Offices landlord Workspace on Friday said it will cut rents by 50% as tenants struggle with coronavirus-related business disruption.
The firm, which offers flexible leases, often to SMEs and startups, said the reduction is for the lockdown period.
Numerous businesses have staff working from home, leaving some offices largely unoccupied. Workspace said it has received a large number of requests for various forms of rent relief.
Workspace said it had already offered customers, on a case by case basis, the opportunity to defer a proportion of their rental payments.
FTSE 250 firm Workspace’s chief executive Graham Clemett said: “This is a very challenging time for all businesses, with many suffering immediate and significant reductions in income and adverse cashflow."
He added: "While the Government is providing a number of options to help businesses through this period, we have also been exploring ways of supporting our customers.”
Clemett told the Evening Standard the rent reduction move will have an impact of around £5 million per month on Workspace's rental income.
