Eurozone's new permanent rescue fund was launched on Monday at a meeting of finance ministers in Luxembourg. Funded by taxpayers' money, the so-called European Stability Mechanism will have a 500 bn euro budget to help finance debt-ridden countries.
The start of the European Stability Mechanism marks an historic milestone in shaping the future of the European monetary Union. The Euro area now is equipped with the effective firewall which of course is a crucial component of our strategy to ensure financial stability in the Union', said president of the Eurogroup Jean-Claude Juncker.
Germany is the biggest contributor to the bailout fund. But the German solidarity towards struggling eurozone economies does not come for free. Bailed out coutries must implement tough austerity measures and reforms in exchange for help.
'As of today the ESM is fully operational with lending capacity of 200 billion euro that will grow in the next 18 months. In addition to that we will have the 92 billion euro of the EFSF ...Distributed by OneLoad.com
