As you know during the restructuring of the two main Cypriot banks: Bank of Cyprus and Laiki Bank many of the foreign nationals lost substantial amounts of their deposits. These specific depositors were addressed in the speech of Cypriot president.

The offer made during a speech to the Russian business community in Limassol yesterday goes some way to trying to compensate Russian nationals who have lost their money. President Anastasiades also promised changes to the current law on citizenship, which stipulates that applicants must deposit 15 million euro in a Cypriot bank for 5 year period. This will be reduced to 3 million euro and the application process will be further streamlined. 

The “citizenship by investment” aka “passports for cash” scheme is expected to be a part of investment strategies aiming to attract rich non-EU nationals. Also promised were incentives for foreign companies both new and old who invest in Cypriot economy.