If I was to make a guess I'd say that an agreement has already been reached with AIB to take the performing offsets as standard trackers, once the Offset facility has been removed after May 2024. The non-performing ones might end up elsewhere.
I often wonder in these cases if there are ever situations where mortgages can't be transferred for some reason (such as the bank not being able to locate the required customer-signed paperwork to allow then to sell the mortgage to another bank). Would the bank be stuck with those?
A lender can sell / assign a loan without the actual original written agreement. In a very worst case scenario they can apply to court to legally endorse a transfer of a loan (e.g. as part of a larger business transfer) but usually most loans allow for transfer / assignment of debt anyway without consent.
Even if the original lender loses the documentation they can extrapolate out the terms and conditions they believe you signed based on the standardised documentation at the time, and this is equally true for anyone who buys the debt.
This combined with the data supporting the balance and transactions as proof of the fact you were remaking repayments is used to prove the debt and material terms underneath it (e.g. if you didn't agree to take a loan, why were you making repayments, why have they got your deeds, why was an insurance policy assigned etc depending on circumstances).
It's up to the court then to decide whether on the balance of probabilities you agreed to borrow on the terms outlined.
So for a loan buyer it's not without risk and effort if they do have to go to court to pursue the debt / cash in on security or appoint a receiver.
Anyone buying a loan will usually take the risk and effort into account in buying the debt at a reduced rate (a "haircut").
Many borrowers will continue to make their repayments as normal so the loan buyer is quids in there, particularly if the transfer involves a "good book".
If borrowers refuse to pay post transfer (or had already stopped paying prior to the transfer) and legal action is required there is obviously a cost associated with that (in terms of money, time and associated resource) but the reduced price the debt was purchased at provides a bit of wiggle room to allow for that.
Of course if the lender still has a copy of the original agreement it does make life a lot easier and increases the desirability of the debt to the loan buyer (and in turn increases the sale value of the loan relative to what it would be without the documentation).
