AIB Group plc (ISE:A5G) is preparing to sell a portfolio of commercial property loans that had an original value of ?750 million, according to a Bloomberg report. The lender is likely to formally market the loan book in the first half of 2022, it said, noting that such portfolios, comprising loans issued before the domestic property crash more than a decade ago, are typically sold at a discount to their par value. "AIB has reduced NPE (non-performing exposure) levels from ?31 billion in 2013 to ?3.5 billion or 5.9% of gross loans at September 2021. For customers in difficulty our focus has been to put in place sustainable solutions to help them and our preference is to provide these through customer engagement on a case-by-case basis," a spokesman for the bank said, declining to comment on the report.