Data · updated monthly
Swiss company statistics: October 2026
Bankruptcies, new registrations, board changes, family successions and M&A transactions in Switzerland, counted by ValIndex from every notice in the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC). Updated each month with the Market Pulse letter; every figure is compared with the same month a year earlier.
Data as of 31 October 2026 · Read the October 2026 letter
The year so far at a glance
October 2026, against the same month of 2025. Grey line: 2025. Select a figure to chart it below.
Bankruptcies: 2026 against 2025, running total
By the end of October 2026, 11,579 companies had been dissolved by bankruptcy in 2026: 2,941 more than by the same point of 2025 (+34%).
Each company counted once in the year. Much of the rise follows the revised debt-enforcement law in force since 1 January 2025, which ended the seizure route for public-law debts such as taxes and social contributions and sends those debtors to bankruptcy.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
Month by month
Bankruptcies, each month of 2026 against 2025.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
Where: bankruptcies by canton, January to October 2026
Most bankruptcies: Zurich (1,756), ahead of Geneva (1,546). Highest rate: Appenzell Ausserrhoden, with 45 bankruptcies for every 100 new registrations; Switzerland as a whole: 25.
- 1Jura+129%
- 2Thurgau+81%
- 3Appenzell Ausserrhoden+80%
- 4Obwalden+59%
- 5Basel-Stadt+51%
- 6Basel-Landschaft+50%
- 7Geneva+49%
- 8Neuchâtel+48%
- 9Graubünden+48%
- 10Vaud+47%
By the canton of the commercial register. Cantons with fewer than 30 bankruptcies a year earlier move a lot on small numbers.
All 26 cantons
| Canton | Bankruptcies 2026 | 2025 | Change vs 2025 | New register entries | Per 100 new registrations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zurich | 1,756 | 1,286 | +37% | 8,598 | 20 |
| Geneva | 1,546 | 1,041 | +49% | 3,623 | 43 |
| Vaud | 1,249 | 851 | +47% | 4,327 | 29 |
| Ticino | 863 | 621 | +39% | 2,071 | 42 |
| Bern | 799 | 575 | +39% | 3,697 | 22 |
| Zug | 689 | 491 | +40% | 2,910 | 24 |
| Aargau | 645 | 609 | +5.9% | 3,055 | 21 |
| Valais | 459 | 450 | +2% | 2,363 | 19 |
| Lucerne | 445 | 312 | +43% | 2,039 | 22 |
| St. Gallen | 428 | 428 | +0% | 2,455 | 17 |
| Fribourg | 404 | 294 | +37% | 1,636 | 25 |
| Basel-Landschaft | 354 | 236 | +50% | 1,223 | 29 |
| Solothurn | 353 | 401 | −12% | 1,149 | 31 |
| Thurgau | 340 | 188 | +81% | 1,214 | 28 |
| Basel-Stadt | 261 | 173 | +51% | 1,114 | 23 |
| Schwyz | 208 | 173 | +20% | 1,352 | 15 |
| Neuchâtel | 193 | 130 | +48% | 778 | 25 |
| Graubünden | 166 | 112 | +48% | 981 | 17 |
| Jura | 119 | 52 | +129% | 352 | 34 |
| Appenzell Ausserrhoden | 110 | 61 | +80% | 247 | 45 |
| Schaffhausen | 62 | 52 | +19% | 352 | 18 |
| Nidwalden | 54 | 41 | +32% | 256 | 21 |
| Obwalden | 27 | 17 | +59% | 162 | 17 |
| Glarus | 23 | 21 | +9.5% | 179 | 13 |
| Uri | 22 | 15 | +47% | 119 | 18 |
| Appenzell Innerrhoden | 7 | 8 | −13% | 99 | 7 |
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
Births and exits: new companies against companies struck off
2026 so far: 46,351 new register entries and 29,600 companies struck from the register, a net gain of 16,751.
