Consolation in the event of insolvency

Bankruptcies: Styrians get many debts back

Franz Blantz (right) heads the AKV office in Graz, left: his deputy Markus Graf

(Bild: Jauschowetz Christian/Christian Jauschowetz)

A record year for company insolvencies seems possible. However, creditors in Austria are doing comparatively well: more debts are being repaid here than anywhere else. Styria stands out in particular.

The wave of insolvencies is here to stay. While there was already an increase to 611 company bankruptcies in Styria last year, the KSV credit protection association is even expecting around 720 cases by the end of the year this year!

According to Franz Blantz, head of the Graz branch of the AKV (Alpenländischer Kreditorenverband) and the insolvency division for Austria as a whole, this year could even see an all-time high! Industry in particular continues to cause great concern. Blantz: "The problems there are also increasing the number of follow-on insolvencies." An extreme example is the bankruptcy of the electric car company Fisker, which has liabilities of 3.8 billion euros - an absolute record!

AKV celebrates its 100th birthday
The credit protectors are currently drowning in work - but there was still time to celebrate. Because the AKV is 100 years old. It was founded in Carinthia in 1924, but soon moved its headquarters to Graz. In addition to providing credit information and collecting debts, its main task is to represent creditors (i.e. companies or individuals to whom an insolvent company owes money) in court and also to monitor and support the insolvency administrator. The employees, almost all of whom are lawyers, are present at votes on restructuring plans, before which they recommend to their clients whether to approve or reject them.

Creditor protection in Austria better than anywhere else
The system, which has been well established for decades, ensures that creditors in Austria get more money back in the event of bankruptcy than anywhere else in the world. In the first half of the year, 29% of insolvent companies in Austria were able to achieve a restructuring plan, and in Styria this was achieved in 37% of cases!

In more than 80 proceedings in Austria, the companies even repaid 100 percent of their debts. The minimum quota is 20 percent - but according to Blantz, this is usually exceeded.