National economy More company bankruptcies in Switzerland after nine months

The number of company bankruptcies in Switzerland rose significantly in the first nine months of 2024. A total of 4722 companies went bankrupt, which is almost 11% more than in the same period last year.

Just under a quarter of bankruptcies were in the construction industry, as the economic information service Crif reported on Wednesday. This was followed by the catering, retail and wholesale (excluding cars) sectors with the highest number of bankruptcies.

However, there was also a sharp percentage increase in bankruptcies in the employment agency sector (+41%), motor vehicle trade (+25.8%) and accommodation (+25.6%).

Deletions increase more than new start-ups

However, almost 39,200 new companies were also founded, which corresponds to an increase of 2.2% compared to the previous year. However, as the number of companies deleted from the commercial register rose more sharply at a good 24,900, the net growth of all companies fell by a good 4%.

The sectors with the most start-ups are retail trade (3,546), followed by management consultancy, construction and real estate.

According to Crif, all companies against which bankruptcy proceedings were opened in the period from January 1 to September 30, 2024, as well as all companies that were newly entered in or deleted from the commercial register during this period, were taken into account.