Washington Prime Group skips interest payment, may be filing bankruptcy

Washington Prime Group, owner-operator of nearly 100 malls and shopping centers across the United States, could be preparing a Chapter 11 filing.

The Columbus, Ohio-based company skipped an interest payment on its debt, according to a Bloomberg report based on unnamed sources with knowledge of the situation. They said that restructuring talks with its lenders that began last month were faltering.

Hopes remain that a new deal could be worked out and a bankruptcy filing avoided, though the price of the real estate investment trust’s shares fell by more than 50% as word of possible Chapter 11 protection leaked out. 

Like most large mall REITs, WPG holds that its prime locations and efforts to “reinvent the retail experience” continue to draw hundreds of millions of visitors each year.

“We are reinvesting in our town centers to further transform them into the hub of daily life,” said a company statement.