The governor of the Bank of Greece, Yannis Stournaras, highlighted Athens’ pivotal role in the Greek economy, as well as the challenges created by the capital’s strong growth momentum.
Speaking at the conference “Dialogues for Athens: From Myth to the Modern City”, organised by the newspaper To Vima at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, he said the capital is now the country’s most important economic hub, with the Attica region generating almost half of Greece’s gross value added.
According to the Bank of Greece governor, the housing crisis is not merely a social issue. Housing costs rising faster than incomes constrain labour mobility, make it harder for businesses to attract workers and increase the cost of living. At the same time, traffic congestion weighs on productivity through lost working hours, higher commuting costs and increased energy consumption.
The answer lies in a new cycle of investment in metropolitan infrastructure, ranging from the metro and suburban rail to public transport, digital and energy infrastructure, flood-prevention projects and urban green spaces. Measures are also needed to increase the supply of housing.
The bigger challenge, however, extends beyond Athens. Stournaras stressed that the capital must act as an accelerator of the productive transformation of the entire country, through greater innovation, high value-added investment and stronger links with the regions. The goal is not a strong Athens and a weaker periphery, but a competitive metropolis that can serve as a driver of a more productive and outward-looking Greece.
Athens’ economic footprint is particularly strong. Attica has the highest per capita GDP, at almost €30,000 compared with €21,000 for the country as a whole. It accounts for around one-third of gross national fixed capital investment, while almost 40% of total employment is concentrated in the region. At the same time, the capital’s economy is supported by a broad range of services-sector activities, from trade, transport and hospitality to financial services and real estate management.
Tourism makes a particularly significant contribution. In 2025, Attica was the most visited region in Greece, with travel receipts up 125.3% from 2019 and visitor numbers rising 63.8%. Attica’s share of total travel receipts increased from 14.7% in 2019 to 25.8% in 2025. This growth supports a broad ecosystem of businesses, including hotels and restaurants, retail market, transport, culture and real estate.
“Significant pressures” on costs — Need for infrastructure
However, Stournaras stressed that Athens’ success is now creating significant pressures. The concentration of population, investment, businesses and visitors is increasing demand for housing, transport, energy and infrastructure.
The property market is example: apartment prices rose 6.6% in 2025, while the annual increase stood at 5% in the second quarter of 2026. Although this reflects the city’s investment momentum, it is exacerbating the affordable housing problem for younger people and lower- and middle-income households.
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