US Business Bankruptcy Filings Jump 16 Percent in January: Report

The high volume of bankruptcy restructurings are expected to continue in the first half of 2025, said PwC.

A person arrives at the U.S. District Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan on Jan. 9, 2020. Brendan McDermid/Reuters

The number of U.S. businesses filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcies rose last month on an annual basis, continuing the trend of rising bankruptcies seen last year, according to the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI).

“There were 539 commercial Chapter 11 filings recorded in January 2025, a 16 percent increase from the 465 commercial Chapter 11s in January 2024,” according to a Feb. 4 statement from ABI citing bankruptcy data provider Epiq AACER.