Greek citizens: 'It's like being in a war without weapons'

[brooklynite]

The Guardian:

The Greek economy is dying, dying before the eyes of its people. A credit squeeze that began with the imposition of capital controls has, eight days on, assumed the terrifying spectre of cash reserves drying up. In less than a week, banknotes of €5, €10 and €20 have become almost extinct; so, too, have €1 coins. “There are a lot of us out there now walking the streets in tears,” said Papaconstantinou. “We just can’t believe that at this stage of our lives this is what we have come to.”

The restrictions, enforced to prevent a collapse of the banking system, were meant to end along with the closure of Greek banks on Tuesday. But at 7pm on Monday, barely 24 hours after the nation rebuffed the idea of further austerity in a referendum that has sent shockwaves through Europe, the Greek Bank Association announced that neither would happen. The cap on ATM withdrawals – a €60 limit reduced to €50 because of smaller denominations running out – would also remain.

...snip...

From the flower markets of Thessaloniki to the beach bars of Crete, the effects, are being felt. “We’ve seen a huge drop [in trade] and because money is so scarce, credit cards are almost always being used,” said Dimitris Vgengopoulos, cap on head, smile to the ready as he served customers in Meliartos, a pie shop within view of the Acropolis. “The bill might be €1 in total but they still use their cards.”

The dramatic drop in consumption has brought production to a halt. An inability to source supplies because of the ban on bank transfers has had a devastating effect on imports. Factories have shut, shops have closed and companies are increasingly electing to put staff on enforced leave.

[roamer65]

1. Greece may become the first cashless society.

Cards and computers could make the switch back to drachma very easy.

[brooklynite]

2. There are no bills because there are no assets behind them...

...where would the value backing electronic assets come from if they have to spend cash on imports (no credit) and aren't collecting taxes and growing the economy to pay for them.