Struck off is the end of a company’s legal life, after a liquidation, a merger or a bankruptcy; it lags the bankruptcy itself by months.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
Which figures moved: each month of 2026 against the same month of 2025
Bankruptcies rose fastest in March (+121% on a year earlier); by October the rise had slowed to +0.4%, because bankruptcies were already rising from May 2025, when the revised law began to take effect.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bankruptcies | +67% | +85% | +121% | +57% | +27% | +32% | +27% | +26% | +9.1% | +0.4% |
| New register entries | +3.4% | +3.2% | +7.9% | +0.4% | −13% | +13% | −3% | +0.8% | +5.7% | −3.5% |
| Struck from the register | +13% | +1.2% | +7.1% | −18% | −4.2% | +32% | +3.6% | +18% | −4.7% | −3.4% |
| Closed for lack of assets | +75% | +59% | +97% | +50% | +48% | +79% | +20% | +32% | +49% | +39% |
| Board and management changes | +7.8% | −4.1% | +3.6% | +0.9% | −11% | +16% | −1.6% | −4.5% | −0% | +2.7% |
| Family handovers | +12% | −6.6% | +4.5% | −20% | −35% | +5.8% | −3.3% | +8.9% | +7.9% | +2.6% |
| Merger notices | −2.7% | +1% | −6.2% | −16% | −9.6% | +19% | −4% | +0% | +7.3% | −26% |
| Capital changes | −10% | −6.8% | −0.4% | −7.2% | −10% | +9.7% | −8.3% | −2.5% | +16% | −7.1% |
Blue: at least 10% lower. Grey: within 10%. Claret: higher, darker for larger rises.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss companies went bankrupt in October 2026?
1,400Companies dissolved by bankruptcy, October 2026.
Same month last year: 1,395 (+0.4%)
How it is counted: Each company counted once, all legal forms; openings annulled on appeal excluded. 1,441 notices. October 2024: 744.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss companies have gone bankrupt so far in 2026?
11,579Bankruptcy dissolutions, January–October 2026.
Same period last year: 8,638 (+34%)
How it is counted: 5,864 in the same months of 2024. Each company counted once.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss bankruptcies were closed for lack of assets in October 2026?
1,419Bankruptcies closed for lack of assets, October 2026.
Same month last year: 1,018 (+39.4%)
How it is counted: Proceedings suspended because the estate could not cover its costs. Lags the openings by weeks to months.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many new companies were registered in Switzerland in October 2026?
4,635New entries in the commercial register, October 2026.
Same month last year: 4,805 (−3.5%)
How it is counted: All legal forms, including sole proprietorships and branches.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss companies were struck from the commercial register in October 2026?
2,854Companies struck from the register, October 2026.
Same month last year: 2,955 (−3.4%)
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many board and management changes did Swiss companies publish in October 2026?
11,045Notices changing a board or management, October 2026.
Same month last year: 10,759 (+2.7%)
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss companies changed their share capital in October 2026?
514Notices changing share capital, October 2026.
Same month last year: 553 (−7.1%)
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss merger notices were published in October 2026?
148Merger notices, October 2026.
Same month last year: 199 (−25.6%)
How it is counted: Most are absorptions inside one group, not sales between owners.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss company boards passed to a family member in October 2026?
238Family handovers on company boards, October 2026.
Same month last year: 232 (+2.6%)
How it is counted: A board seat passing to a relative with the same surname, AGs and GmbHs.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
How many Swiss M&A transactions were recorded in October 2026?
28Transactions recorded by ValIndex, October 2026.
How it is counted: 25 announced in the press, 3 visible only in the register.
Source: ValIndex, Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC).
