Overview
- Germany’s nationwide insolvency rate is estimated at 76 per 10,000 companies, up from 71 in 2024, with the pace slower than the post-aid surges of 2023 and 2024.
- Creditreform puts creditor claims at roughly €57 billion and estimates about 285,000 jobs threatened or lost in 2025.
- Small and medium-sized firms face the brunt as high debt, tighter credit, energy prices and regulation squeeze margins, with micro firms making up over 80% of cases and 140 large failures recorded.
- Pressure clusters in healthcare and care providers, retail and parts of manufacturing, with notable cases including Pfeiffersche Stiftungen, Argentum Pflege, Hammer, Kodi and Meyer Burger.
- Regional disparities are stark: Berlin’s quota is about 130 per 10,000, North Rhine-Westphalia records roughly 6,320 cases and a rate near 100, Hamburg reaches 99 and Hessen 79, while Thüringen (48) and Bavaria and Brandenburg (55) are lowest.