There were 631 commercial chapter 11 filings registered in October 2023, an increase of 106 percent from the 306 filings registered in October 2022, according to data provided by Epiq Bankruptcy, the leading provider of U.S. bankruptcy filing data.
Overall commercial filings increased 14 percent to 2,188 in October 2023, up from the 1,916 commercial filings registered in October 2022. Small business filings, captured as subchapter V elections within chapter 11, increased 47 percent to 176 in October 2023, up from 120 in August 2022.
Total bankruptcy filings were 40,628 in October 2023, a 24 percent increase from the October 2022 total of 32,707. Individual bankruptcy filings totaled 38,440 in October 2023, registering a 25 percent increase from the October 2022 30,791 filing total. There were 22,473 individual chapter 7 filings in October 2023, a 31 percent increase over the 17,125 filings recorded in October 2022, and there were 15,901 individual chapter 13 filings in October 2023, a 17 percent increase over the 13,618 filings in October the previous year.
“As emergency funding from the government, lender forbearance, and lower borrowing costs helped to decrease filings during the COVID-19 pandemic, bankruptcies have steadily increased following the sunset of government funding, interest rates increases, inflation growth, and tightening lending standards,” said Todd Madsen, AACER Vice President. “October marks 15 consecutive months that total, individual, and commercial bankruptcy filings have registered monthly year-over-year increases.”
“Increased prices for goods and services, along with higher borrowing costs, add to the economic challenges faced by distressed families and businesses,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “Bankruptcy provides a proven process for struggling consumers and companies to alleviate their intensifying debt loads and a chance for a financial fresh start.”
October filing totals also registered increases across most filing categories when compared to September 2023. October’s total bankruptcy filings represented a 9 percent increase when compared to the 37,346 total filings recorded in September. Total individual filings for October also represented a 9 percent increase from the September 2023 filing total of 35,141. Likewise, individual chapter 7s increased 14 percent and chapter 13s increased 4 percent over September’s filings. Commercial chapter 11 filings increased 8 percent from September’s chapter 11 filing total of 584. Subchapter V elections within chapter 11 increased 2 percent from the 173 filed in September 2023. Conversely, the commercial filing total decreased 1 percent from the September 2023 commercial filing total of 2,205.