US asset manager Fortress is on the verge of signing a preliminary agreement to acquire Italian bank UniCredit's non-performing loan platform, according to well-informed market sources.
US asset manager Fortress is on the verge of signing a preliminary agreement to acquire Italian bank UniCredit's non-performing loan platform, according to well-informed market sources.
The sale, with a total value of about €4 bn, involves both Unicredit Credit Management Bank (UCCMB)'s business operations, as well as a bad loan portfolio worth around €2.5 bn.
Sources say the parties are still negotiating the price of the deal, which is expected to range between €500 and €800 mln depending on the number of UCCMB employees Fortress will agree to take over as part of the transaction. The UCCMB platform, with a total workforce of 600, reported a net loss of €27.4 mln in the first half of the year, generating €43.7 mln of revenue.
New York-based Fortress Group announced in April that it was launching a bid for Unicredit Credit Management Bank, which services some €50 bn of loans. They entered exclusive negotiations in October. Italian listed property services group Prelios is to retain management of the assets once the deal is completed. It also has an option to take a minority stake in the deal from Fortress when the deal goes through and may sell the stake to a third party, a source said.
Fortress is believed to be offering €300 mln for the servicing platform and about €200 mln for the assets, a discount of 90% to the nominal value. Closing is expected for the beginning of January.
Fortress is the majority shareholder of Italian asset manager Torre Sgr as well as Italfondiario, the country’s largest NPL-management company with €36.1 bn of assets under management.