Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has ordered a temporary closure of banks and the stock market on Monday, as Athens tries to prevent a financial collapse.

The emergency measures were agreed at a cabinet meeting on Sunday, just hours after the European Central Bank decided not to expand an emergency loan program.

It is believed about 40 ATMs across Greece have run dry.

• Emergency talks as Grexit looms
• What a Grexit means for Australia
• Joe Hockey putting Australia at risk: IMF

The Greek government is still trying to reach a new debt deal with international creditors.

People wait to withdraw money from an ATM in Athens on Sunday. Photo: AAP

“People’s deposits are safe, totally safe. Equally safe is the reimbursement of salaries and pensions,” Mr Tsipras said.

“Any difficulties that may arise must be dealt with with calmness. 
The more calm we are, the sooner we will get over this situation.”

The Greek PM called again for an extension to his country’s bail-out program.

In a televised address, he criticised the European Central Bank for declining to increase its emergency loans to Greek banks, The New York Times reported.

“It is clearer than ever that this decision has no other goal apart from blackmailing the Greek people and obstructing the smooth democratic procedure of the referendum,” he said.

As speculation mounted about the bank closures on Sunday, Greeks raced to find functioning cash machines.

It had not yet been decided how long the banks would remain closed or what cap would be placed on daily withdrawals from ATMs.

There is still a chance that Greece and its creditors — the ECB, the International Monetary Fund and the other eurozone countries — could come to terms before its current bailout program expired on Tuesday, The New York Times reported.

Tourists told to ‘carry cash’

European nations have urged their nationals to carry cash with them when vacationing in Greece as the country hurtles towards a banking crisis.

The German foreign ministry on Sunday recommended that tourists “take sufficient amounts of cash” when visiting Greece, a top vacation spot for Germans, keep tabs on the evolving situation and check for any updates to its travel recommendations.

Britain’s foreign office warned travellers “of the possibility that banking services – including credit card processing and servicing of ATMs – throughout Greece could potentially become limited at short notice.”

It said “make sure you have enough euros in cash to cover emergencies, unforeseen circumstances and any unexpected delays.”

If capital controls are imposed, businesses may not want to accept credit cards any longer as they would have trouble accessing their bank accounts, even if card transactions are authorised.

“There is some information according to which some restaurants and filling stations haven’t accepted card payments for some time and are taking just cash,” said the Swedish foreign ministry.

Denmark, Finland and the Netherlands also warned their nationals not to rely on cards and take cash when visiting Greece.

But Andreas Andreadis, President of Greek Tourism Confederation, said “foreign clients have no problems with money transactions” and “their credit cards won’t be compromised by capital controls.”

– with AAP