Bank deposits fall two percent in Cyprus in February: ECB

Consumers and companies withdrew deposits from Cypriot banks in February, European Central Bank data showed on Thursday, as the country's financial system slipped deeper into trouble.

Cyprus on Monday managed to avert a default by sealing a last-minute deal with international lenders, agreeing to close its second-largest bank and inflict heavy losses on uninsured depositors in return for a 10-billion-euro bailout.

In February, as Germany and some other countries began to push for bank depositors to bear part of the bailout, private-sector, deposits in Cypriot banks fell by 2.2 percent to 46.4 billion euros ($59.30 billion), having fallen at a similar pace in January.

Greece on the other hand, recorded a 2-percent increase in private sector deposits to 171.0 billion euros, while deposits in Italian banks also rose, up 1.3 percent at 1.5 trillion euros.

Monthly fluctuations in the figures are common, though sharp consecutive drops in countries with stable banking systems are unusual.

The data, which are for all currencies combined, are not seasonally adjusted and differ slightly from national central bank figures. They exclude deposits from central government and banks.

($1 = 0.7824 euros)

(Reporting by Eva Kuehnen and Paul Carrel)