Alternative investments specialist Värde Partners and Italian credit manager Guber Banca have led the buyout of €734m of non-performing Italian real estate loans.
The portfolio includes loans originated by 22 mutual, rural, and cooperative banks spread throughout Italy.
The deal comes less than nine months after Värde Partners and Guber Banca acquired a separate €1.4bn portfolio of Italian non-performing loans (NPLs).
Both transactions were carried out with Barclays as the financial institution partner.
The latest portfolio comprises more than 1,300 positions – most of which are secured – in loans originated mainly in the north of Italy.
The portfolio was purchased by a securitisation vehicle issuing multi-tranche notes. The senior notes (70%) will be underwritten by the seller banks and the junior notes will be majority financed by Värde Partners.
Guber Banca will hold a minority share of the notes and will also act as servicer of the portfolio.
Francisco Milone, partner and head of European real estate at Värde Partners, said: “Italy is an incredibly important market for our firm.
“Värde’s deep expertise investing in NPLs across the globe combined with our local team in Italy and relationship with Guber support our activity in the Italian NPL market.”
Centrale Credit & Real Estate Solutions, part of Gruppo Cassa Centrale Banca Credito Cooperativo Italiano and Banca Intesa Sanpaolo Group advised the sellers, and acted as arrangers in projecting a new securitisation.
