Japan’s Business Failures in February 2025
(Released by TEIKOKU DATABANK, LTD.)
In FY2024, the number of bankruptcies may surpass 10,000 for the first time in 11 years
Number of bankruptcies reaches 768, exceeding that of the same month of the previous year for 34 consecutive months
| Bankruptcies |
768 |
| Year-to-Year basis |
+4.6％ |
| Last Year same month |
734 |
| Liabilities |
167,287 million yen |
| Year-to-Year basis |
+22.9％ |
| Last Year same month |
136,166 million yen |
Highlight and Outstanding Feature
- ■There were 768 bankruptcies (734 in the same month of the previous year, up 4.6%). This marks the 34th consecutive month that the number of bankruptcies has exceeded the same month of the previous year, and the figure continues to set new records for the longest period since the end of World War 2. In addition, the number of bankruptcies has remained above 700 for 17 consecutive months, a high level for the 2020s. The cumulative total for fiscal 2024 so far (April 2024 to February 2025) is 9,195. The total has already exceeded that for fiscal 2023 (8,881 bankruptcies), and in fiscal 2024 it is possible that the number will exceed 10,000 for the first time in 11 years since 2013 (10,102).
- ■Liabilities totaled 167,287 million yen (136,166 million yen in the same month of the previous year, up 22.9%), marking the fourth consecutive month of year-on-year increase. The number of bankruptcies of companies with liabilities of 1,000 million yen or more but less than 5,000 million yen doubled from the previous year, pushing up the overall figure. The largest debtor was Marusumi Paper Co., Ltd., a manufacturer of Western paper, with liabilities of 58,775 million yen.
- ■By industry, the number of bankruptcies increased year-on-year in three of seven industries. The service industry had the most cases (to 196 cases from 165 in the same month last year, up 18.8%), the highest number for February in the past 10 years.
- ■By region, seven of nine regions experienced year-on-year increases. The region with the most bankruptcies was Kanto (to 256 from 246 in the same month last year, up 4.1%). The cumulative number of bankruptcies in fiscal 2024 has exceeded the number for the whole of fiscal 2023 in 33 prefectures.
- ■There were 37 cases of bankruptcies after zero-zero (COVID-19-related) loans, down from the same month of the previous year for the third consecutive month.
- ■The cumulative number of bankruptcies due to labor shortages in fiscal 2024 was 308, exceeding 300 for two consecutive years.
- ■There were 42 bankruptcies caused by a difficulty in finding a successor, and “illness and death of management” accounted for 33.3% of the total.
- ■The cumulative number of bankruptcies due to high prices in fiscal 2024 is 841, exceeding the 837 of fiscal 2023.
Bankruptcy Information TOP