Sharp rise in the number of bankruptcies
During the 3rd quarter of 2022, the number of bankruptcies across the whole of Switzerland increased by 19.1% in comparison with the same quarter of the previous year. In percentage terms, the most severe hikes were recorded by the Cantons of Valais (+117.5%), Schwyz (+85.2%), Graubünden (77.8) and Ticino (+64.3%). On the other hand, fewer bankruptcy proceedings were filed in some cantons, e.g., the Cantons of Uri, Jura and Geneva.
Most bankruptcy proceedings were filed in the construction industry (289), followed by the wholesale trade (188) and the food and drink sector (152). In the wholesale trade, for example, this represented a rise of 56.7% compared with the same quarter of the previous year.
Similar percentage increases in the number of bankruptcy proceedings were also reported by architectural and engineering firms (+88.9%), the real estate sector (+47.5%) and the retail trade (45.2%).
Slight growth in new business start-ups
11,645 companies were set up in Switzerland in the 3rd quarter of 2022. This represents an increase of 3% compared with the same quarter of the previous year. 6,669 businesses were removed from the Commercial Register during the same period, which is 2.6% more than in the 3rd quarter of 2022.
Most of the new entries were in the Cantons of Zurich (2,208), Vaud (1,158) and Geneva (928). The Canton of Zurich recorded the highest growth of all the cantons, at 9.1%. The number of new start-ups in the Cantons of Solothurn (+30.9%), Ticino (+10.7%) and Aargau (9.1%) was also well above the Swiss average.
A look at the individual sectors reveals that start-ups were most frequent in the retail trade (1,002), followed by the management consultancy sector (894) and the construction industry (841). In comparison with the 3rd quarter of 2021, however, the number of new start-ups in the retail trade and the construction industry has in fact fallen.
About the survey process
We have taken into consideration all those businesses that were newly entered into the commercial register in the period from 1st July 2022 to 30th September 2022, as well as companies for which bankruptcy proceedings were filed and all those firms that were removed from the Commercial Register within the same period. A business may, for example, be deleted automatically at its dissolution for official reasons, at the cessation of bankruptcy proceedings, at the end of the liquidity deadline, in the event of merger or when a company is closed in the absence of any succession arrangement.
The full analysis can be requested from presse.ch@crif.com.
