Cyprus' central bank said today that most of the depositors who lost money at bailed-out Bank of Cyprus were from overseas.
He added that Cypriots had not been hit as hard as might have been expected.
"70% of the value of deposits concerned overseas residents, leaving Cypriot households and businesses unaffected to a greater extent than was possibly expected," Central Bank of Cyprus Governor Panicos Demetriades told a news conference.
He said overall 96% of deposits in Cyprus were unaffected by losses on larger accounts required by the euro zone in exchange for aid to the overly indebted country.
"Certainly what happened was very painful for many depositors, particularly those who did not have loans (which were netted against deposits). But 96% of deposits were not affected," Demetriades said.
In exchange for a €10 billion bailout from the euro zone and International Monetary Fund, Cyprus was forced to close Laiki, its second biggest bank, and restructure its biggest, Bank of Cyprus, including imposing losses on deposits over €100,000.
Many of Cyprus' overseas depositors have traditionally been from Russia.
