The Washington Prime Group – which owns 100 malls across the United States – is preparing to potentially file bankruptcy, according to Bloomberg.

  • The real estate investment trust in February said it would use a 30-day grace period to continue negotiations with lenders, but talks are tumbling, according to unnamed sources.
  • The potential filing has yet to be finalized and could still change, pending negotiations over the grace period.
  • A Washington Prime representative declined to comment. The company earlier said the impact of the pandemic could affect its debt repayment capacity.
  • Washington Prime shares sunk as much as 63% to $2.234, and multiple trading halts were triggered after the Bloomberg report.
  • In November, the mall owner said it was “actively negotiating” with debt holders. Chief executive officer Lou Conforti at the time said bankruptcy was not on the table.
  • The company tapped law firm Kirkland and Ellis and investment bank Guggenheim to help handle maturities. Representatives from both companies abstained from the comment.
  • Washington Prime reported a 52% drop in rent collection in the second quarter of 2020. This later improved to around 82% in the third quarter.