There you go BOB. Securities in troubled shopping centre owner...

There you go BOB.
Securities in troubled shopping centre owner Centro Retail Group and its property investor sibling Centro Property Group have been placed in trading halts pending the release of announcements.

Centro securities will remain in the halts until Monday, January 19, or when the announcements are released.

Last month, debt-laden Centro Properties Group was granted a one-month interim extension for all debt facilities, totalling $6.01 billion, that had had expired in December.

Without the extension it would have defaulted on its debt covenants and been placed into administration.

Under the new in-principle agreement, stapled securities equivalent to 14.9 per cent of Centro's existing issued securities were to be issued in mid-January to its 23 financiers, comprising Australian banks and US private placement noteholders, on a pro rata basis at market value.

The proceeds were to be used for payment of outstanding lender fees and expenses.

If converted in full, the hybrid securities would constitute 90.1% of Centro's fully diluted ordinary stapled securities.

The company owes $3 billion to eight domestic banks, $US1.5 billion ($2.23 billion) to five US banks, and another $US450 million ($671 million) to 10 US insurance companies.

Centro Property's stapled securities are in a trading halt as are those of Centro Retail Trust securities.