A PROPERTY DEVELOPER who owes NAMA over €300 million has been declared bankrupt in England – potentially making it difficult for NAMA to pursue its claim against him.

NAMA won a judgment for €312m in November against Ray Grehan, whose businesses had gone into receivership in April of last year.

His Glenkerrin Group – which he ran with his brother Dan – had included apartments, fitnesses centres and hotels. The group owed an estimated €650 million to NAMA, and the Grehans were personally pursued for this matter.

Now, however, it has emerged that Grehan was declared bankrupt at the High Court in London on December 30.

Documents posted by the UK Insolvency Service show Grehan as giving an address at an apartment block in Hackney in central London, though it does acknowledge that he “lately” resided in Maynooth.

Pursuing bankruptcy proceedings in the UK is advantageous to developers, as people can emerge from bankruptcy within a year – as in Grehan’s case, with documents saying his bankruptcy status will be automatically discharged in December of this year.

Persons filing for bankruptcies in Ireland may instead have to wait up to 12 years for that status to be lifted.

Grehan is entitled to file in the UK, however, as that is where his “main interests” are based. He has significant property interests in Britain and Northern Ireland.

The filing may complicate NAMA’s pursuit of the €312 million owed against him, as the bankruptcy will require all of Grehan’s assets to be distributed among his creditors, which could include bodies other than Ireland’s national ‘bad bank’.

Any assets to which receivers have been appointed are not likely to be affected.

Previously: NAMA appoints receiver to Grehan assets