Insolvency by the Numbers: NZ Insolvency Statistics October 2023

In our 36th Insolvency by the Numbers, we look at our data set for October 2023 and past years to see how the month has tracked and what may be coming up in the coming months.

With October and the election finally at an end, except for specials, we have an indication of what party will be front footing it into the next 3 years. The consensus that came out over the election campaign however was that getting back on the good footing may take some time, with cuts in government spending appearing to be an interesting topic. Whether this happens only time will tell, but hopefully we will see a bit of stability in the housing market and NZ stock market.

Company Insolvencies – Liquidations, Receiverships, and Voluntary Administrations

Company insolvency appointments for October 2023 combined across all insolvency types continue to outnumber all years back to 2019. As seen in the trend from prior months the higher level continues rather than peaks and troughs seen over prior years. We did see a slight drop off in appointments across the middle of the month anecdotally the result of the mid-month election, but it did pick back up after. The month does remain slightly down on the last 4 months appointments however.

As a continuation from prior months court appointments remain elevated. As a comparison the drop is seen in solvent appointments for the month. The increase in court appointment liquidations has continued strongly on the back of steady winding up applications driven by the IRD and its recovery efforts though they did see a slight drop on prior months due potentially to the election.

October total corporate insolvency figures for the year to date have at last exceeded 2019 figures. There are now more appointments in the 10 month to date in 2023 that in the entire 2020, 2021 & 2022 total yearly figures.

The below graph shows the continued separation in corporate and personal insolvency figures as personal insolvency remains at its very low levels.

Notable Appointments: October saw the formal insolvency of Supie, the business coming to an end with its 120 employees after struggling to break into the cutthroat food retail industry.,

Winding Up Applications

October saw a continuation on from September but continues to be above past Octobers. As mentioned last month while it is below June and August figures it is likely the result of a continued consistent increase in figures evening out compared to the usual spike we see in June/July and November. So, a longer sustained lift rather than a spike and drop off.

In October, there has been a consistent fluctuation in the total number of winding up applications compared to past Octobers. For example, in October 2021, there were 39 applications, with 14 being company winding up applications and 25 being IRD winding up applications. October 2022 saw a higher total with 69 applications, including 7 company winding up applications and 62 IRD winding up applications. In October 2023, there were 82 applications, consisting of 33 company winding up applications and 49 IRD winding up applications.

When considering the year-to-date figures, we observe a continuous increase in the cumulative total of winding up applications. From January to October, the numbers have consistently grown over the years, reflecting a persistent upward trend.

From the below graph we continue to see that IRD’s October 2023 winding up applications now makes up just over 60% of all creditors and continues at the reduced portion of application seen last month. Whether this is the result of the upcoming election and a wind back in action by IRD or the wind down in the lead up to Christmas will become evident in the coming months.

Personal Insolvencies – Bankruptcy, No Asset Procedure and Debt Repayment Orders.