Project Eagle: Ten things we learned from report into Nama sale

Agency reduced the final price of property portfolio to £1.2bn shortly before disposal

Nama recommended to its board at the end 2013 that the value should be reduced to £1.3bn for a sale. Illustration: The Irish Times
Nama recommended to its board at the end 2013 that the value should be reduced to £1.3bn for a sale. Illustration: The Irish Times
  1. The sale of the National Asset Management Agency's (Nama) Project Eagle loans in April 2014 probably lost the State of more than £190 million (€220 million).
  2. Nama lost 13 per cent on the sale of Project Eagle compared to 1 per cent on sales of other sales of Northern Ireland loans.
  3. Nama spent £2 billion buying the loans in the first place, but calculated that they were worth £1.49 billion at the end of 2013.
  4. It recommended to its board at the end of 2013 that the value should be reduced to £1.3 billion for a sale.
  5. Nama's board agreed with the recommended minimum price of £1.3 billion, but did not say if this represented the best value return.
  6. Nama cut the final price of the portfolio to £1.2 billion shortly before the sale as it had sold some of the loans separately.
  7. The ongoing involvement of lawyers, Tughans and Brown Rudnick, who worked with former advisor, Frank Cushnahan, should have raised concerns for Nama.
  8. Overall, 10 potential bidders were approached and offered the chance to take part in the auction.
  9. One potential bidder withdrew because it was refused a request for extra time to study the assets.
  10. A number of the firms which turned down invitations to bid for Project Eagle complained of a lack of relevant information and time.
Barry O'Halloran

Barry O'Halloran

Barry O’Halloran covers energy, construction, insolvency, and gaming and betting, among other areas