Greek debt swap process to start in August: deputy finmin

ATHENS (Reuters) - Procedures for a voluntary swap of privately-held Greek government bonds for longer maturity paper will start in August, Greece's deputy finance minister said on Tuesday.

"Yes, this procedure will start in August," Deputy Finance Minister Filippos Sachinidis told Mega TV.

Greece's private sector creditors will take a 21 percent loss on their bond holdings as part of a 37 billion euro contribution over the next three years to a rescue plan for the debt-stricken country agreed at a euro zone summit last week.

(Reporting by George Georgiopoulos)