Another record year for going bust

Losses linked to insolvency ran into billions of francs Keystone

The number of bankruptcies has risen to a record level for the second year running, with more than 10,000 individuals and businesses going bust in 2005.

The Federal Statistics Office said that 10,800 bankruptcies were filed, an increase of three per cent on the previous year, but that associated financial losses were down.

This stood at SFr4.5 billion ($3.5 billion), 5.2 per cent less than in 2004.

Liquidation proceedings in 10,500 cases were concluded in 2005, an increase of 2.1 per cent.

Fifteen cantons received more bankruptcy applications than they did in 2004.

Most affected among them were Thurgau (up 158 applications), Bern (108) and Vaud (86).

In contrast, Schwyz and Solothurn registered the largest fall in cases, the former with 49 less than the previous year and the latter with 47 less.

2004 was a record year for bankruptcies, a result that was mostly due to one case of phenomenal proportions in canton Vaud. This alone involved a loss of SFr534 million.

Creditreform, the Swiss creditor association, revealed in January that 4,751 businesses went belly-up in 2005, a decrease of 4.1 per cent.

swissinfo with agencies

In brief

The number of bankruptcies filed in 2005 were:

Lake Geneva region – 2,767

Mid-Switzerland (Bern, Fribourg, Jura, Neuchatel, Solothurn) – 2,373

Northwestern Switzerland – 1,344

Zurich – 1,647

Eastern Switzerland – 1,424

Central Switzerland (Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Uri, Zug) – 836