Dutch business bankruptcies rise 27% in October

The number of Dutch businesses declared bankrupt rose by 27% in October compared with a year earlier, according to Statistics Netherlands (CBS), while remaining almost unchanged from September.

CBS recorded 322 bankruptcies in October, 69 more than in October 2025 and one more than the previous month. Its court-day-adjusted bankruptcy rate was 8.5 per 100,000 businesses, up from 6.8 a year earlier. The rate was unchanged from September and has fluctuated between 7 and 8 since mid-2025, CBS says.

The increase was not uniform across sectors. Hospitality had the highest bankruptcy rate in October, at 25.1 per 100,000 businesses, compared with 23.3 a year earlier. Industry saw the largest rise, from 19.5 to 24.8 per 100,000.

CBS cautions that sector rates are not adjusted for the number of court sitting days, unlike the national rate. Its figures count businesses and sole traders declared bankrupt by a court.