Ireland’s National Asset Management Agency is to pursue the sale of loan books as it continues to ramp up its disposals programme.
The country’s “bad bank” this week began a search for advisers. In a tender document the agency said that it was seeking advice on the “overall planning, strategy, timing and tactics for the loan sale and all other relevant aspects of the transaction”.
Nama is expected to select around six advisers in Europe and four in the US.
Nama chief executive Brendan McDonagh said: “Loan sales will form a major part of our strategy going forward, now that we are almost through the debtor business plans.”
McDonagh said that the agency will consider loan sales related to “individual assets, whole debtor connections or groups of loans by geography”.
Nama has acquired around €600m (£522m) of loans linked to US assets and €30bn worth of loans linked to European and UK properties.
Until now Nama has been taking actions against borrowers or loans on a case-by-case basis and has started pursuing the sale of asset portfolios.
However, the European market for loan book sales has been developing rapidly as lenders look to deleverage their balance sheets while there is demand from investors who have raised money to buy distressed debt.
Banks such as Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland, Anglo Irish, Bank of Ireland and Spanish banks have begun trading portfolios of loans (see Santander story below).
Nama bought €72.3bn of loans at an average discount of 58% in 2010 and 2011.
