Greece’s budget has been formally declared compliant with with European Union budget standards, bolstering the nation that received its latest round of rescue aid earlier this week, as it mulls its first bond sale since 2014. The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, announced that it will recommend the removal of its so-called excessive deficit procedure for Greece, a step taken when a member state’s budgetary shortfall gets too big, according to a statement on Wednesday.

Carillion's lenders are preparing for potentially painful restructuring talks if the British construction company is unable to stabilise its business and plunging share price, sources familiar with the company and its investors said. Carillion, which has worked on projects ranging from London's Tate Modern gallery to the Twickenham Rugby stadium, announced huge provisions on problem contacts on Monday, leading its chief executive to step down and its shares to plummet by more than two thirds in three days, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story.

Bank of Italy Governor Ignazio Visco welcomed on Wednesday a European Union proposal to set up state-backed vehicles to buy bad loans off banks, but said participation should be voluntary, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. In an effort to speed up the unloading of bad debt by banks, EU finance ministers on Tuesday approved a blueprint to create national "asset management companies" that could help develop the market for bad loans. "We believe such a measure would potentially be useful," Visco said in a speech to the Italian banking association.

European Union finance ministers on Tuesday called for speedier unloading of bad debt by EU banks and recommended more money be put aside by the banks to protect them from trouble. The decade-long financial crisis left European banks holding nearly 1 trillion euros of non-performing loans (NPLs), reducing their ability to lend and slowing down Europe's economic recovery, Reuters reported.

How indebted is Ireland? After a sobering Monday briefing from the country’s National Treasury Management Agency, let us count the ways. The country’s general government debt is €200bn — four times the level it was in 2007, before the crisis hit and the country’s banking sector collapsed, the NTMA said at the launch of its 2016 annual report and half-yearly update. That equates to €42,000 per person, compared to an average of just €24,000 among the EU’s 28 member states, the Financial Times reported.

Carillion Plc interim head Keith Cochrane said “no option is off the table” as the British construction company seeks to recover from a record stock market plunge, weaker-than-expected profit growth and the resignation of its chief executive officer, Bloomberg News reported. Cash flow from some projects has deteriorated, and the board will review all of the company’s major contracts with the help of KPMG, Carillion said in a statement Monday.

Italian banks are out of the emergency room. There is a long convalescence ahead, but it is good news for the recovery of Europe as a whole. The healing under way in Italy and elsewhere is making room for new lending, which can help to fuel economic growth. Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Italy’s most troubled big bank, finally struck a deal with European regulators to complete its €5 billion ($5.7 billion) bailout this month, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Bankia and CaixaBank sold a combined €1.75bn of subordinated debt less than a month after similar securities were torched at Banco Popular, in a clear sign of the market's maturity, Reuters reported on an International Financing Review story. State-owned Bankia achieved the lowest ever coupon for a Spanish public Additional Tier 1 bond sale, the riskiest debt that banks can issue, beating national champions Santander and BBVA. The €750m no-grow perpetual non-call five-year (rated B+ by S&P), its inaugural AT1, priced at 6%.

It’s been a long time coming but Greece finally has its latest tranche of eurozone bailout cash, ensuring Athens will not be defaulting on its creditors later this month, the Financial Times reported. The European Stability Mechanism, the eurozone’s bailout fund, today approved a €8.5bn cash injection after the country successfully completed its second review as part of an €86bn rescue agreed in 2015.

France’s top central banker has pleaded with Germany to loosen its fiscal policy as part of a deal with his country to strengthen the eurozone, the Financial Times reported. François Villeroy de Galhau, governor of Banque de France, said Paris must press on with its own reforms as part of an accommodation with Berlin, with the two countries seizing the opportunity provided by synchronised election cycles and an economic recovery.