Cyprus Mail 15 May 2020 - by George Psyllides
Bank of Cyprus is going ahead with the sale of €144m worth of unsecured non-performing loans to B2Kapital, it was reported on Friday.
The benefit for BoC would be €6m from the reversal of provisions and there will not be any impact on the lender’s capital, the Cyprus News Agency said citing bank sources.
The sources said the agreement is the second biggest in Europe in 2020 and it concerns 10,000 unsecured assets made up of consumer and small business loans.
The move proved that BoC “is already focusing on the day after” the sources said, adding that the aim was to continue cutting NPLs mainly through restructures.
In January, Norway-based B2Holding, had, through its Cypriot entity B2Kapital Cyprus, signed an agreement with BoC for the acquisition of an unsecured non-performing loan portfolio with a face value of €400m.
The portfolio consists of a mix of loan products issued to individuals and small businesses. The entire portfolio will be serviced by B2Kapital Cyprus. Established in 2017, B2Kapital Cyprus is already servicing a mixed non-performing loan portfolio with secured and unsecured SMEs.
Since the peak in 2014, BoC has reduced its stock of NPEs by 74 per cent, to €3.9bn. Overall, since 2014, the lender reduces its NPEs by €11.1 bn.
