AP / Press Association Images AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

GREEKS HAVE BEEN queuing at ATMs, hoping to withdraw their savings, as banks will remain closed for a week.

However, those queuing will only be able to access €60 a day in an attempt to stem the flow of money from Greek banks.

Banks will be closed until next Monday, but foreign tourists will be able to withdraw money, the Greek government says.

The drastic measures to protect Greece’s banking system against the threat of mass panic came after the European Central Bank said it would not increase its financial support to Greek lenders, despite early signs of a chaotic bank run.

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The move capped a weekend of high drama that began with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’s unexpected call for a referendum on creditors’ latest reform proposals after bailout talks in Brussels collapsed.

Pensioners wait outside a closed bank in Athens. AP / Press Association Images AP / Press Association Images / Press Association Images

In response, angry EU and IMF creditors rejected a request to extend the nation’s bailout beyond its June 30 expiry date, sparking fears Greece could default on a key debt payment to the IMF due the same day and possibly crash out of the eurozone.

With banks closed, many pensioners who do not have bank cards arrived expecting to be able to withdraw their payments, but were forced to leave empty-handed.

An AFP source claims that only 40% of bank machines have cash left in them.

Read: Poll: Is the Greek government right to hold a referendum on its bailout deal?

Read: Greek banks are now NOT OPENING for a week