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THE GOVERNMENT AGENCY set up to take over property loans from Ireland’s bust banks in 2009, the National Asset Management Agency (Nama), is set to be dissolved by the end of next year.
The Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC), which was formed after Anglo Irish Bank was taken into State ownership, will also be liquidated.
Minister of Finance Jack Chambers announced today that he has secured cabinet’s approval to dissolve the agency next year, sixteen years after it was established.
Nama has begun taking commercial and operational steps towards implementing a “phased and orderly” winding down by the end of 2025.
The agency, which purchased almost €32 billion worth of bad property development loans from Ireland’s banks after the 2008 financial crash, is expected to conclude its operations with a lifetime surplus of €5.2 billion.
“Goodbye and good riddance,” business representative body Chambers Ireland said in a statement after the announcement today.
Ian Talbot, chief executive of the group, commended the work of Nama and the IBRC throughout the years, which he believed had been “extremely successful”.
Developers who had their assets managed by ‘the bad bank’, repaid their debts to the agency after the fallout of the recession.
Since, the initial €32 billion has been repaid, Nama has helped to secure social and private housing for the State and assisted in the redevelopment of industrial areas around Ireland, such as Dublin’s Docklands.
According to the Minister, Nama contributed to the funding and delivery of over 37,000 new homes and over 3,000 new social housing homes since it was established.
The agency was the subject of much criticism of those in opposition when it was established, including by former Taoiseach and then-Fine Gael spokesperson for enterprise Leo Varadkar who said the then-Fianna Fáil Government was “gambling” with taxpayer money.
“It won’t get credit flowing and it exposes taxpayers to all of the risk,” he said, with Fine Gael proposing that the Government establish a recovery bank instead. Academics and TDs from the Opposition also criticised the establishment of Nama at the time and in later years.
It was the view of critics at the time that establishing an asset management agency, rather than a recovery scheme, was a risk that could lead to tax funds being spent on managing undesirable assets that would not bring any return on the investment.
Some major also developers went bankrupt as a result of Nama taking control of their assets.
Nama has been contributing returns to the Exchequer since 2013.
In March former finance minister Michael McGrath conceded that Nama had hit its limit towards helping to build more affordable homes in Ireland.
The Conclusion of IBRC Special Liquidation and Dissolution of NAMA Bill 2024 had been in the works for some time, primarily by Minister McGrath before his nomination as Irish EU Commissioner last month.
Minister Chambers commended the assets management agency, adding that it had “inherited” a troubled loan book and was able to make “exceptional progress” in recent years.
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And we are still paying universal social charges, what a country
@phil-fitz fitz: yep they replaced water charges
@Seán O’Sullivan: Nonsense . The USC is a tax on income. Its a progressive tax, so the more you earn the more you pay. Water charges, which were abolished in ’96, was a flate rate applicable to all.
@phil-fitz fitz: they need to stop the mess actin’ and either call it as it is and just lump it into the tax bands as it’s structured in bands anyway, and say yes, we’re a high(ish) tax country or get rid of it, currently it’s sitting outside it’s original remit and looks like a remnant of the financial crisis. On top of all this is the laughable notion it’s being used to pay down the national debt…. New flash, the national debt will always be there in some form or other, so does that mean USC forever? Yes. Then just cut the coddin’ govt and roll it into the tax bands. They won’t because the optics look bad.
@TheGood Feign: *news flash
@Brian: *households
@Seán O’Sullivan: no, we’ve been paying for water since Budget 1997 under Bertie Ahern. VAT was increased specifically to cover water. Irish Water was an attempt at DOUBLE taxation.
Left my families 40yo business go out of business after the crash…. banks and lending institutions looked after and bailed out if in debt… family owned small businesses that found themselves to be owed alot of money shafted and left to go out of business. A bank looking after banks and the bankers, nothing more.
@Alan Smith: Your small business doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. That’s sad but that’s a fact.
If it goes bust, it doesn’t change anything.
@Alan Smith: Did you have debts that were unpaid? Or did you like many just get a little greedy. I’ve nothing but respect for small business owners and understand how difficult it is to remain cash positive, but I doubt a viable business would even be part of Nama unless there was speculation on you’re part.
