explosion of online usage, about 14 million now annually in Greece.

Since 2020, the number of online transactions has doubled to nearly 500 million. Online transactions have not only drastically cut interactions with tellers, but have also reduced ATM transactions, the report said.

Until now though banks in Greece have also stuck to charging customers fees, 1.90 euros ($2.07) per transaction, a pet peeve of customers and the report said the monthly plan fee will include limited standing orders and money transfers.