Investment in Piraeus Bank NPL portfolio (EBRD-54588)

Countries
  • Romania
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Financial Institutions
  • European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Approved
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
U
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Jun 30, 2023
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
APS Theta S.a r.l.
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Finance
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Equity
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 436.66 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Currency conversion note:
Bank reported 400
Converted using 2023-06-30 exchange rate.
Bank Documents
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ EBRD website

Updated in EWS Jul 20, 2024

Disclosed by Bank May 3, 2024

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

According to the Bank’s website, the EBRD and APS are jointly investing in a participation to a Non-Performing Loan ("NPL") portfolio in Romania sold by Piraeus Bank Greece ("PB"). The portfolio consists of approximately 1,800 loans originated by PB Romania with aggregate total legal claims of about EUR 400 million as of 31 December 2022 (the "Portfolio"). The participation in the Portfolio is acquired by an SPV based in Luxembourg, and the management of the portfolio will be delegated to APS, a leading NPL servicer in CESEE region and co-investor for the transaction (the "Project").

As of June 2023, the NPL ratio in Romania stood at 2.65%, a strong improvement from a high of 22% reached in 2014. However, while headline NPL figures improved, many of those NPLs still remain in the Romanian economy. The Project supports the ultimate resolution of these NPLs, facilitating the return of blocked collateral to the economy and supporting borrowers to exit bankruptcy proceedings. The Project also makes an important contribution to the secondary loan market in Romania, which forms a critical part of a well-functioning financial system. Moreover the Portfolio continues to consume capital from PB, which will be freed up for new lending activity.

Early Warning System Project Analysis
For a project with severe or irreversible impacts to local community and natural resources, the Early Warning System Team may conduct a thorough analysis regarding its potential impacts to human and environmental rights.

Categorised FI (ESP 2019). 

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

A participation to a Non-Performing Loan ("NPL") portfolio.

Financial Intermediary
A financial intermediary is a bank or financial institution that receives funds from a development bank. A financial intermediary then lends these funds to their clients (private actors) in the form of loans, bonds, guarantees and equity shares. Financial intermediaries include insurance, pension and equity funds. The direct financial relationship is between the development bank and the financial intermediary.
Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

Client: APS Theta S.a r.l., a Luxembourg Securitisation Vehicle   

Seller: Piraeus Bank S.A.  

Co-investor/Servicer (NPL): APS

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - APS Holding Investor -
- - - - APS Theta S.a r.l. Client -

Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

COMPANY CONTACT INFORMATION

Viktor Toth
viktor.toth@aps-holding.com
www.aps-holding.com
APS Investments Pobrezni 394/12, 186 00 Praha 8, Czech Republic

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can request information by emailing: accessinfo@ebrd.com or by using this electronic form: https://www.ebrd.com/eform/information-request

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF EBRD

The Project Complaint Mechanism (PCM) is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who have been or are likely to be adversely affected by an European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the PCM, it may assess compliance with EBRD's own policies and procedures to prevent harm to the environment or communities or it may assist you in resolving the problem that led to the complaint through a dialogue with those implementing the project. Additionally, the PCM has the authority to recommend a project be suspended in the event that harm is imminent.

You can contact the PCM at: pcm@ebrd.com or you can submit a complaint online using an online form at: http://www.ebrd.com/eform/pcm/complaint_form?language=en

You can learn more about the PCM and how to file a complaint at: http://www.ebrd.com/work-with-us/project-finance/project-complaint-mechanism.html

How it works

How it works