A clear picture is yet to emerge surrounding the circumstances under which NAMA's main Northern Irish portfolio was sold.

The agency may refer a former member of its Northern Ireland Executive Board, Frank Cushnahan, to the Standards in Public Office Commission for failure to provide it with key information as required under law - according to reports in today's Irish Times.

Mr Cushnahan resigned from his position with NAMA in late 2013 but the agency discovered the following Spring that he was seeking a £5m fee for advising the US investment firm PIMCO, which was bidding for a large portfolio of NAMA-controlled assets in Northern Ireland known as Project Eagle

NAMA chairman, Frank Daly, wrote to Mr Cushnahan recently asking him about a meeting he had with Pimco in 2013, about which the agency was not informed as it should have been, and about a shareholding he held in one of NAMA’s debtors, the Graham Group of bookmakers.

Mr Cushnahan’s lawyers say he cut all ties with the Graham Group where he was also chairman, prior to joining the NAMA committee - but Mr Graham claims he still holds a 5% stake.

NAMA recently provided a series of answers to the Stormont committee which is investigating the sale - adding further detail to its previous submissions.