Every month since January 2025
| Month | Bankruptcies | New register entries | Struck from the register | Closed for lack of assets | Board and management changes | Family handovers | Merger notices | Capital changes | M&A transactions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | 1,400 | 4,635 | 2,854 | 1,419 | 11,045 | 238 | 148 | 514 | 28 |
| September 2026 | 1,444 | 4,453 | 2,539 | 1,301 | 10,508 | 246 | 132 | 526 | 17 |
| August 2026 | 1,086 | 3,887 | 2,487 | 1,039 | 8,968 | 208 | 131 | 424 | 18 |
| July 2026 | 1,259 | 4,838 | 3,246 | 1,215 | 11,969 | 265 | 768 | 850 | 23 |
| June 2026 | 1,411 | 5,299 | 4,099 | 1,314 | 11,580 | 255 | 1,491 | 856 | 23 |
| May 2026 | 1,141 | 3,999 | 2,783 | 1,140 | 8,781 | 132 | 359 | 473 | 18 |
| April 2026 | 876 | 4,574 | 2,664 | 1,032 | 9,847 | 159 | 247 | 531 | – |
| March 2026 | 1,374 | 5,293 | 3,088 | 1,411 | 10,996 | 209 | 152 | 524 | – |
| February 2026 | 1,170 | 4,968 | 2,808 | 1,121 | 10,281 | 242 | 101 | 464 | – |
| January 2026 | 998 | 4,405 | 3,032 | 988 | 11,005 | 265 | 108 | 488 | – |
| December 2025 | 1,307 | 5,438 | 2,979 | 1,156 | 11,841 | 262 | 375 | 961 | – |
| November 2025 | 1,160 | 4,544 | 2,554 | 1,084 | 9,717 | 235 | 193 | 562 | – |
| October 2025 | 1,395 | 4,805 | 2,955 | 1,018 | 10,759 | 232 | 199 | 553 | – |
| September 2025 | 1,323 | 4,212 | 2,664 | 872 | 10,513 | 228 | 123 | 454 | – |
| August 2025 | 862 | 3,856 | 2,111 | 787 | 9,386 | 191 | 131 | 435 | – |
| July 2025 | 995 | 4,988 | 3,132 | 1,011 | 12,161 | 274 | 800 | 927 | – |
| June 2025 | 1,066 | 4,697 | 3,095 | 734 | 9,956 | 241 | 1,252 | 780 | – |
| May 2025 | 901 | 4,577 | 2,904 | 768 | 9,831 | 202 | 397 | 527 | – |
| April 2025 | 557 | 4,554 | 3,253 | 687 | 9,761 | 199 | 294 | 572 | – |
| March 2025 | 622 | 4,907 | 2,883 | 718 | 10,612 | 200 | 162 | 526 | – |
| February 2025 | 634 | 4,816 | 2,776 | 703 | 10,720 | 259 | 100 | 498 | – |
| January 2025 | 596 | 4,260 | 2,677 | 564 | 10,211 | 236 | 111 | 544 | – |
How the figures are counted
- Every figure is counted by ValIndex from the notices of the Swiss Official Gazette of Commerce (SOGC), all legal forms, by date of publication.
- Bankruptcies are companies dissolved by bankruptcy, each counted once (Geneva’s court often publishes two judgments for one company); openings annulled on appeal are excluded. The running total counts each company once in the year, so it is lower than the sum of the months.
- Our bankruptcy count includes sole proprietorships, so it is higher than counts limited to companies (Dun & Bradstreet reported 3,074 for the first quarter of 2026; we count 3,542, of which about 2,600 are AGs, GmbHs and cooperatives). The trend is the same.
- Family handovers are board seats passing to a relative with the same surname, AGs and GmbHs, each company once per month. Our detector reads French-language notices less completely; it was improved on 2 November 2026, but Vaud, Geneva, Fribourg and Neuchâtel still show far fewer handovers per board notice than other cantons, so we publish no canton breakdown of handovers.
- M&A transactions are the deals in the ValIndex deal ledger, which starts in May 2026.
- Recounted on 2 November 2026: every register figure matches the published September and October letters and the third-quarter review; an independent recount found no difference in 22 months; new entries for 2025 (55,654) match the federal SME portal (55,651). Family handovers for September, October and the third quarter were corrected in those letters.
How to cite
Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY 4.0). Please cite as:
ValIndex Swiss Register Statistics, October 2026. ValIndex, https://valindex.ch/en/swiss-market-statistics/
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