Its economy is in seriously bad shape. Its sovereign credit rating has been downgraded by two agencies this year and placed on negative outlook by the third. And yet the Hellenic Republic - Greece - still managed a sell-out with its 15-year bond issue in November, raising €7bn. Membership of the eurozone, like the American Express card, comes with its privileges.
Greece has long been regarded as one of the weakest economies in the EU, part of the 'slow-lane' eurozone club - Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain - known as the PIGS. Greece's change of government in October, when the socialist Pasok party supplanted the right-wing New Democracy party, led to the revelation that things were worse than suspected.