French corporate bankruptcies hit record 68,602 in 2025
Corporate bankruptcies in France rose 3.6 percent in 2025 to reach an all-time high of 68,602 proceedings, according to a Banque de France report. The total stood 15 percent above the 2010-2019 pre-pandemic average.
SMEs drive failures well above pre-crisis norms
The 68,602 insolvencies recorded in 2025 exceeded peaks from the 2008 financial crisis and the 2010-2012 sovereign debt crisis.
While growth slowed from 17.7 percent in 2024, trends diverged sharply by company size.
Microenterprises represented 92 percent of failures, rising 3.7 percent over the year and 12 percent above their 2010-2019 average.
In contrast, bankruptcies among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) rose 9 percent, standing 68 percent above pre-pandemic norms.
Failures of intermediate-sized and large enterprises also remained 68 percent above historical baselines.
Banque de France estimates that the post-pandemic catch-up eliminated nearly three-quarters of the 53,395 insolvencies avoided during 2020-2022.
Higher leverage and dynamic firm creation
Financial vulnerabilities extended beyond post-pandemic normalization.
Failing firms entered insolvency with higher leverage and deeper sales declines than in 2019: median debt reached 31.2 percent of assets for failed businesses versus 16.8 percent for survivors, while turnover fell 7.0 percent.
Simultaneously, strong business creation since 2016 contributed to higher insolvencies.
With company registrations growing 5.6 percent annually, econometric modeling shows that a 1 percentage point increase in business births lifts bankruptcies by 0.15 percentage points after four years.
No longer just a pandemic hangover
The data dispels the notion that record bankruptcies are merely a temporary pandemic hangover.
Mounting balance-sheet strain among SMEs and larger firms highlights genuine cyclical distress and revenue erosion.
Monitoring corporate leverage remains critical as economic headwinds test indebted balance sheets.