Greek lender Eurobank said it continues to hold negotiations with preferred bidder, Pimco on the sales of Project Cairo and Project Europe despite the exclusivity agreement having lapsed on 30 September.
Pimco, a unit of German conglomerate Allianz, in June emerged ahead of rival bidders Fortress Investment and Bain Capital in the process to acquire €7.4 bn securitised pool of Greek non-performing mortgage loans known as Project Cairo, as well as a majority stake in servicer Financial Planning Services (FPS) in a process known as Project Europe.
FPS, fully owned by Eurobank, is the largest management company in Greece, with roughly €23 bn of assets.
Pimco and Eurobank, which signed an exclusivity agreement on June 27, are still in talks but the exclusivity lapse means Eurobank may now engage other investors such as Fortress and Bain.
The sales come hard on the heels of Pimco’s acquisition in June of the mezzanine and junior notes of Project Pillar, a €2 bn NPL portfolio secured against 44,000 residential assets in the country.
