Extract from the UK Insolvency Service, click on image to enlarge
Following close on the heels of his brother, Ray, it is confirmed on the UK’s Insolvency Service website that Danny Grehan was declared bankrupt on 6th January, 2012. Danny’s fortunes are largely tied up with his brother’s; NAMA obtained a personal judgment against Danny last November 2011 which totalled just over €300m.
Although neither Grehan bankruptcy should come as a surprise to NAMA in a general sense, I get the feeling that NAMA was caught on the hop at the timing -following the news of the Ray Grehan bankruptcy on Friday last, RTE reported “”Clearly we will review the situation but our focus remains on recovering the maximum debt for the Irish taxpayer,” a spokesman for NAMA, now one of the world’s biggest property groups, told Reuters”
The Grehans had extensive property interests in the UK including apartment developments in London’s docklands, a shopping centre in Ealing, west London and a Crowne Plaza hotel in east London, and both brothers have reportedly been resident in the UK for some months. Danny’s address is given by the Insolvency Service as “3 Tower House, 58b High Street, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB8 1GF and lately residing at 6 Princes Park Parade, Hayes, Middlesex, UB3 1LA, Crinstown, Maynooth, County Kildare”
I would have said it was unlikely NAMA would challenge the bankruptcies in the same way as Anglo successfully did with Sean Quinn. Danny is set to be discharged from bankruptcy on 6th January 2013. In contrast bankruptcy in the Republic of Ireland lasts five years as long as preferential creditors are paid, or 12 years otherwise though the Government has committed to publishing new personal insolvency legislation by the end of March 2012.
There is a feature entry on the Grehans and their fall from grace with NAMA last year, here.
NAMA Wine Lake 
It is inevitable that more debtors will seek bankruptcy protection as NAMA’s objectives become clear to them. NAMA is currently tidying files in order to pursue its task of obtaining personal judgments against its borrowers more aggressively. I have often stated that Sweden’s “bad bank” bankrupted 70% of its borrowers and NAMA is not reinventing the wheel here.
Although they are definitely becoming more susceptible to political and social influences and are now succumbing to this pressure readily. Because of this and the lack of commercial and negotiation skills within the agency, it has no direction at all at present.
It’s a shame, but other than readying the legal teams to tighten the noose on the developers that it has filed in the “black box”, it has done nothing to progress its main objective, which is to maximise the return on its loanbook.
From ‘Wild Geese’ to ‘Wild Ganders’. And what is the difference between a wild goose and a wild gander?
No need to answer that!
[Deletion will not cause offence.]
Was I Correct in raising Concerns about the Relationship between Treasury and NAMA.Based on reports this morning these concerns would appear to have been proven correct