Nama completes €5.6bn sale of Project Eagle loans

Portfolio sale agency’s largest to date

Nama has completed the sale of its Project Eagle loans, mostly based in the North, to Cerberus Capital Management.

It said yesterday: "The portfolio, which has a par value of £4.5 billion (€5.6 billion) and represents the largest single transaction by Nama to date, relates to loans secured on assets in Northern Ireland and in other locations where the underlying properties are owned by Northern Ireland-based debtors."

The deal first emerged last month. Among the assets are the Lanyon Plaza and the Soloist buildings in Belfast, developed by William Ewart properties.

The terms of transaction are deemed commercially sensitive and have not been disclosed but followed an extensive and competitive sales process involving bidders from Europe and the US. Nama is understood to have paid €1.3 billion (£1.1 billion) for a package of loans linked solely to assets and development in Northern Ireland which has formed part of the Project Eagle package.

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In April, Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson said he had talks with those behind the deal, including former US vice-president Dan Quayle, and said it was excellent news.

Mark Hilliard

Mark Hilliard

Mark Hilliard is a reporter with The Irish Times