Sharp decrease in bankruptcies in July

The number of bankruptcies in the Netherlands dropped significantly in July. According to Statistics Netherlands, a total of 299 companies were declared bankrupt in July, which is 109 fewer than during the same period last year, a drop of 27 percent. It was also 4 percent fewer than in June.

The bankruptcy rate, the number of bankruptcies per 100,000 companies, was 8.1 in July. A year earlier, 11.3 out of every 100,000 companies were declared bankrupt.

Since March of this year, Statistics Netherlands has placed greater emphasis on the bankruptcy rate, which it says provides a better picture of trends in the number of bankruptcies. It also allows for better comparisons between sectors, as the number of companies can fluctuate over time and vary widely between industries.

Since the statistics agency began tracking the data in this way in 2015, the highest bankruptcy rate came in March 2015 at 24.8. It then began to decline, reaching a record low of 3.4 in August 2021. After that, the number of bankruptcies per 100,000 companies rose again until 2024, after which the rate has stabilized at a relatively low level.

The hospitality industry saw the highest relative number of bankruptcies in July. Out of every 100,000 hospitality businesses, just over 35 went bankrupt, compared with just over 58 a year earlier.