2025 insolvency levels in line with 2024 but formal restructuring and creditor led enforcement on the rise
- 407 insolvencies in H1 2025, down by 1% compared to H1 2024 (412).
- Formal Corporate Restructuring activity (SCARP & Examinership) up 56% year on year.
- Creditor led enforcement activity significantly up.
- Corporate Receivership activity up 37% year on year with significant activity by alternative lenders.
- Court Liquidations increased by 121% year on year with the majority of these appointments arising from creditor enforcement.
- Hospitality insolvencies drop by 14% compared to this time last year, but figure still high. Restaurants disproportionately impacted.
- 98.5% of insolvencies remain to be SMEs affected.
The number of insolvencies in the first half of 2025 has dropped slightly compared to this time last year. There were 407 insolvencies in H1 2025, down by 1% on H1 2024 (412). The balance of insolvencies across Q1 and Q2 was spread evenly, with 206 in Q1 and 201 in Q2.
Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation (CVL), which are Company led closures, has decreased by 18% (323 in H1 2024 vs 266 in H1 2025). Court Liquidations have more than doubled (19 vs 42). Revenue was the petitioner for 27 out of 42 Court Liquidations (64%) in H1 2025 compared to 6 out of 19 (32%) cases in H1 2024. The rise in Court Liquidations can be attributed to companies being unable to meet phased payment agreements with Revenue as part of the Covid-19 debt warehousing programme.
Receivership appointments rose by 37% (52 in H1 2024 vs 71 in H1 2025) with the majority initiated by alternative lenders.
There were 14 Small Company Administrative Rescue Processes (SCARP) in H1 2025, double the number compared to this time last year (7 in H1 2024). However, the uptake of SCARP is still relatively low since its introduction four years ago in December 2021. There have been 99 SCARP appointments since its introduction, with 22 in 2022, 33 in 2023, 30 in 2024 and 14 to date in 2025, which represents just 4% of all insolvencies in that time period.
The hospitality sector had 66 insolvencies in H1 2025. While this is 14% less than in H1 2024 (77), the sector continues to face a high level of insolvencies. It has the highest number of insolvencies of any industry in this country when services are split into subsectors. Restaurants are disproportionately impacted within this sector, due to legacy debt issues, difficulty attracting and retaining staff, and energy in Ireland being the most expensive in Europe.
98.5% of insolvencies are SMEs.
There was a 50% increase in insolvencies in Munster compared to 2024 (46 in H1 2024 to 69 in H1 2025). This increase was predominantly from Cork insolvencies – which have doubled from 21 in H1 2024 to 42 in H1 2025.
Leinster had the highest number of insolvencies (301), as expected.
James Anderson, Turnaround & Restructuring partner, Deloitte Ireland, commented:
Whilst the insolvency levels this year to date are broadly in line with 2024, there are interesting trends emerging. Company led closures are down whilst Company led restructuring has increased, hopefully this will continue in the second part of the year. Creditor led enforcement activity has increased significantly across both Court appointed liquidations and Corporate Receiverships. Court appointed Liquidation activity arising from unresolved debts are up by 121% with Revenue petitioning in 64% of these appointments. Corporate Receiverships have increased by 37% with significant activity by alternative lenders enforcing on real estate backed loans which have defaulted or matured without resolution.
Even though insolvency numbers year to date are similar to 2024 levels, with ongoing geopolitical and trade tension, there are significant headwinds to consider for the rest of the year.
SCARP has proven to be a successful process that saves companies and jobs. It is disappointing that awareness remains low despite a success rate of over 70%. It is crucial that an awareness campaign is invested in, so more people are aware of it.
Hospitality continues to experience a high number of insolvencies, despite the drop in 2025 so far. There are signals that the VAT rate may be cut to 9% in the upcoming Government budget, but this is unlikely to result in a change in insolvency rates in this sector as the challenges they face include legacy debt issues, difficulty attracting and retaining staff, and high costs, in particular for energy.
|
|
|
|
|
Insolvency Type |
H1 25 |
Insolvency Type |
H1 24 |
|
CVL |
266 |
CVL |
323 |
|
SCARP |
14 |
SCARP |
7 |
|
Examinership |
14 |
|
Examinership |
11 |
Court Liquidation |
42 |
Court Liquidation |
19 |
|
Receivership |
71 |
Receivership |
52 |
|
Grand Total |
407 |
Grand Total |
412 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Region |
H1 25 |
Region |
H1 24 |
|
Connacht |
29 |
Connacht |
40 |
|
Leinster |
301 |
Leinster |
321 |
|
Munster |
69 |
Munster |
46 |
|
Ulster |
8 |
Ulster |
5 |
|
Grand Total |
407 |
Grand Total |
412 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Industry |
H1 25 |
Industry |
H1 24 |
|
Construction |
39 |
Construction |
42 |
|
Hospitality |
66 |
Hospitality |
77 |
|
Manufacturing |
28 |
Manufacturing |
25 |
|
IT |
4 |
IT& Other |
18 |
|
Other Business Activities |
28 |
Other Business Activities |
15 |
|
Retail |
43 |
Retail |
42 |
|
Services |
173 |
Services |
154 |
|
Transport |
17 |
Transport |
22 |
|
Wholesale |
9 |
Wholesale |
17 |
|
Grand Total |
407 |
Grand Total |
412 |
Receiverships H1 2025
Chargeholder |
Receiverships |
RELM |
20 |
Link Financial |
9 |
OCM EMRU Debtco DAC |
5 |
National Treasury Management Agency |
5 |
Onate Finance No. 3 Limited |
4 |
Castlehaven Property Finance DAC |
3 |
Mars Capital Finance Ireland DAC |
3 |
Pepper Finance Corporation (DAC) |
2 |
Slideford Limited |
2 |
First Citizen Finance |
2 |
Capitalflow Group DAC |
1 |
Dashcap Limited |
1 |
Nevada Limited |
1 |
Aros Kaptial Limited |
1 |
E8 Returned |
1 |
Bank of Ireland |
1 |
Apex Financial Services Spain, S.L.U. |
1 |
Kommunalkredit Austria AG |
1 |
Novellus Finance Limited |
1 |
Cafico Trust Company Limited |
1 |
Duong Thi Minh Han |
1 |
Lorcan Gaffney |
1 |
Finance Ireland Credit Solutions DAC |
1 |
Madison Pacific Trust Limited |
1 |
AIB |
1 |
Kamagames International Group Limited |
1 |
Total |
71 |
- Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation (CVLs) is a terminal insolvency procedure whereby the directors of a company instruct a Licenced Insolvency Practitioner to act as liquidator to wind up the company’s affairs because it has become insolvent and unable to continue to trade.
- Small Companies Administrative Rescue Process (SCARP) was introduced at the end of 2021 and aims to provide a more accessible and cost-effective restructuring process for smaller companies that are viable, yet insolvent.
- Debt warehousing scheme - Businesses had until 1 May 2024 to either pay back their warehouse debt or engage with Revenue. The payback scheme was set up in 2020 to help Irish businesses get through Covid-19 by deferring certain tax payments for an extended period of time.
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Media Contact(s):
Declan Jackson
Deloitte Ireland Communications
dejackson@deloitte.ie
+353 1417 3522
Georgina Francis
Deloitte Ireland Communications
gefrancis@deloitte.ie
+353 1584 5459