A damning new report from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) has painted a troubling picture of how EU funds are managed in Greece, revealing a massive surge in financial crime investigations and estimated damages reaching billions of euros.
The report comes amid long-standing concerns voiced by European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi regarding the level of cooperation from Greek national authorities and the legal framework surrounding political immunity.
Caseload of investigations into EU funds misuse in Greece skyrockets
The scale of the “financial hemorrhage” in Greece has expanded at an alarming rate over the last two years:
- Investigations into Greek cases have tripled, jumping from 53 open cases in 2023 to 175 by the end of 2025.
- The estimated damage to EU and national budgets has ballooned from €700 million in 2023 to a staggering €2.68 billion today.
- In 2025 alone, 117 new cases were opened, accounting for over €1 billion in potential losses.
The activation of these investigations stems from a diverse network of reporting:
100 cases were referred by Greek national authorities.
76 reports came directly from private citizens, highlighting a growing public role in exposing corruption.
8 cases were initiated ex officio by European Prosecutors.
7 cases originated from complaints by EU institutions and agencies.
Much of the focus remains on “carousel fraud”—where shell companies claim VAT refunds they never actually paid—as well as infrastructure and digital transformation projects funded by the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) and NSRF (ESPA).
A “searing indictment”: Political fallout
The report has triggered a political firestorm in Athens. The opposition party PASOK-KINAL described the findings as a “searing indictment” of the Mitsotakis administration.
“Greece has unfortunately become the EPPO’s biggest client,” said PASOK spokesperson Kostas Tsoukalas. “The scope of these investigations covers nearly every aspect of public activity—from education and migration to IT, infrastructure, and trade.
To highlight the scale of the issue, Tsoukalas provided comparative data from other EU member states of similar scale:
Czechia: 136 active cases (136 million euros in estimated damages).
Portugal: 102 active cases (952.2 million euros in estimated damages).
Sweden: 20 active cases (182 million euros in estimated damages).
“Even when combined, the estimated damages in the Czech Republic, Portugal, and Sweden do not reach the levels found in Greece,” Tsoukalas noted. “The rot of corruption will only be cleared through political change.”
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