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3,600 bankruptcy applications last year
Smaller businesses are facing the threat of bankruptcy more than before.
Statistics Finland published its most recent bankruptcy statistics on Fri. 11 Apr. In March, 350 bankruptcy applications were submitted, 76 more than in March last year. This was an increase of 28% since March last year.
The full-time equivalent (FTE) headcount in companies for which bankruptcy applications were submitted was also slightly higher than a year ago.
In the past 12 months, nine per cent more bankruptcy applications were submitted than in the previous 12 months, Statistics Finland says.
“In the recent 12-month period, there have been 3,633 bankruptcy applications, which is the highest number since 1997,” Senior Statistician Mira Kuussaari of Statistics Finland says in a press release.
“Ever since 2021, companies at risk of bankruptcy have been smaller companies, often single-person businesses. Nevertheless, in March there were just slightly more bankruptcy applications for single-person businesses than a year before,” Kuussaari says.
The highest numbers of bankruptcy applications were for companies in ‘other services’, 123, as well as in construction and commerce. The largest increases in bankruptcy applications were in the hospitality and catering sectors, as well as in industry.
“The high bankruptcy numbers are due to many factors, such as the sluggish economy, Finland’s slow economic growth and consumers’ weak confidence,” says Tiina Toivonen, Legal Affairs Manager at Suomen Yrittäjät, the Finnish SME association.
“All the signs point to bankruptcy and business closure numbers remaining high, at least for the second quarter of the year,” Toivonen says.
“Donald Trump’s trade war is casting new dark clouds in the sky, slowing down nascent industrial growth,” Toivonen says. “The US is the largest export market for industry, and slower exports could for their part affect the growing bankruptcy numbers in future,” Toivonen says.
Sole traders’ share growing
Among business entities, the share of bankruptcy applications made for sole traders has been growing. That was also the case in March, as the growth from March last year was 129%.
In the first quarter of 2025, the number of bankruptcy applications for sole traders’ businesses grew from 109 to 210, 93%.
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