Dutch business bankruptcies projected to double

The number of bankruptcies in the Netherlands will be 101 percent higher this year than in 2021, credit insurer Atradius expects. Globally, insolvencies will increase by 51 percent. The Netherlands' increase is so much higher because of the high amount of government support during the coronavirus crisis, Atradius said.

Due to worldwide governments paying support to businesses worldwide during the pandemic, many companies that would have gone bankrupt without the crisis managed to hold on. As a result, global bankruptcies dropped 29 percent last year. But now that government support is coming to an end, these fundamentally unhealthy companies will topple on top of the usual number of annual bankruptcies.

There are significant differences in the number of bankruptcies between countries, which can be explained by the level of government aid, Atradius said. Countries with extensive support packages saw insolvencies decrease significantly in 2021 and will see a big increase this year and next year.

The Netherlands, for example, saw bankruptcies decrease 41 percent in 2021 and will see a 101 percent spike this year, the credit insurer expects. In Portugal, bankruptcies fell 57 percent in 2021 and are expected to increase 125 percent this year.