Cyprus recorded the largest increase in business bankruptcies across Europe, reaching 175.2% in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared with the immediately preceding quarter, according to data published by Eurostat on Monday. In the third quarter of 2025, company bankruptcies in Cyprus had decreased by 33.4% compared with the second quarter.
The Agency noted that for very small countries, the absolute numbers of businesses going bankrupt are very low on a quarterly basis, which can make the relevant indicators highly vulnerable. Eurostat reports that this is the case for Cyprus.
Growth in new business registrations
Data show that new business registrations in Cyprus increased by 3.5% compared with the previous quarter. In the third quarter, the increase had been 2.8%.
In the European Union, in the fourth quarter of 2025, the seasonally adjusted number of business registrations rose by 0.5%, while in the eurozone the increase was 0.3% compared with the third quarter of 2025. In the third quarter of 2025, the number of business registrations had increased by 3.5% in the EU and by 2.8% in the eurozone compared with the second quarter of 2025.
The largest increases in new business registrations were observed in Spain (+7.6%), Romania (+5.7%) and Italy (+5.4%). Conversely, the largest decreases were recorded in Ireland (-32.2%), Luxembourg (-15.2%) and Portugal (-11.4%).
EU and Eurozone Bankruptcy Trends
The seasonally adjusted number of bankruptcy declarations rose by 2.5% in the EU and by 3.4% in the eurozone compared with the third quarter of 2025. In the third quarter of 2025, bankruptcy declarations had risen by 3.6% in the EU and by 4.3% in the eurozone compared with the second quarter of 2025.
The largest increases in bankruptcy declarations were seen in Cyprus (+175.2%), Romania (+123.9%) and Estonia (+20.5%). The largest decreases were recorded in Latvia (-32.5%), Slovakia (-21.2%) and Hungary (-18.5%).