NAMA has selected Cerberus - the company at the centre of controversy in Northern Ireland - as the preferred bidder for its 'Project Arrow' portfolio of mostly small non-performing loans with an original value of €6.25bn.
NAMA did not disclose the sale price.
It said earlier this month that the portfolio had a reserve price of €1bn but that would be revised ahead of final bids after some income-generating assets were sold off.
"We consider that the Project Arrow loan sale has obtained the best achievable return for the State from these assets," NAMA chairman Frank Daly said in a statement, adding that just 2.5% of the loans are performing.
90% of the loans are based in Ireland, with another 6% in the UK and the rest elsewhere. 67% of the Irish assets are outside of Dublin, with 23% in Dublin.
NAMA added the decision to select Promontoria Holding, an affiliate of Cerberus, was based on the strong and clear recommendation of Cushman & Wakefield (C&W), the loan sale adviser appointed by NAMA in February 2015 to oversee the sales process for Project Arrow.
Cerberus said it "is pleased and excited to have reached agreement with NAMA for this important portfolio. In the last 18 months, we have invested heavily and with confidence in Ireland.
"We have seen strong results and good outcomes for borrowers and investors alike because of our disciplined, patient case by case approach. We are proud to partner with NAMA again and to further our participation in Ireland's economic recovery through this mutually beneficial transaction," a statement from Cerberus concluded.
Independent TD Mick Wallace has described the intended sale as "scandalous" and he has called on the Government to suspend the process.
Mr Wallace described Cerberus as a US vulture fund and he said NAMA should have waited until criminal investigations in the US and in the UK were finished.
Mr Wallace said Minister for Finance Michael Noonan was the boss of NAMA and he could stop or suspend the sale as it was not yet completed.
The loans in the Arrow portfolio, which were acquired by NAMA in 2010 and 2011, had been advanced to 302 debtors and secured against 1,906 assets.
There has been a significant deterioration in the value of these assets since acquisition.
Around 43% of the assets, by value, are residential properties, the majority of which are currently let or occupied. Many of the units are in locations where there is limited housing demand.
Project Arrow was launched onto the open market on 6 July 2015. 17 prospective bidders were provided with access to the Phase 1 data room by C&W.
Indicative Phase 1 bids were received from five bidders on 14 August 2015 and three bidders were shortlisted by the NAMA board for Phase 2.
The current Arrow portfolio is approximately 40% of the size of the portfolio as it stood at the beginning of 2015.
In the meantime, there have been a substantial number of asset sales and loan refinancings.
In addition, NAMA decided to retain a number of loans secured by residential development sites in order to facilitate its objective of funding the delivery of 20,000 residential units by 2020.
Also, in cases where local authorities indicated that certain residential units were suitable for social housing, the loans concerned were withdrawn from the sale.
Govt should not allow Project Arrow sale to proceed - Adams
Commenting on the announcement, Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said: "There is already huge public concern regarding Cerberus's purchase of NAMA's northern loan book last year.
"There needs to be full transparency and accountability in relation to any further NAMA transactions.
"I have called repeatedly for a Commission of Investigation into the management and operations of NAMA to conduct a full and proper examination of the facts.
"In the meantime, the Government should not allow the sale of Project Arrow to Cerberus to proceed," Mr Adams added.
Meanwhile, NAMA has confirmed that a loan linked to the lands around Westport House in Co Mayo has been removed from the 'Project Arrow' portfolio.
There has been widespread concern in Mayo about the implications of the loan being sold on and the consequences this could have for the tourist attraction.
It is understood debts of around €12.5m are owed in connection with some 400 acres of land around the historic house.
The building itself is not linked to the debt in question.
NAMA said it was in discussions with Mayo Co Council with a view to the local authority acquiring the loan relating to the land.
