The number of businesses is exploding in Switzerland, as are bankruptcies

Corporate collapses have increased drastically over the past year. Over-indebtedness is the main culprit.

Business bankruptcies increased significantly in 2024 in Switzerland. At the same time, there have never been so many company creations.

Compared to the previous year, the number of bankruptcies increased by 15% in 2024 to reach 11,506, almost half the level of pre-Covid years 2018 and 2019, according to a press release from the debt management specialist Creditreform published Friday. Affecting 18% of companies, over-indebtedness is the main cause of this significant increase in bankruptcy filings.

There are big differences between regions. The increase in the number of bankruptcies was particularly strong in the cantons of Nidwalden, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Uri and Graubünden. In contrast, it is the cantons of Jura, Friborg and Valais which record the lowest rates of bankruptcy filings.

At the branch level, construction records the largest share of bankruptcies with 22%, followed by the trade and business services sector, with 18% each. The hotel industry comes in third position with 11%.

Debt lawsuit and bankruptcy

Creditreform expects the number of corporate failures to continue to increase in 2025, in particular due to a change in the Federal Law on Debt Collection and Bankruptcy, which came into force on January 1. According to this provision, public law debts will no longer be pursued by seizure, but by bankruptcy.

At the same time, new registrations in the commercial register reached records in 2024. The number of business creations increased by around 2.6% compared to the previous year to reach 52,970.

Here again, the cantons present large disparities: the cantons of Fribourg, Valais, Uri and the two Appenzells show increasing figures. At the other end of the ranking, the cantons of Schaffhausen, Thurgau, Basel-Landschaft, Lucerne and Solothurn are poor performers.

A quarter of newly founded companies fall into the business services sector. The tertiary sector, that is to say the sector including gastronomy and commerce, represents more than 70% of new registrations in the commercial register, while the manufacturing industry and construction together represent around 17%. (ats)

Since the SNB’s surprise announcement to lower its key rate, interest rates have continued to fall, approaching their lowest level.

Mortgage rates continued to fall following the surprise announcement by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to lower its key rate to 0.50%, according to Moneyland. However, the downside potential is limited.