How big is investor appetite for Greek banks? This week will tell.

The government said Tuesday it will offer a 10% stake in National Bank of Greece (NBG), the country's largest commercial bank, which corresponds to some 25.5 million shares. The state directly and indirectly controls some 40% of the bank.

The placing will be in the form of an accelerated book building process and it's expected to bring some EUR465 million to the government's coffers. It is expected to be completed Wednesday.

Also Tuesday, Piraeus Bank (PBK.AT) said it will place 11.2 million of its own shares, or a 6.7% stake, currently held as treasury shares.

Both placements are being offered to institutional investors at home and abroad.

Analysts believe both offerings will be covered, although National's may be easier.

"We see a 6% discount for National and slightly less, around 5% discount for Piraeus, given the smaller size of the offering, on their Monday's closing prices," analyst Paris Mantzavras with HSBC said.

National closed at EUR19.06 and Piraeus at EUR8.64 on Monday. At 1107 GMT, the former was down 4.8% at EUR18.14 and the latter had shed 3% at EUR8.38.

The two offerings come just a month after the successful placement of Alpha Bank (ALPHA.AT). Alpha placed 15.9 million shares after strong demand from international investors lead the bank to increase its initial 12 million share offer.

With these two new offerings, analysts see some changes in the local banking scene.

Improved liquidity and an increased international shareholder base will make the sector more subject to the behavior of the European banking sector as a whole.

National will be less state-controlled and therefore more market appealing.

As for Piraeus, the placing will improve its equity capital by around EUR11 million.

"Local banks are entering a new era," analyst Manos Giankoumis with P&K said. "Positive earnings momentum has paved the way for such moves."