What is Project Eagle?
Project Eagle is the name given to the National Asset Management Agency's Northern Ireland property-loans portfiolio, which it sold in April 2014 to Cerberus, a US company, for about €1.6 billion.
So it was a big deal
It was a very big deal indeed. In fact it was reckoned to be the biggest sale of assets ever in Northern Ireland. It gave Cerberus the right to demand repayment of the debts, worth about €6 billion, or to take ownership of the properties involved.
It all happened two years ago. So what's the fuss about now? The sale became mired in controversy when it emerged that Ian Coulter, managing partner of a Belfast law firm, Tughans, that worked for Cerberus, transferred £6 million (€7.2 billion) in fees from the deal to an Isle of Man bank account without his firm's knowledge. He resigned once it was discovered. Following that, the Independent TD Mick Wallace claimed in the Dáil last year that politicians and businesspeople were to benefit from the deal. This prompted investigations by the Northern Ireland Assembly, the UK's national crime agency and the Republic's finance watchdog, the Comptroller and Auditor General (C&AG). Mick Wallace and Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin have pushed for a commission of investigation, but Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Minister for Finance Michael Noonan are resisting.
What does it mean for Nama?
Nama has tried to wash its hands of the affair and refused to appear before the Stormont committee, saying it's answerable only to the Oireachtas. The State agency says the sale was properly conducted. But a former member of its Northern Ireland advisory committee, Frank Cushnahan, was recorded this year by BBC Northern Ireland's Spotlight programme claiming that the £6 million was meant for him.
So a former Nama adviser was involved in the deal?
Nama and Cerberus have denied that Cushnahan was involved. But we know that in March 2014 Nama discovered that another US company, Pimco, that was also bidding for Project Eagle had agreed to pay £5 million (€6 million) each to Cushnahan, Tughans and a US law firm, Brown Rudnick. Nama says that once it discovered this it forced Pimco to drop its bid. Cerberus then hired Tughans and Brown Rudnick. That company assured Nama that nobody connected with the State agency was working on its bid. The US company still maintains that position and says that both it and its advisers adhered to the highest standards.
When did Cushnahan work for Nama?
The DUP nominated him to the agency’s Northern Ireland advisory committee in 2011. He resigned in October 2013, at which time he would have known that Nama was planning to sell Project Eagle. He and Coulter met Pimco earlier that year.
Is anyone else from the agency caught in the controversy?
Cushnahan also indicated on Spotlight that he used his influence with the former Nama executive Ronnie Hanna to ensure that Nama didn't appoint receivers to some Northern Ireland companies whose debts it took over in 2010 and 2011. Hanna has refused to comment.
What progress have the investigations made?
The UK national crime agency arrested and released two men earlier this year. The Assembly inquiry published an interim report in March criticising Nama, Noonan, Cerberus and Pimco. In the Republic, the C&AG is due to report to Noonan next week.
What happens next?
The C&AG report will reignite the controversy. It’s also expected that the Assembly will resume its inquiry. The UK national crime agency investigation continues.
