Taoiseach’s officials have no record of Fortress letter of concern

Taoiseach Enda Kenny’s officials have no record of receiving a letter from the losing bidder for Nama’s loans in the North, US company Fortress, expressing concern at some parties’ practices ahead of the £1.2 billion sale.

US fund Cerberus’s purchase of the debts in April 2014 is the subject of criminal and parliamentary investigations arising out of claims that £7 million in fees diverted from a Belfast law firm involved in the deal, Tughans, was earmarked for northern politicians.

Reports yesterday stated that one of Cerberus’s rivals, New York-listed Fortress Investment Group, wrote to the Department of the Taoiseach in February 2014 expressing concern at the practices of some third parties.

Mr Kenny said in the Dáil he would have his officials check to see whether such a letter was received. The department itself said that it has not found any record of receiving the letter and added that the process of checking for this was ongoing.

Nama said that neither the Taoiseach’s department nor Fortress contacted the agency at that time nor did they raise any concerns with it.

Nine investors

Fortress was one of nine investors that Nama’s advisers, Lazard, originally invited to bid for the loans, dubbed Project Eagle, in January 2014. It remained in the auction with Cerberus and Pimco after six others dropped out at the initial stage.

Tughans’ managing partner Ian Coulter resigned in January after an audit found that £7 million had been transferred from a company bank account to an Isle of Man account that he controlled.

Mr Coulter has said that he did not benefit personally from the Project Eagle transaction.