CYPRUS: State acquires 309 defunct Co-op properties worth EUR 82 mln

The government has acquired 309 properties worth EUR 82 mln that once belonged to the Co-op Bank from the state-owned Cyprus Asset Management Company (Kedipes).

Kedipes was established following the sale of the former nationalised Cyprus Cooperative Bank to Hellenic Bank.

With the demise of the Co-op, Kedipes was created to manage the bad assets of the failed bank which were not transferred to Hellenic.

In comments to reporters after a Cabinet meeting on Monday, Finance Minister Harris Georgiades said the government has decided to acquire the properties as part of Kedipes’ debt towards the state.

According to the minister, the majority of the properties will be given to local authorities to use for housing services and cultural events. 

A total of 153 communities and 14 municipalities will be given the right of use to properties worth EUR 57 mln.

“Three  more properties, two in Nicosia and one in Limassol, worth EUR 22 mln, are to house government services," said Georgiades. As the minister noted the property in Limassol will be used to house the Deputy Ministry of Shipping.

He added that the state will also acquire the Rialto building worth EUR 3.2 mln with the government intending to keep it running as a theatre.

Georgiades said this “is the first dividend to be received in a non-monetary form but in the form of real estate for which local authorities and state agencies are in desperate need of".

The Finance Minister also said that "by the end of the year Kedipes will start paying off its debt with quarterly cash installments."

Georgiades added that more properties are expected to be transferred to the state, sometime in September, which will be used to house more government services and community boards.