As Greece Battles a Debt Crisis, Its Banks Issue More Short-Term Debt

``These short-term bonds, which have been issued by the country's largest banks and carry the guarantee of the Greek government, are not being sold to foreign investors. They are being issued to the only entity that would dare buy them: themselves... As long as the bank's problem is access to short-term funds and not solvency, such machinations can work... "These fake bonds have the ability to convert quickly into real obligations of the state if Greece, or the underlying banks, tank," said Mitu Gulati, a sovereign debt specialist who has written extensively on this topic. "And that possibility is looking increasingly real, given the current drama.''