More companies declared bankrupt in October
Statistics Netherlands recorded 306 declared bankruptcies among companies, institutions and sole traders; the figures are provisional.
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In October, 306 bankruptcies were declared in the Netherlands involving companies, institutions and sole traders. This is according to new provisional figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS), added to the StatLine table on Thursday.
In this series, Statistics Netherlands counts bankruptcies declared by a court. It therefore does not cover all companies facing financial problems, payment arrears or voluntary business closures. The last two months in the table are provisional and may still be revised.
There were 367 bankruptcies recorded in September and 288 in August. The October figure is therefore lower than September’s, but higher than August’s. In the third quarter, Statistics Netherlands counted 792 bankruptcies among companies and institutions, alongside 115 bankruptcies involving natural persons with a sole proprietorship and 100 involving natural persons without one.
Show the figures
| All economic activities | |
|---|---|
| Nov 2025 | 287 |
| Dec 2025 | 296 |
| Jan 2026 | 263 |
| Feb 2026 | 290 |
| Mar 2026 | 344 |
| Apr 2026 | 273 |
| May 2026 | 261 |
| Jun 2026 | 347 |
| Jul 2026 | 253 |
| Aug 2026 | 288 |
| Sep 2026 | 367 |
| Oct 2026 | 306 |
Statistics Netherlands publishes the figures broken down by industry. For all economic activities combined, October stands at 306. The table also includes agriculture, industry, trade and business services, among others. The monthly figure alone does not show which industries determined the development in October.
According to Statistics Netherlands, bankruptcy can be declared at the request of a creditor, the debtor or the Public Prosecution Service. The number of declarations does not show whether creditors are paid in full. The figure therefore says something about court declarations, but not directly about the scale of the losses for employees, suppliers or shareholders.
For entrepreneurs, a rise in bankruptcies generally means a greater risk of unpaid invoices and lost sales among business customers. For employees, bankruptcy can lead to job losses, although the eventual employment impact depends on a relaunch, takeover or closure. Publication of the November figures by Statistics Netherlands on 11 December has not yet been confirmed.
The new series does not provide a complete assessment of economic health. That would also require turnover, profits, investment, employment and the number of new businesses. The figure does show how many companies and institutions were legally declared bankrupt in October; the provisional status makes a cautious conclusion necessary.
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Both sides of the figures
▲ Bright spots
- Statistics Netherlands recorded 306 bankruptcies in October, fewer than the 367 in September; this does not indicate a further month-on-month rise in this provisional series.
- The figures are broken down by industry, allowing sector-specific risks to be monitored.
▼ Concerns
- The figure of 306 bankruptcies remains higher than in August, when Statistics Netherlands recorded 288 declarations.
- Bankruptcies can lead to unpaid invoices, job losses and residual debts; Statistics Netherlands does not measure the total financial damage.
Critical note
This is a legal count series, not a direct measure of economic growth or business health. The figures for September and October are provisional and may be revised.
Who notices what
- Businesses
- They face the risk of unpaid invoices and losing business customers when trading partners go bankrupt.
- Workers
- A bankruptcy can cost jobs, but a relaunch or takeover may preserve some employment.
- Government
- The government receives a signal about business failures through the figures, but the series contains no estimate of the tax or benefit consequences.
Every point comes from the article’s sources and was included in the fact check.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The figures and definitions were checked directly against the CBS table. The text makes clear that the last two months are provisional and draws no broader economic conclusion than the source allows.
- confirmed In October 2026, 306 bankruptcies were declared involving companies, institutions and sole traders. — CBS StatLine, October 2026, all economic activities. source
- confirmed There were 367 bankruptcies recorded in September and 288 in August. — CBS StatLine, same table. source
- confirmed The last two months are provisional. — CBS table notes. source
- confirmed The figure concerns bankruptcies declared by a court. — CBS definition of declared bankruptcies. source