Last year, England and Wales witnessed the highest number of company insolvencies since 1993, according to official figures. Despite the increase, the rate of businesses facing insolvency was

comparatively lower than the peak observed during the 2008-09 financial crisis when adjusted for the overall growth in the total number of companies.

The Insolvency Service, a government agency in Britain, reported that 25,158 companies were declared insolvent in the previous year. This figure translated to 53.7 companies per 10,000 trading, a rise from 49.6 in 2022 and the highest rate since 2014.

The agency noted that the number of companies listed on the Companies House register has progressively risen over time. Consequently, the insolvency rate in 2023, although higher, remained significantly lower than the peak rate recorded during the 2008/09 recession, which stood at 94.8 insolvencies per 10,000 active companies. Photo by Vectortoons, Wikimedia commons.