Lucas Papademos, the former Greek prime minister who was a leading player in his country’s troubled financial bailout, has been injured in an apparent letter bomb attack.

Mr Papademos was hit by a blast when he opened an envelope while in his car in central Athens on Thursday. His driver and a security guard were also wounded. Greek authorities said their injuries did not appear life-threatening.

The 69-year-old economist and central banker became caretaker prime minister in 2011 in the turmoil of the country’s debt crisis, when he oversaw the largest debt restructuring in history and helped secure a €174bn rescue plan from sceptical European partners and the International Monetary Fund. He was previously a vice-president of the European Central Bank.