Greek bank bonds dropped like a stone this week as the prospect of painful haircuts came to the fore, potentially heralding a new era for senior debt investors who have previously been protected throughout Europe's various financial crises, Reuters reported. The Eurogroup's statement after approving Greece's 86bn third bailout increased the chances of losses being imposed on senior debt by placing senior bondholders at risk of bail-in while explicitly excluding depositors.

Greece narrowly avoided defaulting on its debt on Thursday, making a crucial payment to the European Central Bank after receiving billions of euros in new aid from other eurozone countries, the International New York Times reported. But most of the new aid package will be used to repay existing debt rather than to rebuild the shattered Greek economy, leading to criticism that eurozone creditors are repeating the same austerity policies that delivered six years in a row of recession in Greece.

In a related story, The Wall Street Journal reported that Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras handed in his resignation to clear the way for early elections expected on Sept. 20, in a gamble aimed at bolstering his power and ability to implement the country’s bailout deal. In a televised speech late Thursday, Mr Tsipras said that he had resigned, along with the government, in a bid to seek a clear mandate that would help the country face upcoming difficulties.

Germany’s parliament ratified a new Greek bailout deal, but a record number of lawmakers in Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc rejected the motion, highlighting the political risks the chancellor is taking in supporting Greece, The Wall Street Journal reported. The “yes” vote in Germany’s Bundestag cleared one of the last hurdles to the rescue, allowing eurozone finance ministers to give final approval for the bailout later on Wednesday.

Allies of German Chancellor Angela Merkel intensified their efforts to prevent a rebellion in their ranks two days before a crucial vote in Parliament on a new, €86 billion ($95 billion) bailout package for Greece, The Wall Street Journal reported. “I am fully convinced that it’s the right decision to vote in favor of it (the bailout), particularly because I didn’t make this decision easy for myself,” Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble said Monday in an interview on German television.

At long last, European creditor nations and Greece have reached an agreement on a third bailout in five years, the International New York Times reported. The bailout, which was approved by Greece’s Parliament on Friday, included familiar details: In return for an infusion of 86 billion euros, or $95 billion, Greece has promised to increase taxes, cut spending and enact measures to make its economy function more efficiently. But there was one glaring omission.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel voiced optimism that the eurozone’s bailout of Greece was moving in the right direction in a television interview on Sunday. “One cannot yet speak of certainty,” Ms. Merkel told ZDF public television. But, she added, there was a “certain amount of hope,” in part because the Greek government had been performing better in recent weeks than it had in previous months. Ms.

The European institutions overseeing Greece’s bailout have expressed “serious concerns” over the sustainability of the country’s debt, bringing them into line with the more pessimistic assessment of the International Monetary Fund, the Financial Times reported. Both the European Commission and the European Central Bank argue in a new analysis that debt relief measures, including extending repayment periods, would allow Athens to achieve debt sustainability, a solution advocated by the IMF. They say such moves would avoid the need for a full-scale debt haircut.

Germany softened its resistance to a third bailout package for Greece on Wednesday, raising the chances for speedy approval of the draft plan in time for the country to make a crucial debt payment next week, the International New York Times reported. While a political obstacle course still lies ahead, officials in Berlin and Brussels spoke of a markedly improved negotiating climate. Eurozone finance ministers scheduled a meeting on Friday in Brussels at which they could give their imprimatur to the bailout deal.

Greece and its creditors agreed on terms of a new bailout for the country, which, if ratified by other eurozone governments, could unlock up to €86 billion ($94.76 billion) in financing over the next three years, The Wall Street Journal reported. The deal would still leave Greece grasping for economic and political stability. More than six months of often-turbulent negotiations on the country’s future in the eurozone have dragged its economy back into recession. Its banks remain subject to severe capital controls.