Cyprus Country Commercial Guide
Learn about the market conditions, opportunities, regulations, and business conditions in cyprus, prepared by at U.S. Embassies worldwide by Commerce Department, State Department and other U.S. agencies’ professionals
Select Country Guide
Distressed Assets
Last published date:

Overview

Despite considerable progress in recent years, banks in the ROC still had the EU’s highest percentage of non-Performing Loans (NPLs) at 9.0 percent of all loans as of April 2023.  Cypriot banks are striving to reduce NPLs further, either by selling their portfolios of NPLs or using recently amended insolvency and foreclosure frameworks.  Since 2013, the two largest banks on the island by market share, Bank of Cyprus and Hellenic Bank, have reduced their exposure to NPLs through loan restructuring and securitization. 

Leading Sub-Sectors and Opportunities

Long-Term Investments

Long-term investors may find opportunities to acquire distressed assets at discount prices either from the two main local banks or from debt-servicing companies (several relevant websites are listed below).  Notably, property prices in the ROC bottomed out in 2014 and have been rising slowly since, making the acquisition of NPLs tied to property an attractive prospect.  At present levels, domestic property prices are competitive with other southern European countries, including Portugal, Spain, and Greece, as well as neighboring Israel and Lebanon.  Prospective investors must have a legal presence in Cyprus and be vetted by the Central Bank of Cyprus.  Non-EU investors interested in acquiring large development projects in the ROC may be able to overcome restrictions concerning property size by establishing a company in the ROC.

Resources

Bank of Cyprus Real Estate Management Unit

Gordian Holdings

Altamira Asset Management (Cyprus)

Central Bank’s Property Index

Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Cyprus Property Index

×

Global Business Navigator Chatbot Beta

Welcome to the Global Business Navigator, an artificial intelligence (AI) Chatbot from the International Trade Administration (ITA). This tool, currently in beta version testing, is designed to provide general information on the exporting process and the resources available to assist new and experienced U.S. exporters. The Chatbot, developed using Microsoft’s Azure AI services, is trained on ITA’s export-related content and aims to quickly get users the information they need. The Chatbot is intended to make the benefits of exporting more accessible by understanding non-expert language, idiomatic expressions, and foreign languages.

Limitations

As a beta product, the Chatbot is currently being tested and its responses may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete information. The Chatbot is trained to decline out of scope or inappropriate requests. The Chatbot’s knowledge is limited to the public information on the Export Solutions web pages of Trade.gov, which covers a wide range of topics on exporting. While it cannot provide responses specific to a company’s product or a specific foreign market, its reference pages will guide you to other relevant government resources and market research. Always double-check the Chatbot’s responses using the provided references or by visiting the Export Solutions web pages on Trade.gov. Do not use its responses as legal or professional advice. Inaccurate advice from the Chatbot would not be a defense to violating any export rules or regulations.

Privacy

The Chatbot does not collect information about users and does not use the contents of users’ chat history to learn new information. All feedback is anonymous. Please do not enter personally identifiable information (PII), sensitive, or proprietary information into the Chatbot. Your conversations will not be connected to other interactions or accounts with ITA. Conversations with the Chatbot may be reviewed to help ITA improve the tool and address harmful, illegal, or otherwise inappropriate questions.

Translation

The Chatbot supports a wide range of languages. Because the Chatbot is trained in English and responses are translated, you should verify the translation. For example, the Chatbot may have difficulty with acronyms, abbreviations, and nuances in a language other than English.

Privacy Program | Information Quality Guidelines | Accessibility