According to new report, Blackstone Group LP (BX) had raised more than $4 billion in the year 2009. The group raised the money to buy European property assets, which they predicted that the cash-strapped banks would be forced to sell due to the rise in debt crisis.

Currently, these deals have been surged because the lenders from Lloyds Banking Group Plc (LLOY) to Commerzbank AG (CBK) get rid of the soured real estate, corporate and consumer loans.

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, the sale of loan portfolios and other unwanted assets could reach 60 billion Euros ($82 billion) by the European Union banks.

David Abrams is a senior portfolio manager who invests an amount of 3.9 billion Euros in European loans for New York-based private-equity firm Apollo Global Management LLC. (APO). He said that the sales of these assets by the banks have been incremented.

Abrams added that the company has been facing a crisis from the past five years, but is just the start of the disposition process.

Tony James, Blackstone President, said that they are willing to have more deals in Europe than the U. S. They feel that buyers there have more distressed assets and the funds are having more advantage of equity markets to exit holdings.

Marc Lasry, chief executive officer of Avenue Capital Group LLC, said: "Europe is a happy hunting ground".