Investing.com - Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis announced his resignation on Monday, saying his decision to step down could help Greece reach an agreement with its creditors after the country overwhelmingly rejected conditions for a bailout deal in a referendum.
In a statement on his website Varoufakis said he had been “made aware of a certain preference by some Eurogroup participants, and assorted ‘partners,’ for my … ‘absence’ from its meetings; an idea that the prime minister judged to be potentially helpful to him in reaching an agreement.”
"For this reason I am leaving the ministry of finance today."
He said he considers it his duty "to help Alexis Tsipras exploit, as he sees fit, the capital that the Greek people granted us through yesterday's referendum. And I shall wear the creditors' loathing with pride", he added.
He called for the prompt conclusion of “an agreement that involves debt restructuring, less austerity, redistribution in favor of the needy and real reforms.”
Varoufakis had threatened last week to resign if a “yes” vote passed, and his decision to resign despite the outcome was unexpected.