Get up to speed with the Greek debt crisis 3.0

Buffett: A Greek Exit may be better
Buffett: A Greek Exit may be better

The Godfather. Lord of the Rings, and Star Wars. Great dramas come in trilogies and Greece's debt crisis is no exception.

After bailouts in 2010 and 2012, Greece is once again edging towards financial collapse.

Here is what you need to know to get up to speed with the third installment of the Greek thriller.

1. Payments due

Greece has some hefty payments to make in April. It has to send about 460 million euros to the International Monetary Fund next Thursday.

The government is reported to be facing a bill of 1.7 billion euros for public sector wages and pensions by the end of the month.

2. Running out of money

Only the Greeks know how much money is really left in their treasury. Tax revenues in January and February came in 1.1 billion euros below forecast.

Reports that the government does not have enough cash to meet its obligations are emerging. Some even say Athens will run out of money next week -- a scenario the government has so far denied.

Related: 7 reasons Grexit wouldn't be a total disaster

greece avoiding default

3. Running out of time

What is clear is that Greece urgently needs the final portion of its 240 billion international bailout.

Athens is pushing for the money to be released as soon as possible, to avoid stumbling out of the eurozone.

But creditors will only release the cash -- 7.2 billion euros -- if Greece commits to a revised program of economic reforms.

Related: Is keeping Greece in euro impossible?

4. Reforms

Athens submitted a new list of reforms Wednesday. The document, published by the Financial Times, details the government's plans to tackle tax evasion and fraud. They include a proposal for a lottery to encourage consumers to ask for sales tax receipts, a new luxury tax, and higher revenues from tourism.

But the list also includes a number of measures that are likely to spark a backlash from the creditors.

The government wants to reverse earlier reforms by reintroducing a 13th month pension payment for low-income Greeks, and by scrapping gradual cuts to state pensions. These proposals would cost the Greek government an extra 1.1 billion euros this year.

5. Markets worried

Markets are getting anxious as the payment deadlines loom. The stocks of the main Greek banks have all taken a beating this year -- Piraeus (BPIRF) has lost 63%, Alpha Bank (ALBKF) 42% and Eurobank (EGFEF) 38%. And Greek bond yields have been soaring, indicating investors are growing more concerned about the ability of the government to repay its debt. Yields on the 10-year bond are at nearly 12%, up from below 11% a week ago.

Opinion: Greece needs to behave like a startup

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