The bankruptcy balance for 2024 has now been determined, and it is worse than ever: according to calculations by the Alpine Creditors Association (AKV), the total debt level exceeded the 20 billion mark for the first time at 19.55 billion euros.
In 2023 there were ‘only’ 16.75 billion. Last year, a total of 6,768 companies had to go to bankruptcy court, of which 4,156 actually ended up in bankruptcy proceedings. That was 346 per month and 23 percent more than the year before. In the remaining 2,600 cases, the assets were not sufficient for formal settlement; they were rejected due to lack of possessions. As a particularly bitter consequence of the record bankruptcy, almost 23,000 employees lost their jobs.
A number of spectacular, major bankruptcies were responsible for the deep red balance sheet. According to creditor representative Creditreform, the motorcycle manufacturer KTM was at the top with debts of 1.8 billion euros (see also table). Behind this is the American electric car manufacturer Fisker, which had the vehicles produced via its Austrian subsidiary at Magna in Graz and has therefore been included in our portfolio.
Seven Benko companies in the “Top 10”
Overall, real estate juggler René Benko was the biggest bankrupt. Six companies in his Signa Group, as well as the Benko Private Foundation, have accumulated more than 3.5 billion euros in debt to the detriment of its creditors.
Other leading companies whose restructuring ultimately failed included furniture retailer KikaLeiner, real estate company Imfarr and heating technology manufacturer Windhager. Only in December was the Salzburg traditional costume specialist Gössl affected (see table).
The reasons for the negative figures are clear: “The recession continues. As feared, the decline in production and investments during the real estate crisis was passed on to the commercial and industrial sector,” the AKV explains. Due to a lack of new orders, warehouses are full, uncertainty in the labor market dampens consumer confidence and further accelerates the crisis.
The AKV therefore expects that many bankruptcies will continue until at least the middle of this year.
Source: Krone
I’m Ben Stock, a journalist and author at Today Times Live. I specialize in economic news and have been working in the news industry for over five years. My experience spans from local journalism to international business reporting. In my career I’ve had the opportunity to interview some of the world’s leading economists and financial experts, giving me an insight into global trends that is unique among journalists.
