The non-performing loan market got off to a slow start in Europe in Q1 2018 with just €4.6bn (£4bn) of closed deals, following a record year for deals, according to Evercore’s latest European Distressed RE Market report.
Activity continues to focus on southern Europe with €1.6bn in the first quarter coming from three deals in Italy. Spain was the most active market by number of deals, completing €1bn of NPL sales across four portfolios.
Despite the slow start, Evercore said it expected activity to pick up later in the year owing to the €34.6bn pipeline of live transactions and a further €61.3bn in planned sales – largely focused on southern Europe.
Total exposure to NPLs in Europe has fallen by €386bn – or 42% – since the end of 2013 to €528bn. In 2017 alone, about €104bn of NPL portfolios were sold in Europe.
Italy and Spain together account for 65% of Europe’s remaining non-core real estate exposure after years of sustained activity in the Irish and UK markets.
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