The number of Swiss companies declaring bankruptcy rose again slightly in 2018 to 4,813. Construction, the trades and catering were the most affected sectors.
Overall there was a rise in bankruptcies of 2% on 2017. December 2018 alone saw 450 insolvencies, although this was 5% less than the previous year.
Only two regions recorded a drop in firms going bust: Zurich (-6%) and southwestern Switzerland (-1%), said a study by Bisnode D&BExternal link, a data and analytics provider, released on Friday. The regions with the biggest increases were northwestern Switzerland and eastern Switzerland.
“Bisnode D&B’s analysis shows that construction, the trades and catering carry the biggest risk of bankruptcy. If you have debtors in these sectors, you should be aware that the risk of payment defaults due to bankruptcy more than doubles,” a statement said.
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Why debt collection is booming in Switzerland
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The number of debt collections has doubled over the past 20 years. Fewer Swiss are paying their taxes or health bills on time.
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