@Alan Smith: and ordinary home owners.
@Paul O’Mahoney: unpaid debts
@Alan Smith: so sorry for your family’s misfortune. NAMA/IBRC were effectively used to cleanse banks of defaulted loans connected to the FFG/Labour/PD operatives, not hardworking folk like us. Sad but true
@Alan Smith: To whom were they debtors or Creditors?
@Jose mourinho: Would you go away the f………nobody held a gun to anyone in getting credit and then getting greedy. Huge amounts of businesses survived the crash, only those who played with others money were caught out, and if they had to suffer the consequences so be it……choice was made
@Alan Smith: We only like international franchises here. Always been the way unfortunately. SMEs are walked all over. Capitalism has long gone global but the individual was left behind. Try and buy a car in the ‘global market’?… The Irish wont allow you. Feel for your business Alan! sorry to hear it.
Yep stunning success sold prime land to vulture funds who built rent only apartments all over the cities.
So we bailed them out then they have screw.. us back.
Thanks and good riddance
@Vinny Hughes: yes nama sold battersea station for a song in 2012, 400million, only for investors to flip it and make 1.6 billion in the process.
@P. V. Aglue: Incorrect and ignorant of the facts under the terms of Nama assets outside of our jurisdiction held by those who were in within it’s scope had to sell or abandon those assets.
If you think that Johnny Ronan et al were going to simply give external assets for nothing or that he was going to do the right thing…..you really have no n idea.
@Vinny Hughes: A house in my estate was sold off by NAMA and the price paid according to Property Price Register was €17,500.
It was never advertised for sale anywhere locally. Our houses at the time were valued at €110,000.
This is good news, but there are questions that need answering.
First what has become of the land bank that was taken over.
Why wasn’t Nama allowed to extend its remit and build affordable housing on land that was ” acquired ” .
What will happen to those assets, i.e., ex Government buildings and brown site’s are they to be held by the NTMA in perpetuity and used for the common good?
The country is awash with money according to the Central Bank with €1.2trn in net assets and we still seem to be on the back foot in terms of what’s needed.
The return is fine but it needs to be put in context of jobs lost, homes lost and lives ruined…..opportunity cost analysis is needed.
@Paul O’Mahoney: Ah Paul…. don’t be so naive. That will never happen. All the deals done behind closed doors and the wealthy taken care of.
@Jp Cleary: not really. To be fair, there was a high level of transparency around asset disposal.
@Jp Cleary: I’m not and if you have an alternative way post it….. I’m wealthy and everything was due to hard work .
You seem bereft of any type of individual thinking just a slight, that’s why I’ll remain wealthy and you hopefully die in poverty,
@Paul O’Mahoney: Would make a great investigative piece, from start to finish, be interested to see the swindle and the success of it tbf. Bet theres a few feathers it would ruffle too
Lump sum payouts to staff as they move over to AIB with the reintroduction n bonuses lol
So the end of this gravy train, but where will the passengers go now?
@Padraig O’Brien: they are already on other gravy trains and who isn’t will be boarding soon don’t you know
@Padraig O’Brien: Revenue ‘streams’, never have all your eggs in one basket
No nama but how many multi millionaires did this bank make with our money
@John Reynolds: All of us it made a profit
Ah yes the brown envelope brigade.
RIP NAMA. Sadly missed, fondly remembered.
Look on the bright side. It’s not like we’re a hypocritically neutral country with next to no military reliant on a formal centuries old colonial power to protect us from Russian subs!
@Injustice Cop: ah, I just found it, so that’s where I left my crowbar
@Injustice Cop: we have the fishermen oh forgot they scrapped their boats to allow more fisherman in from Iceland
Where’s my Nama?
@Stevie Doran: “oh NAMA what’s my name, oh nama what’s my name, what’s my name.” Rihanna wrote a song about it.
@Stevie Doran: Why can’t you control your finances, it’s a basic concept
So many people come across as simpletons with the bitter nonsense they posts in the comments sections. Bleating like sheep.
Nama I would like to thank you for my cheap home….I wouldn’t of gotten it after 16 months with your say so!!! So I salute you and bid you Farewell!
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