Vienna under bankruptcy pressure: 7 companies declare bankruptcy daily in Vienna
The Austrian capital Vienna is facing a sharp increase in corporate bankruptcies during the first half of 2025, with 1,366 companies declared bankrupt, representing about 39% of total bankruptcies in Austria. These figures mean that seven companies declare bankruptcy daily in Vienna. Compared to last year, the number of bankruptcies has increased by nearly 10%.
The real estate sector is the most affected, as four of the five largest bankruptcies in Vienna are companies belonging to 'SIGNA Gruppe'. 'SÜBA AG', another real estate company, also joins the list of the largest bankruptcies. The debts owed by these companies amount to hundreds of millions of euros, keeping the total debts of bankrupt companies in Vienna at a high level, despite a 25% decrease to around 2.6 billion euros.
The trade and construction sectors also did not escape the wave. The trade sector recorded 209 bankruptcies, and the construction sector 205 cases. While the construction sector saw a slight decrease in the number of cases, bankruptcies in the trade sector rose slightly. As for the real estate sector, its crisis continued and worsened compared to last year.
It is noteworthy that about 40% of bankrupt companies did not undergo formal bankruptcy procedures due to not having assets to cover costs. Jürgen Geibauer, head of the corporate bankruptcy department in Vienna, Lower Austria, and Burgenland, commented that these figures reflect the fragility of the economic situation, pointing to the continued rise in energy prices, wage costs, inflation, as well as geopolitical instability as main reasons.
No improvement is expected soon, as estimates indicate that the number of bankruptcies in Vienna will reach 2,700 by the end of 2025, an increase of about 200 cases from 2024.