Cerberus proposed a deal to the First Minister one day before a secret meeting took place between Peter Robinson and Dan Quayle, the former Vice President of the United States and eleven days before it would announce it had bought Nama's Northern Ireland portfolio for a knockdown £1.3 billion.
In a letter addressed to only the "Office of the First Minister" - with no reference to the Deputy First Minister - Cerberus outlined "a letter of investment and operational intentions," or memorandum of understanding (MoU), regarding its proposed acquisition of the Nama Northern Ireland loan book.
"This letter describes how Cerberus would intend to operate if the Transaction were to be consummated," it said.
The document, which was released in response to questions put to Cerberus by the Northern Ireland finance committee, proposed to "release personal and corporate guarantees as a key part of consensual work-out plans with cooperative borrowers". Cerberus, however, does not define what a co-operative borrower is in the letter.
Personal guarantees were documents signed by property developers making them personally liable for the debts of their companies.
Banks trying to get their money back, could therefore come after the borrowers houses, cars and so on.
It was an issue that Simon Hamilton, the then finance minster, felt was holding back the Northern Irish economy. Hamilton said in 2013 that guarantees "act as a disincentive to the development of assets".
He would in early 2014 receive assurances from Pimco, a rival US investment fund, to "release all corporate guarantees and personal guarantees... for nil payment."
When Nama's chairman Frank Daly was later questioned about the memo by the Irish parliament's public accounts committee he describe Pimco's letter as appearing to "summarise an agreement" between Pimco and the Northern Ireland Executive.
Mr Daly described it as "a debtors' charter, which we would never have countenanced".
He went further, adding: "There are several conditions in it that would have been unacceptable to us and, in fact, were quite offensive in terms of the way we dealt with debtors and assets."
Pimco would later withdraw from the process after admitting that it was due to pay a £5 million success fee to Frank Cushnahan, a former member of the Nama Northern Ireland Advisory Committee. Law firms Brown Rudnick and Tughans, which were also in line for £5 million success fees respectively, went on to represent Cerberus.
Cerberus has enforced one personal guarantee with a value of £200,000. Yet despite all the political sensitivity the personal guarantees have endured, they can still be used as leverage by Cerberus.
Cerberus's proposed MoU is was dated the 25th of March 2014 but sent to the First Minister on the 24th, one day ahead of the meeting in Stormont Castle and eleven days before the Nama purchase was announced.
As well as Quayle and Robinson, Hamilton was also at the secret meeting along with Ian Coulter, the former managing partner of Tughans. Coulter made a dramatic exit from the Belfast law firm in January after he was caught diverting £7.5 m of fees, relating to the Cerberus transaction, to an offshore bank.
A spokesman for Cerberus said in July, after The Irish News revealed the meeting, that it was "standard operating practice to hold due diligence meetings of this nature with Government Ministers in advance of making a bid... This was an official meeting and a matter of public record."
However, no media outlet or political party other than the DUP were believed to have been informed about the visit.
The meeting was not processed through the department of OFMDFM meaning the deputy first minister Martin McGuinness would not have been aware it was taking place either. The Deputy First Minister told The Irish News in July that he had no knowledge of the meeting held in March 2014.
However, Cerberus insisted that it was "an official meeting and a matter of public record".
The deputy first minister has consistently denied all knowledge of a proposed MoU with Pimco.
Last month while giving evidence to the assembly's finance committee, McGuinness said he had never seen the document and there was no consent from his office to send the letter outlining the proposed MoU to Nama by Peter Robinson's principal private secretary in January last year.
However, DUP committee member Jim Wells referred to an email sent to Ms O'Hagan in December 2013, while she was working as special adviser to Mr McGuinness which is said to have contained the draft MoU between the Stormont Executive and Pimco.
Cerberus's MoU was until last night not disclosed by the First Minister or the US investment fund despite repeated questions from The Irish News as to its existence. In fact even Westminster was unaware of the document.
The British government has said it found it "strange" that no MoU, which would have set in stone the terms that Cerberus could operate in Northern Ireland, was agreed with the NI Executive.
The Northern Ireland Affairs Committee of the House of Commons met with Cerberus following the purchase of Nama assets in April 2015.
The committee said in March 2015: "However, since our meeting with Cerberus, we have heard disquieting stories from some businesses in NI that they were being treated by Cerberus in a less than sympathetic manner. We find it strange that no Memorandum of Understanding was agreed between the NI Executive and Cerberus, and therefore recommend that the NI Executive keeps a close eye on this situation."
DUP Finance and Personnel Minister Arlene Fosterwas either unaware of the MoU's existence or it was never agreed upon.
Mrs Foster said: “arrangements are in place whereby my officials meet with representatives of Cerberus on a regular basis to discuss the firm’s activities in Northern Ireland and where they emphasise my expectation that borrowers are treated in a balanced, fair and transparent manner”.
Daithe McKay, chair of the Northern Ireland finance committee, said:
"This letter is extraordinary as it shows clearly the route of the MoU to senior Ministers. "This was intended to be sent to the First Minister's office and not the deputy First Minister's office. It was sent ahead of a meeting between Cerberus, the First Minister, his spad and the Finance Minister. "There are clearly questions for the First Minister to answer but also makes more damning the position of the former Finance Minister who is not cooperating with this inquiry."
Robinson will give oral evidence to Stormont's finance committee on October 14.
It is unclear if Nama was privy to the proposed MoU.
The MoU claims that should a deal be struck that Cerberus would make a commitment to use qualified local advisors, consultants, contractors and suppliers.
It said that it would also make further "supplementary loans to current borrowers where it is desirable to do so."
The letter states: " Cerberus could make available to the Borrowers further funding for new developments, renovations and major repairs and to maximise the value of assets in the mutual interest of borrowers and Cerberus."
Examples of such investment by Cerberus are hard to find.
Cerberus refused to answer the Stormont committee's question relating to what work Tughans carried out for the £7.5m success fee because it is "concerned it may trespass upon the scope of the ongoing criminal investigation being conducted by the National Crime Agency".
Liam Strong, chief executive of Cerberus European Capital Advisors, added that it wouldn't provide the information regardless because it "appears outside the scope of the Committee's Terms of Reference" and is "protected by legal privilege".
