Business

Pimco eyes a deal for Nama stock

AMERICAN asset management firm Pimco is set to buy the £1 billion-plus Northern Ireland property portfolio currently under the control of the Republic's National Asset Management Agency (Nama).

It is understood the US giant - which manages funds worth nearly two trillion dollars - has approached Stormont Finance Minister Simon Hamilton wanting to do business.

And if a deal is sealed to snap up the entire northern portfolio (which has a paper value of £4 billion but is likely to fetch just a quarter of that on the open market) it could prompt a frenetic period of activity in the property sector.

Nama's mantra is to achieve the best possible return for the Irish taxpayer as the state recovers from the uncontrolled financial gluttony which took such a hold on the region's economy.

In a statement Nama said it "constantly reviews its portfolio to assess opportunities for maximising returns from loans or assets within the portfolio".

It added: "In addition, it frequently receives approaches from investors expressing interest in acquiring loans or assets in its portfolio and reviews such approaches on an ongoing basis."

Neither Nama nor Pimco would confirm or deny media reports spec-ulating on the sale while Finance Minister Simon Hamilton said it would be "inappropriate" to comment.

He said the Executive has maintained a positive and constructive ongoing working relationship with Nama and would "clearly have a significant interest on any decisions which may have an impact on the Northern Ireland economy".

Mr Hamilton added: "The assets which are presently held by Nama could undoubtedly be used to boost the Northern Ireland economy if they were managed in a way which unleashed their potential in the short term rather than waiting for them to realise their value in the longer term.

"We will continue to work with Nama to seek to ensure that Northern Ireland's interests are protected in all circumstances."

But Sinn Fein economy spokesman Daithí McKay urged caution on any move.

He told the Irish News: "Whoever takes over these assets must do so in a responsible way and ensure that it does not destabilise the local economy.

"Breaking up assets for a quick profit would not be good for the economy and those in charge of this portfolio now or in the future should be mindful of that."

The Nama model to dispose of property is relatively straightforward although the practicalities associated with giving effect to it are not.

Nama is a workout vehicle, not a mechanism for liquidation, and it has the breathing space to take the longer view on borrowers and assets if it makes commercial sense to do so. It insists it is not a "toxic" or "bad" bank, but an asset management agency.

In the last three years Nama has approved more than £120 million in asset sales to northern-based debtors.

Last summer it put up £15 million so that work can be completed on two eyesore office blocks in Belfast city centre - the Lanyon Plaza and Soloist Building, close to the Waterfront Hall, where work had ground to a halt in 2009 when developers withdrew from the site.

It also provided £9 million to fund a 95-unit housing development in Millmount in Dundonald and has also intervened on social housing initiatives with Clanmill Housing Association and the Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations.

Pimco, which is best known as a bond trader, has previously bought Nama assets in the Republic.