THE NATIONAL Asset Management Agency is close to taking control of the building that houses Louis Vuitton’s high-profile London store on Bond Street and a number of well-known Dublin properties, in a move against developer David Daly.
Mr Daly has failed to agree a business plan with Nama detailing how he intends to repay loans he borrowed to fund a series of personal property investments.
As a result, Nama has begun proceedings that could lead to it appointing receivers to his properties within days, unless he takes steps to prevent this.
The agency is moving against Mr Daly’s personal properties, and not against his building business, Albany Homes, which was a substantial player in residential development in Dublin.
His properties include the Bond Street block that is home to Louis Vuitton’s London store which was opened last year.
Mr Daly originally bought into the building for £50 million sterling (€56 million) in 2004.
AIB loaned some of the money used to purchase the building.
He subsequently bought an adjacent property for £65 million to create a complete block. According to reports yesterday, the property’s value has increased to around €225 million.
While it was not possible to contact Mr Daly yesterday, it is understood that he is meeting any repayments due on his loans.
Reports suggested that he would challenge any attempt to appoint receivers or administrators to London properties.
In Dublin, he owns properties on St Stephen’s Green, including the building that contains the popular Peploe’s Restaurant. He also owns Franklin House, an office building on Pembroke Road in Ballsbridge. In the same area of the capital, he owns an apartment block close to the US embassy.
Nama did not comment on the case yesterday, and it is not known how much he owes the agency. The move against him means Nama is not satisfied with his proposals to clear the debts.
In these situations, Nama writes to the debtors, pointing out that their proposals to repay the money they have borrowed are not satisfactory, and then issues a demand for full repayment.
If the debtor does not respond satisfactorily, the agency appoints a receiver to the properties involved. In the case of the Irish properties, the legislation underpinning Nama allows it to appoint receivers without going to court or taking any other such steps.
In the case of the London properties, the agency could have to seek the British courts’ permission to take control of these assets.
Nama recently appointed a receiver to properties owned personally by developer and property speculator Derek Quinlan and his family.
It has taken control of the bulk of the €80 billion worth of property-related loans from the five participating banks: AIB, Anglo Irish, Bank of Ireland, EBS and Irish Nationwide. It paid less than half the actual amount due to buy the debts.
Along with a high quantity of Irish properties, Nama has a range of interests in London. A few months ago, Mr Quinlan put the Citigroup building on the British capital’s Canary Wharf on the market following pressure from Nama.
More recently, it appointed receivers to commercial properties in Ealing, Shoreditch and other areas owned by developer Ray Grehan.
TROPHY BUILDINGS: LOUIS VUITTON LONDON FLAGSHIP STORE PART OF DALY PORTFOLIO:
PROFILE: COMPANY BUILT 4,000 HOMES IN DUBLIN AND KILDARE:
WHILE HE is not in the “top tier” of developers whose property loans now belong to State agency Nama, David Daly is still in the higher echelons of that group.
Mr Daly (61) has an address on Torquay Road, in the Dublin suburb of Foxrock.
His main business is Albany Homes, a residential construction group that built around 4,000 homes in Dublin and Kildare over the last 15 years, in areas including Kinsealy, Malahide, Rathfarnham, Kilcock and Maynooth.
The group is respected in its industry and has a reputation for building good-quality homes.
The most recently available accounts for Albany show it lost €17 million in the 12 months to September 30th, 2009. Part of that loss was due to a reduction of €14 million on the value of the company’s properties.
Its net debt was €115 million and the accounts show that Bank of Ireland held security of some of its assets and sites.
In the middle of the last decade, Mr Daly joined a number of Irish property investors in London. Derek Quinlan, Paddy McKillen and Ray Grehan, all of whom have had recent dealings with Nama, were also actively buying in the British capital at the time.
In 2004, he bought a building on Bond Street for £50 million sterling (€56 million), and subsequently spent a further £65 million on an adjacent property. The block is now worth €225 million.
Last year, designer label Louis Vuitton opened a flagship store in the Bond Street complex, where party guests included actress Gwyneth Paltrow.
The Bond Street premises and a number of commercial and residential buildings in Dublin, are personal investments, and not connected with Albany Homes.
BARRY O'HALLORAN
