Statistics 2024 deep red

Bankruptcy year: huge increase in all areas

The situation in the construction sector is particularly dramatic.

(Bild: APA/HARALD SCHNEIDER)

Now it's in black and white: 2024 was a record bankruptcy year. All relevant key figures skyrocketed, with a six-fold increase in liabilities in Styria.

The trend in Austria is deep red with a 23.4 percent increase in company insolvencies, and Styria cannot escape the downward trend either: in our province, the figure is up 22.3 percent over the past twelve months. This corresponds to 526 insolvencies - an average of exactly ten per week.

Highest figure due to billion-euro hole at Fisker
The fact that liabilities exploded no less than six-fold is primarily due to the biggest bankruptcy of the past year, Fisker GmbH. In May, the Graz-based e-car manufacturer's stumble resulted in a loss of 1.54 billion euros. In total, the liabilities of all insolvent white-green companies amounted to 1.93 billion euros - a historic high.

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/stock.adobe)

Well over 2000 jobs affected
Throughout Styria, 2291 employees were directly affected by company bankruptcies. This is also an increase compared to the previous year (2214), albeit to a lesser extent. With 112 employees, PHP Management GmbH, which was only founded in May 2023, is at the top of the list. The Graz-based company specialized in laying fibre optic cables and the associated earthmoving work. 74 jobs were affected by the insolvency of Ennstal-based sports retailer geomix AG.

With 129 insolvencies, one in four bankruptcies in the previous year was recorded in the construction industry, which continues to be the number one economic problem child. The retail sector is hot on its heels with 126 bankruptcies, followed by the catering industry with 87 insolvencies.

Consumption and investment continue to weaken
"The continuing reluctance to consume and invest, the ongoing industrial recession and the crisis in the construction industry are reflected in the insolvency figures," explains Franz Blantz from the Styrian branch of the Alpine Creditors' Association (AKV). The outlook remains bleak, but Blantz highlights a Styrian peculiarity in the statistics: 143 proceedings ended with a restructuring plan - this corresponds to more than one in three cases (35.1 percent), is far above the national average (29.1 percent) and also represents an "unparalleled figure" internationally.

20 private bankruptcies per week
The situation is hardly any better in the private sector either. Here, 1011 bankruptcies were opened. Although this is a minimal decrease of two percent (2023: 1032 cases), according to the AKV, it "should be seen in relative terms". Styria was the sad pioneer here and, in contrast to Austria as a whole, already had historic highs in the four-digit range in the two previous years, which had never been the case since the introduction of personal insolvency 30 years ago. On average, 20 Styrians go bankrupt every week.

Debt is male and increases with age
There are clear differences according to gender and age: Almost 60 percent of personal bankruptcies are accounted for by men, whose average debt of 138,300 euros is also more than twice as high as that of women. In addition, the older you are, the higher your debts. For those aged 60 and over, the average figure is 166,900 euros, while men in this age group were even in debt to the tune of 214,800 euros on average.