The total number of insolvencies filed increased in May compared to April, but is down more than 2 percent since May 2024, according to data from the Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy.
Consumer insolvencies made up the largest number of filings at 12,004 for May 2025, which included 2,631 bankruptcies and 9,373 proposals.
Consumer proposals are agreements made between a borrower and lender that requires just a portion of the loan to be paid back, reducing the amount owed and the time it takes to pay it back.
Insolvencies by consumers for the 12‑month period that ended on May 31 increased by 5 percent over the same number last year. Consumer bankruptcies jumped by 5.4 percent. Consumer proposals increased by 4.9 percent.
Provinces that saw the biggest increase of insolvencies between May 2024 and May 2025 were Newfoundland and Labrador (16.6 percent), New Brunswick (9.1 percent), and B.C. (7.6 percent).
Those that had the biggest decrease in insolvencies were Saskatchewan (minus 14.1 percent), Quebec (minus 8.4 percent), and Manitoba (minus 4.0 percent).
Business insolvencies in the country were 391 for May this year, including 90 proposals and 301 bankruptcy filings.
For the 12-month ending May 31, business insolvencies saw a 13.3 percent drop compared to the same period last year. During that period, utilities, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and health care and social assistance registered the biggest increases in the number of insolvencies.
Businesses in accommodation and food services, arts, entertainment and recreation, and other services (except public administration) saw the biggest drop in the number of insolvencies.
In the first quarter of 2025, StatCan reported that debt grew faster than income, putting households at a higher risk of defaulting on loans.
The ratio of household credit market debt to disposable income rose to 173.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, StatCan said. That was up from 173.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2024.
StatCan said the household debt service ratio remained at 14.40 percent in the first quarter of 2025. Household debt service ratio is the total principal payments and interest on credit market debt as a portion of household disposable income.
