NAMA appoints receiver for some Derek Quinlan debt

Ireland's bad bank agency NAMA has called in statutory receivers to take charge of a number of properties owned personally by Irish businessman Derek Quinlan and members of his immediate family.

In a statement, NAMA said the receiver, Paul McDowell of Knight Frank Ireland, had been appointed 'on foot of the debtors' failure to present and agree an appropriate business plan for the repayment of loans owed to the agency'.

A spokesman for NAMA warned that other debtors could face similar action: 'If debtors are unrealistic or uncooperative in their dealings with NAMA, we won't hesitate to appoint receivers to protect the taxpayer's interests.'

It is understood that the properties taken over by the receiver are mainly expensive residences in plush districts of Dublin.

Derek Quinlan was one of the leading Irish real estate investors during the recent boom. He acquired major assets in Ireland and abroad both for himself and on behalf of other high-net-worth investors through his company Quinlan Private.

Derek Quinlan is a former tax inspector who established Quinlan Private in 1989. Through the company he set up syndicates of high-net-worth individuals to acquire larger real estate assets in the UK and Continental Europe with high leverage during the period 2004-7.

One of his first big deals was the acquisition of the Savoy Group hotels in London in 2004. In December 2007 Quinlan teamed up with Propinvest, an investment company run by UK entrepreneur Glenn Maud, to buy Citigroup's European headquarters at 25 Canada Square, Canary Wharf in London for about EUR 1.4 bn.

Derek Quinlan stepped down from Quinlan Private in 2009 and moved to Switzerland. It is understood he is working to pay down hundreds of millions of euros of personal debt. The property arm of the company was renamed Avestus.

While the receiver appointed by NAMA will deal solely with properties in Dublin directly owned by Derek Quinlan, NAMA was also involved in the decision to sell the Citigroup headquarters in Canary Wharf. Earlier this month Jones Lang LaSalle announced it had been instructed to sell the building. It is understood the owners have reached agreement with their banks to sell the property to repay the debt used to acquire it.