Sharp increase in bankruptcies in November

The number of bankruptcies increased sharply in November. According to preliminary figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS), 166 companies and institutions were declared bankrupt last month, excluding sole proprietorships. That's an increase of 57 percent compared to a month earlier and the highest number of 2021.

The number of bankruptcies is still a lot lower than before the coronavirus crisis. Due to the massive coronavirus support from the government, very few companies went bankrupt this year. Judges were also more reluctant to declare essentially healthy companies bankrupt due to the coronavirus crisis.

Wage support for entrepreneurs expired in October. According to CBS, it is possible that this led to an increase in the number of bankruptcies in November. "It wouldn't be strange," said chief economist Peter Hein van Mulligen of CBS. According to him, it is risky to draw conclusions based on one monthly figure. Due to the coronavirus restrictions, companies can again apply for wage support for November and December.

The stats office corrected the reported figure for the number of hearing days because many courts make their bankruptcy rulings on a fixed day of the week, usually Tuesdays. Some months have more Tuesdays than others.

Retail trade saw most companies going bankrupt last month. In relative terms, the construction sector had the most bankruptcies, according to CBS.

The number of bankruptcies in the Netherlands peaked in May 2013 at 816 companies and institutions. After that, the number decreased until mid-August 2017. Subsequently, the number of bankruptcies remained relatively unchanged until the middle of last year, when it decreased significantly. In August, bankruptcies reached their lowers level in over 30 years, and they remained low in the months that followed.