Yanis Varoufakis

Yanis Varoufakis
Name	Yanis Varoufakis
Caption	Varoufakis in 2015
Office	Minister of Finance of Greece
Term start	27 January 2015
Term end	6 July 2015
Primeminister	Alexis Tsipras
Predecessor	Gikas Hardouvelis
Successor	Euclid Tsakalotos
Office2	Member of the Hellenic Parliament
Term start2	25 January 2015
Term end2	23 September 2015
Constituency2	Athens B
Birth date	24 March 1961
Birth place	Athens, Kingdom of Greece
Spouse	Danae Stratou
Alma mater	University of Essex, University of Birmingham
Occupation	Economist, Politician, Author
Known for	Greek government-debt crisis, DiEM25

Yanis Varoufakis is a Greek economist, academic, and politician who served as the Minister of Finance of Greece in 2015 during the peak of the Greek government-debt crisis. A prominent and controversial figure in European politics, he co-founded the Democracy in Europe Movement 2025 (DiEM25) and its electoral wing in Greece, the MeRA25 party. His tenure was marked by high-stakes, confrontational negotiations with the Eurogroup, the European Central Bank, and the International Monetary Fund over austerity measures and Greek bailout terms.

Early life and education

He was born in Athens to a politically active family; his father, a chemical engineer, was imprisoned for leftist activities following the Greek Civil War. He attended the private Moraitis School before moving to the United Kingdom for university studies. He earned a Bachelor of Science in mathematical economics from the University of Essex and later completed his PhD in economics at the University of Birmingham, where he studied under the supervision of Marxian economist Michael A. Lebowitz.

Academic career

His academic career has spanned institutions across Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Greece. He served as a professor of economic theory at the University of Athens and as a professor of economics at the University of Texas at Austin. He has also held visiting positions at the University of Cambridge, the University of Glasgow, and the University of Sydney. His research has focused on game theory, political economy, and the flaws in the architecture of the eurozone.

Political career

He entered electoral politics in January 2015, elected as a member of the Hellenic Parliament for the Athens B constituency with the Coalition of the Radical Left (SYRIZA). Appointed Minister of Finance by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, he led Greece's negotiations with its creditors, famously clashing with figures like Wolfgang Schäuble of Germany and Christine Lagarde of the IMF. After the Greek bailout referendum, 2015, he resigned his ministerial post following the government's acceptance of a new memorandum of understanding. He later left SYRIZA and co-founded the pan-European DiEM25 movement, launching its Greek electoral wing, MeRA25, which entered the Hellenic Parliament following the 2019 Greek legislative election.

Economic and political views

A self-described "libertarian Marxist," his critiques center on the undemocratic nature of the European Union and the inherent instability of the euro. He advocates for a democratically controlled European Central Bank, a universal basic dividend, and transparent sovereign debt restructuring mechanisms. He is a vocal critic of austerity policies, which he argues exacerbate crises, and of what he terms the "neofeudalism" of modern capitalism. His proposals during the Greek government-debt crisis included a parallel digital payment system and a moderated Grexit plan.

Publications and media

He is a prolific author of both academic and popular works. His books include *The Global Minotaur: America, the True Origins of the Financial Crisis and the Future of the World Economy*, *And the Weak Suffer What They Must?: Europe, Austerity and the Threat to Global Stability*, and *Talking to My Daughter About the Economy: A Brief History of Capitalism*. He maintains a widely read blog and is a frequent commentator in international media outlets like the BBC, The Guardian, and Al Jazeera. He also hosts the podcast *"Yanis Varoufakis: Thoughts for the Post-2008 World."*

Personal life

He is married to contemporary artist and activist Danae Stratou, with whom he has one daughter. The couple divides their time between Athens, Greece, and a home in the Peloponnese. An avid motorcyclist, he is known for his distinctive style and has been a subject in works by artists like Grayson Perry. He holds both Greek and Australian citizenship.

Category:1961 births Category:Living people Category:Greek economists Category:Greek politicians Category:Finance ministers of Greece Category:University of Athens faculty Category:University of Texas at Austin faculty