In the first nine months of this year, the number of businesses going bankrupt rose by 10.8% in comparison with the previous year. In September alone, there was a 28.5% increase in filings for bankruptcy. Even though the number of new company start-ups rose by 2.2%, net growth fell by 4.2% because more businesses went into bankruptcy.
CRIF AG has analysed how many new companies were set up in the first nine months of 2024, how many businesses filed for bankruptcy and how many companies were deleted entirely from the commercial register.
Filings for bankruptcy
Across the whole of Switzerland, the number of bankruptcies rose by 10.8% from January to September 2024. In September alone, the increase amounted to 28.5% compared with September 2023.
The largest percentage increases were reported by the Cantons of Neuchâtel, Geneva, Zug and Vaud. The number of filings for bankruptcy fell in the Cantons of Freiburg, Valais and Basel-Stadt.
The highest number of bankruptcy proceedings were reported by the construction industry (1,135), followed by the food and drink industry (691) and the retail trade (518). In percentage terms, strong upsurges in bankruptcies were reported by the sectors involved with employment activities (+41%), motor vehicle trading (+25.8%) and the provision of accommodation (+25.6%).
More business start-ups, but a drop in the rate of growth
A total of 39,165 new companies were set up in Switzerland during this time. This represented an increase of 2.2% compared with the same period of the previous year. 24,209 businesses were deleted from the commercial register over the same period, which was 6.5% more than the same period of the previous year. As a result, the net growth in the total number of businesses fell by -4.2%. The highest number of new entries was reported in the Cantons of Zurich (7,227), Vaud (4,012) and Bern (3,269).
A look at the individual sectors reveals that start-ups were most frequent in the retail trade (3,546), management consultancy (2,977), the construction industry (2,867) and the real estate sector (2,477).
About the survey
This survey took into account all those businesses that were entered into the commercial register for the first time between 1st January 2024 and 30th September 2024, together with those companies that filed for bankruptcy and all those businesses that were deleted from the commercial register during this time. For example, a company might be deleted automatically if it is dissolved; if bankruptcy proceedings are instigated; at the end of the liquidity deadline; if it is subject to mergers; or if a company is closed as a result of a lack of any plans for succession.
Source: CRIF
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