Cerberus Leads European NPL Buyers for Second Year Running

NEW YORK, Feb. 10, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Cerberus Capital Management was named the leading investor in European non-performing loans (NPLs) in 2014 in a recent report from Cushman & Wakefield (C&W).

C&W reported that Cerberus affiliates invested approximately €17.7 billion in European NPLs in 2014, constituting nearly 22% of the €80.6 billion in closed commercial real estate and real estate-owned transactions for the year. This is the second year in a row that Cerberus has topped C&W's year-end charts.

The firm's fourth quarter activity was particularly robust, with C&W attributing 41% of the European NPL deal volume in the last three months of the year to six Cerberus transactions.

"Cerberus has the practical expertise to manage non-performing loans so that they deliver results for all. We are extremely proud to have earned the trust of many European financial institutions, which recognize our resources for investing in and servicing non-performing loans," said Lee Millstein, Head of European and Asian Distressed/Real Estate and Senior Managing Director at Cerberus. "Cerberus is pleased to support ongoing efforts to stabilize and strengthen those financial institutions as well as local real estate markets, and we are looking forward to additional opportunities in 2015."

Last year Cerberus affiliates completed over a dozen deals across Europe, acquiring loans and assets in the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Italy, Ireland, France and Denmark, among other countries.

The firm has in-market presence in key locales, including a recently opened office in Northern Ireland, to effectively source, manage and service these complex NPL portfolios and their underlying properties.

Significant transactions completed by Cerberus affiliates in 2014 include:

• The Project Eagle portfolio purchased from the Republic of Ireland's National Asset Management Agency (NAMA);
• The Project Aran portfolio sold by Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) subsidiary Ulster Bank;
• The Project Avon portfolio acquired from Lloyds Banking Group;
• The Project Chestnut portfolio bought from National Australia Bank (NAB); and
• The Project Mermaid portfolio divested by Denmark's Finansiel Stabilitet.

About Cerberus Capital Management, L.P.

Established in 1992, Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. is one of the world's leading private investment firms. Cerberus has more than US $25 billion under management invested in four primary strategies: distressed securities and assets; control and non-control private equity; commercial mid-market lending and real estate-related investments. From its headquarters in New York City and large network of affiliate and advisory offices in the U.S., Europe and Asia, Cerberus has the on-the-ground presence to invest in multiple sectors, through multiple investment strategies in countries around the world.

Media Contacts

Peter Duda: +1 (212) 445-8213
John Dillard: +1 (212) 445-8052
Cerberus Media Line: +1 (212) 891-1558

SOURCE Cerberus Capital Management, L.P.