UK hedge fund Chenavari Investment Managers has made its first foray in the Spanish market with the purchase of a portfolio of loans with a face value of €335 mln as well as a package of foreclosed real estate assets from lender Bankia.

UK hedge fund Chenavari Investment Managers has made its first foray in the Spanish market with the purchase of a portfolio of loans with a face value of €335 mln as well as a package of foreclosed real estate assets from lender Bankia.

In a statement to the Spanish stock market regulator CNMV, Bankia said that the debt package includes around €226 mln worth of loans backed by real estate assets while the portfolio of foreclosed properties includes a total of 419 assets.

Although the lender did not disclose financial details, Spanish press reports put the volume of the deal at €79 mln, representing roughly a 80% discount to the total value of the assets of €400 mln.

'In order to maximise the price obtained for the portfolio, the sale followed a competitive process among high-profile institutional investors and financial institutions, which has resulted in the award of the whole transaction to Chenavari Investment Managers,' said Bankia in the statement.

The lender was advised by PwC and Baker & McKenzie on the deal.