On Thursday 25 January, the European Commission found that the Irish National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) had not breached EU state aid rules in its financing or actions.
NAMA, which was created in Ireland in 2009 as a result of the financial crisis in order to stabilise the national banking system, acquired portfolios of non-performing commercial loans backed by land and real estate to be developed from five Irish banks. The creation of the body and its support to the five banks received the Commission's green light on 26 February 2010.
In December 2015, five real estate developers complained to the Commission, arguing that NAMA was distorting competition on the Irish real estate market by awarding loans to developers, themselves creditors of NAMA, on highly favourable terms. The plaintiffs also contended that by receiving state guarantees on its financing, NAMA was also benefiting from illegal state aid.
Firstly, the Commission points out that the aim of NAMA is to maximise the value of assets in order to return the profit to Irish taxpayers, hence the sale of sites or loans awarded to its creditors.
The institution then notes that NAMA does not benefit from state aid, either in the form of the State guarantee, which was already assessed in 2010, or other measures.
It further takes the view that as NAMA's action takes the form of the sale of a site or a loan with a view to increasing its value, it is steered by solid analysis and that decisions are made on the basis of the commercial viability of the project. The Commission hence considers that the real estate developers supported by NAMA are not receiving any undue advantage. Finally, it points out that Ireland is to liquidate NAMA in 2020/2021.
Consequently, both the financing and actions of NAMA comply with the Commission's aforementioned decision of 2010 and the Commission accordingly concluded that there had been no breach of the EU state aid rules. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)