Co-working giant WeWork Inc. is seeking fresh financing in order to finish negotiating rent cuts with landlords and exit bankruptcy, it revealed in a court filing, Bloomberg News reported. The beleaguered company needs the funds mainly to pay rent on office spaces used by its customers, while it deliberates which buildings around the world to keep and which to shed as part of its chapter 11 reorganization. WeWork said that its efforts “are at a critical juncture,” in a court filing that responds to complaints by a number of landlords. More than a dozen landlords had asked a federal judge to force WeWork to pay rent they claim it’s withholding in violation of bankruptcy rules. WeWork has denied the allegation, arguing that the landlords could be paid using other means, such as letters of credit, rather than demanding funds from its shrinking pool of money. The “vast majority” of the unpaid landlords have access to letters of credit and surety bonds set up to ensure they are paid, WeWork pointed out in its filing. The landlords could also be paid using traditional security deposits that renters typically put down when signing a lease, the company argued.
