The National Asset Management Agency (Nama) was granted permission by a US court to take control of 67 acres of land at Celbridge, Co Kildare, owned by bankrupt property developer Seán Dunne, the Irish Times reported. The State loans agency sought relief from the automatic stay granting Mr Dunne court protection from his creditors to take control of the land, which is now worth just €812,000 but is securing Nama debt of €65 million.

Many Germans feel that whoever wins Sunday's election, they should not fund any more bailouts of fellow European countries, whose errant banks are a particular bugbear for Berlin, Reuters reported in an analysis. But a cornerstone of Germany's own banking system, which has already received state bailouts, is facing fresh challenges, increasing the need for reforms which will be very hard for any new government to deliver.

Two so-called vulture funds in the United States, which hold $75 million of subordinated bonds issued by the former Anglo Irish Bank, are threatening to scupper an attempt by the bank’s liquidators to protect $1 billion of its US assets from seizure by its creditors. The Irish Times understands that the funds, Burlington Alpha and Burlington Beta, are linked to Elliott Management, the giant hedge fund controlled by US billionaire Paul Singer. Mr Singer is one of the US Republican Party’s biggest contributors.

Workers in some of the euro zone's hardest-hit economies suffered steep falls in pay in real terms in the second quarter, as earnings growth across the 17-nation currency bloc sank to a near three-year low, The Wall Street Journal reported. Official data Monday laid bare the euro zone's painful, drawn-out process of rebalancing, as its weaker members—lacking the ability to devalue their currency—endure high rates of unemployment and stagnant or falling wages in a bid to become more competitive.

Co-Operative Bank Plc said it’s willing to engage with creditors proposing an alternative recapitalization plan as it seeks to raise 1.5 billion pounds ($2.3 billion), Bloomberg reported. The U.K. lender, which is being pushed by regulators to bolster capital after incurring losses following its 2009 acquisition of Britannia Building Society, was responding to proposals from Moelis & Company UK LLP, which is advising a group that owns 43 percent of Co-Op’s lower Tier 2 bonds. Bondholders said they want all of the bank’s subordinated bonds and preferred stock converted to common shares.

Portugal begins a new round of talks with international lenders on Monday amid signs that eurozone governments will strongly resist pressure from Lisbon to relax fiscal targets as the country approaches the final stages of its €78bn bailout programme, the Financial Times reported. A successful outcome to the negotiations is seen as vital for Portugal to regain the confidence of international investors following a damaging political crisis in July and a third intervention by the constitutional court restricting the scope of government reforms.

National governments may be forced to contribute to future bank recapitalisations if next year’s European bank stress tests reveal shortfalls in the balance sheets of European banks, a board member of the European Central Bank said Friday, the Irish Times reported.

Pressure is building on the Government to address fears that a debt-fuelled housing bubble is emerging after a leading UK property website tripled its growth forecast for home prices this year, The Telegraph reported. Rightmove started the year forecasting that average national asking prices would rise by 2pc over 2013. The property website, which advertises more than 800,000 properties nationwide, now believes prices are set to increase by 6pc, having previously raised its outlook to 4pc in July.

Germany’s pared down vision for Europe’s banking union has suffered a blow after the legal adviser to EU finance ministers largely rejected Berlin’s claim that creating a powerful central executioner to shut failing eurozone banks goes beyond the law. A confidential paper from the Council legal service, obtained by the Financial Times, upholds the foundations of the European Commission’s resolution authority proposal, in spite of Angela Merkel of Germany saying such radical reforms require EU treaty change.

Slovenia, a small euro-zone state that has recently caused major headaches for the European Union, has settled on a series of measures aimed at boosting tax revenue and stabilizing its public finances, The Wall Street Journal Emerging Europe blog reported. Its government said Thursday it would generate 200 million euros ($266 million) a year from fresh taxes by fighting the grey economy. The cabinet approved a plan to clamp down on tax evasion, curb undeclared employment, limit large, undeclared cash payments and other similar steps.