There were 436 corporate insolvencies registered in the second quarter of 2023 (April-June). Thereof, 103 were active in the previous year, which is more than quadruple the number from the same quarter in 2022, when they were 24. Thereof, there were 36 insolvencies in construction, 16 in wholesale and retail trade and vehicle repair, 15 in tourism industries, and 36 in other industries.
On average, there were 579 employees in the previous year for companies made insolvent in the second quarter of 2023, which is a nearly fivefold increase from the same quarter of 2022, when they were 117. There was an increase in the effect of insolvencies for all major groups of industries, both when looking at VAT turnover and the number of employees in the previous year.
The number of insolvencies and their effect on the number of employees was quite reduced for the period ranging from mid-year 2021 to the autumn of 2022. Looking further back, the number of previous employees for insolvencies registered during the second quarter of 2023 increased by 16.5% from 2021 (from 497) whereas it decreased by 47% from 2020 (from 1085), which was the quarter marking the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. Furthermore, there was a 25% decrease from the second quarter of 2019 (from 773). Therefore, the effect of insolvencies does not appear to be stronger than it was before the pandemic.
Insolvencies in June
There were 121 corporate insolvencies registered in June 2023. Thereof, 28 were for companies that were active in the previous year, i.e. they either had registered employees according to the official PAYE tax registry or turnover according to VAT reports. This is a twofold increase from June 2022. The number of employees in the previous year more than doubled, went from 70 to 152.
Statistics Iceland publishes monthly updates on insolvencies of registered companies. The number of insolvencies for the latest month are temporary estimates and are subject to change with increased information on insolvency registrations from judicial authorities.